BRUIN UP A STORM NO ROCKY ROAD FOR ATKINS FORMER UCLA STANDOUT BIG HIT WITH COLORADO.

Byline: HEATHER GRIPP Staff Writer

Garrett Atkins plays for the Colorado Rockies, but one of the ways he measures how well his season is going is by checking the Philadelphia Phillies' statistics. If his own stats are anywhere close to those of Phillies All-Star second baseman Chase Utley, Atkins figures he can't be doing too bad.

Not bad at all this season.

Atkins and Utley were teammates at UCLA and a friendly rivalry remains between the infielders. Utley sets a high standard, having entered this weekend tied for the National League lead in hits, but Atkins has more than kept pace and emerged as another of the NL's leading young hitters.

After adding another hit in Friday's series-opening loss to the Dodgers, Atkins was batting .316, good for seventh-best in the NL. Atkins also ranks among the league's top 10 in other categories, including runs, hits and doubles.

``This might be the first year I might be able to beat (Utley) in a few stats,'' Atkins said. ``So I'll be sure to remind him of that when I see him in the offseason.''

The Rockies are more interested in how Atkins helps them beat teams rather than individuals. The 26-year-old third baseman entered the weekend with 22 home runs and 93 RBIs, putting him on track to lead Colorado in RBIs for the second year in a row.

``He put together a real solid campaign last year and he's stretching it out this year,'' Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said.

Atkins had a team-high 14-game hitting streak earlier this summer and returned back home to Southern California this weekend in the midst of another hot stretch. His single Friday extended his hitting streak to nine games and gave him 17 hits during that span.

``I'm just seeing the ball well and getting good pitches to hit,'' said Atkins, adding that he has benefited from trying to adopt veteran teammate Todd Helton's approach of never wasting an at-bat.

``And I've been getting a little bit lucky -- I've had a few infield hits here and there, that's what you need.

``I've tried not to change too much. I've kind of bounced around all year in the lineup, so I just try to stick with the same approach and try not to do too much and just stay with my line drives. That's what's worked for me in the past and will hopefully continue to work for me.''

Atkins' success is nothing new. At UCLA, he was the program's first three-time All-American. He went on to win the Triple-A Pacific Coast League batting title in 2004 by leading the entire minor leagues with a .366 average. He finished fourth in last year's NL Rookie of the Year voting.

Atkins still is getting used to another tell-tale sign of his progress: the fans, even in opposing cities, often telling him he is now on their fantasy league teams.

``I've always been able to hit at every level,'' said Atkins, who batted .287 with 13 home runs and 89 RBIs last season.

``But until you do it here in the big leagues, you're never sure. I'm a little surprised at how well I've done this year with the power numbers and stuff like that. People kept saying the power would develop, so I guess it has. It's kind of exciting to be able to put up numbers like that.

``Coming into the season, my only real goals were to build off last year and try to improve on the numbers there, and help make the team a little better, get us more competitive. We've won a few more games this year, so that's good. I want to keep building on what I've done.''

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CAPTION(S):

photo, 2 boxes

Photo:

Colorado's Garrett Atkins, a former UCLA standout, is batting .316, good for seventh-best in the National League.

Associated Press

Box:

(1) LOCALS IN THE MAJORS

(2) LOCALS IN THE MINORS