PADRE-MONIUM; SAN DIEGO RETURNS TO WORLD SERIES AFTER 14-YEAR WAIT : SAN DIEGO 5, ATLANTA 0.

Byline: T.R. Sullivan Fort Worth Star-Telegram 

San Diego Padres manager Bruce Bochy is a genius again. The Atlanta Braves are underachievers again. Their bid for a miracle comeback is over.

Michael Tucker's dramatic home run off Kevin Brown on Monday served only to raise some hopes that probably weren't realistic to begin with.

The Padres finally finished off the Braves with the pitching that carried them earlier in this series, winning their first National League pennant since 1984 with a 5-0 victory in Game 6 of the NL Championship Series on Wednesday.

``Oh yeah!'' catcher Jim Leyritz screamed in the visitors' clubhouse at Turner Field as teammate Ruben Rivera poured champagne over his bald head. ``Did somebody say this is the night the lights went out in Georgia? Oh yeah!''

``It doesn't get any better than this,'' said manager Bruce Bochy, whose decision to pitch Sterling Hitchcock on Wednesday instead of Brown paid off.

Hitchcock, named most valuable player of the series, pitched five impressive innings, then let four relievers finish up a combined two-hit shutout. Hitchcock has won three games this postseason, and the opposing pitchers were a trio of former Cy Young Award winners: Randy Johnson, Greg Maddux and, Wednesday, Tom Glavine.

The Braves' offense, dormant for the first three games, had revived their hopes of a comeback by breaking out in Games 4 and 5. But manager Bobby Cox said on Wednesday, ``Hitchcock was really good today. We ran into him twice and he was exceptional. We just couldn't hit.''

Now Bochy, who almost blew it by using Brown in relief in Game 5, has his All-Star right-hander fully rested and ready to face the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series on Saturday.

``This is what you play for,'' said outfielder Greg Vaughn, who returned to the Padres' lineup and started their five-run sixth with a single to left. ``Now we get a chance to play the New York Yankees in the World Series. That's what you live for. It's not going to be easy. We've got to find a way, but we have all year.''

Outfielder Tony Gwynn, the only Padres player left from the 1984 World Series team, said, ``In 1984 we were just happy to be there. This time we won't be satisfied to just be there. We want to win it.''

But Gwynn said the Padres were going to spend one night celebrating their victory against the Braves, then start worrying about the Yankees today.

``I can't tell you how extremely happy I am,'' Gwynn said between champagne dousings. ``I'm happy for the 25 guys in the clubhouse because they've worked hard all year for this, and I'm happy for the people in the front office because they needed a good year to get some of the things (e.g. a new stadium) they wanted.

``But I'm happiest for the city of San Diego. They've waited a long time for this and to see the way they backed us this postseason, it's been unbelievable. I've been in this organization a long time, but right now I feel more like a fan than a player.''

The Braves, hoping to become the first team to win a best-of-seven series after being down 3-0, are left with the sting of having been eliminated in the NLCS for the second year in a row. There's also the disappointment of having won just one World Series this decade despite seven trips to the playoffs.

The Braves' hopes died in the sixth after tough pitching by Hitchcock and Glavine, plus the late-afternoon shadows stretching across Turner Field, made for a scoreless game through five.

But the Padres brought the pitching duel to an end by putting together six singles and a walk to forge a five-run rally. The biggest play was Braves left fielder Danny Bautista dropping Hitchcock's bases-loaded blooper, allowing two runs to score.

BY THE NUMBERS

0: World Series titles won by the Padres.

8: Cy Young Awards won by pitchers the Padres have beaten in the postseason. Randy Johnson (1; beaten twice), John Smoltz (1), Tom Glavine (2; beaten twice), Greg Maddux (4).

23: World Series titles won by the Yankees.

106: Regular-season wins for the Braves, the most for a team not to reach the World Series.

212: Combined number of regular-season wins for the AL-champion Yankees (114) and NL-champion Padres (98) - a new World Series high.

1.13: Postseason ERA for NLCS MVP Sterling Hitchcock, who went 3-0 with wins over Randy Johnson, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, Box

PHOTO (1--Color) Sterling Hitchcock, who shut out the Braves in Game 6 to clinch the NL pennant for the Padres, was named MVP of the series.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

(2) The Padres' Mark Sweeney, holds the NLCS trophy aloft during the team's locker-room celebration after a 5-0 defeat of the Braves.

Eric Draper/Associated Press

BOX: BY THE NUMBERS (see text)