Hampton returns to form after two miserable seasons

ATLANTA - Welcome back, Mike Hampton. <br> <br> You remember Hampton? A 22-game winner in Houston. Helped the New York Mets reach the World Series. <br> <br> The last two seasons, Hampton&#39;s sinker took a sabbatical in the thin air of Colorado, transforming this once-dominant lefthander into a batting-practice pitcher. <br> <br> In the muggy, thick air of Atlanta, Hampton has rediscovered his most important pitch -- and with it, success. He&#39;s won seven in a row for the Braves, his longest streak since winning eleven straight with the Astros in 1999. <br> <br> Hampton says, ``It&#39;s nice to help my team win, be a plus. I don&#39;t have to answer all those questions about what&#39;s wrong. It&#39;s taken a long time to get to this point. I still feel like I can improve, but I&#39;m getting close to the point where I was before.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Hampton (10-5) pitched three-hit ball over eight innings to beat San Diego last night. He could have gone back out in the ninth to try for his second consecutive complete game, but manager Bobby Cox saw no need with the Braves cruising to a 7-1 victory. <br> <br> Over his last eight starts, Hampton is 7-0 with a 3.57 ERA -- numbers that are more in line with his days before the Rockies. <br> <br> Looking back, Hampton believes the thin air at Coors Field limited the downward movement on his sinker. He started tinkering with his windup and got all screwed up. Last season, he actually had a worse ERA on the road than he did at Colorado. <br> <br> Braves pitching coach Leo Mazzone doesn&#39;t want to reflect on what happened in Colorado. Instead, he&#39;s focusing on Hampton&#39;s much-brighter future. <br> <br> Mazzone said, ``I just prefer to look at where he&#39;s at this year, and where he&#39;s at this year is at the top of his game.&#39;&#39;

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