Montreal --- The Braves were reintroduced to a former acquaintance late Saturday night. As broadcaster Joe Simpson poetically put it, "Is that a milk carton warming up in the bullpen or is that McGlinchy?"

For the first time since May 23, reliever Kevin McGlinchy pitched for the Braves, finishing his eighth game, preserving a shutout against Montreal with a scoreless ninth. On another level, he did a lot more.

"I think it was important for both of us," manager Bobby Cox said. "He's going to have to spend a year in winter ball catching up. Or try to. It's been a tough year for him."

"Confidence-wise, I felt great," said McGlinchy, who spent 127 days on the disabled list with right shoulder tendinitis. "My command was alright. For my first outing in a while, I could pick apart every little thing I should have done. But I got three outs in the bottom of the ninth and it felt good. I was lucky to be out there."

He has no place in the club's postseason plans but, after making 64 appearances last year in his rookie season (2.82 ERA), he remains a huge part of the Braves' future. Though he had never experienced arm trouble before, the summer could help McGlinchy better understand arm maintenance for a major- league workload.