Gregory Smith, Post-Gazette The Braves' Martin Prado gets tagged out by Ronny Paulino at home plate last night in the third inning at Turner Field in Atlanta.

ATLANTA -- John Smoltz thought about it.

How could he not?

The way he was tearing apart the Pirates' lineup en route to the Atlanta Braves' 3-0 shutout last night at Turner Field, who could fault him for envisioning the unbridled, unparalleled celebration of a no-hitter?

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"Yeah, I did," he would acknowledge afterward. "I really thought this could have been it."

It was not to be.

With one out in the sixth inning, Chris Duffy's bat struck a sliver of a split-fingered fastball for a two-bouncer to the right of second baseman Martin Prado. Had Prado not been cheating toward the bag, it would have been right at him. As it was, it wormed its way into right field.

The Pirates would muster only two more hits in Smoltz's sizzling eight innings, and he would strike them out 10 times for the 40th double-digit performance of his magnificent career.

He did find some satisfaction in all of that, especially since it improved his record to 11-6 -- including 7-1 since the start of July -- and sustained Atlanta's life-support bid for a wild-card berth.

"I'm really surprised to be feeling like this at this stage of the season," Smoltz said. "I don't feel 39."

At the same time, he surely would have enjoyed it more had he finally found his first career no-hitter. The closest he came was a one-hitter in 1999.

"It was a little disappointing, that he got the hit the way he got it. But I didn't belabor it. I just went and attacked the next hitter and kept putting zeroes up. I felt strong."

The Pirates could not come close to arguing that point.

"I think you saw it," Duffy said. "That's why he's John Smoltz."

"We have nothing to be ashamed of," manager Jim Tracy said. "You're facing a guy of that magnitude, and that's what you're going to get most of the time."

True enough. Smoltz did not achieve 188 career victories and 2,736 strikeouts on some sudden surge.

Still, as Tracy pointed out, this showing seemed special. Smoltz was firing on all four pitches, especially that biting splitter that ran away from the Pirates' six right-handed hitters.

"I really think John mis-located maybe two pitches all night."

Two pitches? Out of 109?

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To back his point, Tracy cited them: One was Xavier Nady's solidly struck flyout to center in the fifth. The other came in the next inning just after Duffy reached, when Jack Wilson tomahawked a two-strike slider that hooked foul. Wilson would fly out.

"That's it," Tracy said. "The only two pitches."

The Pirates were shut out for the 10th time and, in the process, wasted a third consecutive quality start by Zach Duke. He was charged with three runs and seven hits in falling to 8-11.

"It was simply a case of our guy being good and their guy was really good," Tracy said. "I thought Zach did a fine job. Those two might have been putting up zeroes all night."

Duke's primary asset again was his control. He walked one batter, his only free pass in three starts.

"It's just tempo," he said. "I've got control of my body more lately, and I'm staying within myself."

Atlanta scored once in the third, but it could have been twice. With two men aboard, Edgar Renteria doubled. Adam LaRoche trotted home from third, but Prado was thrown out at the plate on a fine relay from Jason Bay to Wilson and a better tag by catcher Ronny Paulino.

The Braves would add two in the fifth on Prado's two-run double, and Bob Wickman closed it out for Smoltz with a quiet ninth.

"I knew I'd have to be on top of my game, and he showed why," Duke said of Smoltz. "That's probably the best performance I've seen in the league all year."

Smoltz's season numbers might be even better if he faced the Pirates more often. In two meetings, he has held them to one run and nine hits in 15 innings, striking out 16 and walking one.

His secret?

"They have a really right-handed lineup and, if I've got my stuff working, I'll take my chances in those situations. But that's the only thing I can see. They might not have a lot of team power, but they're a young ballclub, they attack the fastball, and they've got a couple of guys who can hurt you."

The Pirates' lowest hit total of the season was two, April 19 in St. Louis against Chris Carpenter and Jason Isringhausen. No pitcher has no-hit them since the Cardinals' Bob Gibson Aug. 14, 1971, at Three Rivers Stadium.