Panzram
07-19-2004, 12:50 AM
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- Mark Hendrickson's start was pushed back two days because of a stiff neck. It turned out to be the right move.
Hendrickson pitched a four-hitter for his second career complete game, Carl Crawford hit a two-run triple during a five-run sixth inning and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Baltimore Orioles 7-2 Sunday.
Hendrickson (7-7) struck out six and walked one in Tampa Bay's first complete game since Victor Zambrano beat Oakland 11-2 on Sept. 7, 2003. The former NBA player retired his first 12 batters before Javy Lopez opened the fifth with a ground-rule double to right.
``I was looking at the fact that maybe the stiff neck would be a blessing,'' Hendrickson said. ``A couple extra days might have been beneficial.''
Hendrickson's other complete game was a rain-shortened, seven-inning shutout last July 21 at Yankee Stadium for Toronto.
``A stellar performance,'' Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella said. ``A complete game, nice and strong. He's quietly having a real nice season.''
Long stretches without complete games is nothing new for Tampa Bay, which set a major league record of 194 straight games without one from 2001-02.
``Toward the end, I just wanted to finish it,'' Hendrickson said.
Crawford made it 7-2 with his triple off Mike DeJean. Jorge Cantu, Toby Hall and Joey Gathright hit consecutive RBI singles off Eddy Rodriguez earlier in the sixth, snapping the Devil Rays' 0-for-21 slide with runners in scoring position.
``That was a thing of beauty,'' Piniella said.
The Devil Rays scored just 19 runs in losing six of their seven previous games.
``We've been getting into scoring position, but we just haven't been getting the hits,'' Crawford said. ``Today we got the hits. It felt great to be able to drive in runs.''
Tampa Bay was 5-for-38 with runners in scoring position in splitting the four-game series. The Orioles were 2-of-25.
Melvin Mora homered for Baltimore in his return from the 15-day disabled list. He had been out since straining his right hamstring July 2.
The Orioles (39-50) are 9-21 when the opponent starts a left-hander. Baltimore has been limited to six or fewer hits 12 times since June 1.
``We've been hitting extra,'' Baltimore manager Lee Mazzilli said. ``You've got to do it in the game. We've got to take what we do and work on and we've got to implement it into the game.''
Dave Borkowski (1-1) allowed four runs and six hits over five-plus innings in his second start and third appearance of the season. He was brought up from Triple-A Ottawa on July 5.
``I didn't feel great all the way around,'' Borkowski said. ``I'd throw a couple good pitches and then things would go everywhere. Any momentum we had going, I killed it by going out there and giving up another run.''
Borkowski had elbow ligament replacement surgery in November 2001. He won his previous start, giving up two runs in 8 1-3 innings of an 8-2 win over the Devil Rays on July 5. It was his first major league victory since Sept. 26, 1999.
The Devil Rays went up 1-0 in the first. Jose Cruz Jr. tripled and scored on Aubrey Huff's grounder.
Jerry Hairston Jr. tied it at 1 when he drove in Lopez with a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
Cruz put the Devil Rays ahead 2-1 with a two-out double in the bottom of the inning.
Mora homered to pull the Orioles even at 2 in the sixth.
Notes
Hendrickson struggled in his previous outing, allowing five runs and eight hits in three innings of last Sunday's 10-3 loss to the Yankees. ... Baltimore INF Jose Leon was optioned to Triple-A Ottawa to make room on the roster for Mora. ... Cantu singled in the second for his first career hit. He flied out as a pinch-hitter in his major league debut Saturday. ... Hairston took an extra-base hit away from Cruz in the third, when he made a fully extended leaping catch just in front of the right-field warning track.
Hendrickson pitched a four-hitter for his second career complete game, Carl Crawford hit a two-run triple during a five-run sixth inning and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Baltimore Orioles 7-2 Sunday.
Hendrickson (7-7) struck out six and walked one in Tampa Bay's first complete game since Victor Zambrano beat Oakland 11-2 on Sept. 7, 2003. The former NBA player retired his first 12 batters before Javy Lopez opened the fifth with a ground-rule double to right.
``I was looking at the fact that maybe the stiff neck would be a blessing,'' Hendrickson said. ``A couple extra days might have been beneficial.''
Hendrickson's other complete game was a rain-shortened, seven-inning shutout last July 21 at Yankee Stadium for Toronto.
``A stellar performance,'' Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella said. ``A complete game, nice and strong. He's quietly having a real nice season.''
Long stretches without complete games is nothing new for Tampa Bay, which set a major league record of 194 straight games without one from 2001-02.
``Toward the end, I just wanted to finish it,'' Hendrickson said.
Crawford made it 7-2 with his triple off Mike DeJean. Jorge Cantu, Toby Hall and Joey Gathright hit consecutive RBI singles off Eddy Rodriguez earlier in the sixth, snapping the Devil Rays' 0-for-21 slide with runners in scoring position.
``That was a thing of beauty,'' Piniella said.
The Devil Rays scored just 19 runs in losing six of their seven previous games.
``We've been getting into scoring position, but we just haven't been getting the hits,'' Crawford said. ``Today we got the hits. It felt great to be able to drive in runs.''
Tampa Bay was 5-for-38 with runners in scoring position in splitting the four-game series. The Orioles were 2-of-25.
Melvin Mora homered for Baltimore in his return from the 15-day disabled list. He had been out since straining his right hamstring July 2.
The Orioles (39-50) are 9-21 when the opponent starts a left-hander. Baltimore has been limited to six or fewer hits 12 times since June 1.
``We've been hitting extra,'' Baltimore manager Lee Mazzilli said. ``You've got to do it in the game. We've got to take what we do and work on and we've got to implement it into the game.''
Dave Borkowski (1-1) allowed four runs and six hits over five-plus innings in his second start and third appearance of the season. He was brought up from Triple-A Ottawa on July 5.
``I didn't feel great all the way around,'' Borkowski said. ``I'd throw a couple good pitches and then things would go everywhere. Any momentum we had going, I killed it by going out there and giving up another run.''
Borkowski had elbow ligament replacement surgery in November 2001. He won his previous start, giving up two runs in 8 1-3 innings of an 8-2 win over the Devil Rays on July 5. It was his first major league victory since Sept. 26, 1999.
The Devil Rays went up 1-0 in the first. Jose Cruz Jr. tripled and scored on Aubrey Huff's grounder.
Jerry Hairston Jr. tied it at 1 when he drove in Lopez with a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
Cruz put the Devil Rays ahead 2-1 with a two-out double in the bottom of the inning.
Mora homered to pull the Orioles even at 2 in the sixth.
Notes
Hendrickson struggled in his previous outing, allowing five runs and eight hits in three innings of last Sunday's 10-3 loss to the Yankees. ... Baltimore INF Jose Leon was optioned to Triple-A Ottawa to make room on the roster for Mora. ... Cantu singled in the second for his first career hit. He flied out as a pinch-hitter in his major league debut Saturday. ... Hairston took an extra-base hit away from Cruz in the third, when he made a fully extended leaping catch just in front of the right-field warning track.