By shattering his corked bat, Sammy Sosa allowed the Orioles to catch a much-needed break last night. This one was legal, but they've received so few lately, they didn't know how to react.
Sosa began serving a seven-game suspension yesterday, removing him from Chicago's lineup for the rest of its series against the Orioles. Only a cleanup hitter was lost.
Taking Sosa's spot in the order, Moises Alou drove in two runs while continuing his domination of Omar Daal. He helped the Cubs to a big lead, and they waited out an Orioles rally and a rain delay to complete a 7-6 victory before 28,013 at Camden Yards.
Sosa's appeal reduced his suspension by one game. It didn't assist the Orioles, who were held to two B.J. Surhoff hits through five innings before they began to stir. Making his first start since May 4, Surhoff went 4-for-4, including a run-scoring single in the eighth as the rain became heavier and the grounds crew crouched behind the rolled-up tarp.
The Orioles scored four times in the inning, and Luis Matos represented the tying run at third base with two outs. Former Oriole Joe Borowski struck out Geronimo Gil with a high fastball, and play was halted as lightning flashed and a downpour sent fans scurrying for the exits.
After a 1:44 delay, Borowski got the last three outs to keep the Cubs tied with Houston for first place in the National League Central. Melvin Mora was stranded at first base after collecting his third single.
"You know their offense is going to come alive sooner or later," Cubs manager Dusty Baker said.
Mora extended his hitting streak to 22 games in the sixth with a shot up the middle that deflected off Matt Clement's heel. But Matos' streak ended at 15, marking the first time he's gone hitless since joining the Orioles on May 23.
They didn't come close to matching the attention that Sosa received, even when he wasn't here. Major League Baseball rules prohibited him from staying at the ballpark for the first pitch.
"It was pretty much a given that Sammy was going to miss some of the games here, given the fact they had the hearing here yesterday. They usually don't take very long to render a decision," said manager Mike Hargrove.
Sosa's corked lumber remains a hot topic in baseball circles, but the Orioles are finding interleague competition to be like an anchor, weighing them down just as they were ready to rise in the standings. They're 1-7 against the NL, their only win coming in St. Louis, and have slipped to 29-34 overall.
So much for the 5-1 homestand that put them above .500 and began premature talk of their role in an early pennant race.
"Things in this game run in streaks and cycles," Hargrove said, "and right now we're in a cycle where our starting pitchers aren't giving us a lot of innings. That will change. Our pitching is a little jumbled, but we'll get it straightened out."
Daal (4-7) was coming off his shortest outing of the season, when he allowed four runs in two innings against Houston. He appeared to be making a nice recovery last night, taking a no-hitter into the fourth inning before Alou lined a run-scoring double into left-center field.
Alex Gonzalez reached on Mora's throwing error leading off the inning.
Mora, starting at shortstop, fielded a grounder in the hole but bounced a throw past Jeff Conine, allowing Gonzalez to take second.
Damian Miller doubled to score two more runs before getting caught in a rundown between third and home, with Conine applying the tag.
The middle innings remain a puzzle to Daal. He retired nine of the 10 batters he faced through the third, but eight of the next 12 reached base.
It took a diving catch from Jay Gibbons in the fifth, with Tom Goodwin scoring, to prevent even more damage. Goodwin replaced Sosa in right field and went 2-for-4.
On four occasions this season, Daal has held opponents without a hit through the third inning. Three times, they've scored multiple runs in the fourth.
His ERA is 3.55 through three innings this season, and 6.63 after the third.
"It's really frustrating," he said. "The first three innings I threw perfect, and after that I got out of control. I feel bad about that. We made a nice comeback, but it wasn't good enough."
Alou increased Chicago's lead to 5-0 with a run-scoring single in the fifth, making him 8-for-15 with seven RBIs lifetime against Daal, who was replaced by Rick Bauer after the inning.
Clement won his second consecutive start after losing five in a row, but the decision hung in the balance as the Orioles rallied in the eighth against four relievers. Tony Batista delivered two runs with a single, and another scored on Surhoff's fourth hit. A fielder's choice grounder by Matos reduced Chicago's lead to 7-6.
Orioles tonight
Opponent:Chicago Cubs
Site:Camden Yards
Time:7:05
TV/Radio:Comcast SportsNet/WBAL (1090 AM)
Starters: Cubs' Carlos Zambrano (5-5, 3.05) vs. Orioles' Rick Helling (3-4, 6.13)
