Hamstring Strain

The Orioles are -- quite literally -- limping toward the All-Star break.Left-hander Jimmy Key was forced out of last night's game after four innings with a hamstring strain and the Toronto Blue Jays took advantage of his discomfort and early departure to score a 5-2 victory before 47,687 and move to the threshold of a deflating four-game sweep at Camden Yards.The Blue Jays have sent the Orioles off on their first three-game losing streak since July 22-26 of last year, when they dropped five straight at home to Minnesota and Cleveland.

COLLEGE PARK -- A weakened Maryland defensive unit reported more bad news, as defensive line standout Mark Sturdivant will miss a minimum of six weeks with a fractured bone in his right ankle.Sturdivant, a 255-pound senior end who was first-team All-ECAC last year, fractured the medial malleolus bone, on the inside of the ankle, early in the fourth quarter of Satur- day's season-opening 43-29 loss to Virginia. He was not on the field when the Cavaliers broke a 29-29 tie with two touchdowns in the final six minutes.

Right-hander Alan Mills has dropped his appeal of the four-game suspension he received for his part in the June 6 brawl between the Orioles and the Seattle Mariners at Camden Yards.Mills, who pitched 5 2/3 innings against the New York Yankees on Friday night, began serving his suspension yesterday and won't be available until Wednesday's homestand finale against the Toronto Blue Jays.If all this sounds very convenient, it should. Mills probably would not have been available to pitch again for at least three days after his lengthy outing on Friday night.

MILWAUKEE -- The Orioles will have a couple of decisions to make soon after they return from their 10-game road trip. Right fielder Sherman Obando will be close to completing an injury-rehabilitation assignment with the Double-A Bowie Baysox and left-hander Arthur Rhodes should be close to embarking on one.Obando, who has been sidelined with a hamstring strain, must be recalled or returned to the disabled list next week. If he comes back, he'll likely push rookie center fielder Damon Buford off the 25-man major-league roster.

BOSTON -- For NBA veterans, exhibition games are for breaking in the old sea legs, busting the rookies and whetting appetites for the regular season.Joe Wolf is an NBA veteran, but in this exhibition season, he is fighting for his professional life.Once upon a time, Wolf was a vaunted North Carolina alumnus, the 13th pick in the 1987 draft. Three teams later, he is a fringe player hoping to catch on with the Boston Celtics.You're bound to see plenty of Wolf tonight in Phoenix. The team's two other power forwards are hurting.

Catcher Mike Heath, who had one season remaining on a guaranteed $2 million, two-year contract, was placed on unconditional release waivers yesterday by the Atlanta Braves.Heath, who played in only 49 games last season before surgery on his right elbow, hit .209 in 1991 with one homer and 12 RBI. He will get $1 million from the Braves: his $900,000 salary for 1992 and $100,000 as a buyout of Atlanta's $1.1 million option for 1993."Thirteen years; my first release. I can't be too unhappy about that," said Heath, who had only two at-bats this spring.

CHICAGO -- Baltimore Orioles first baseman Glenn Davis was absent from the starting lineup for the first time this year, apparently because manager Frank Robinson wanted to give him more time to recover from a nagging hamstring strain."

Blast defender Iain Fraser will be in the lineup today for the team's final intrasquad scrimmage before Saturday's season opener against Dallas. Fraser, who has been sidelined with an abdominal strain, returned to practice for the first time in two weeks yesterday and wound up his day afield with a beautiful shot to the far post for a goal.While Fraser worked out, defender Doug Neely (leg inflammation) and midfielder Mark Mettrick (hamstring strain) sat. Both are expected to be ready for Saturday, even if they can't take part in today's scrimmage.

Johnson, in pain from groin injury, delays returnMINNEAPOLIS -- Right-hander Dave Johnson has suffered a setback in his recovery from a deep groin strain and could be weeks away from being able to return to the mound."

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Baltimore Orioles prospect David Segui might have to wait a few days to make his Grapefruit League outfield debut. He suffered a hamstring strain during workouts yesterday and will reduce his workout schedule until the inflammation subsides."

The Orioles started Wednesday night's game with only a two-man bench, but with the way center fielder Adam Jones has been swinging the bat, that appeared to be only a minor inconvenience. However, Jones, one player the Orioles simply can't afford to lose, joined the sick and the wounded when a mild right hamstring strain forced him out of the lineup in the fourth inning, and prompted the club to call up top outfield prospect Nolan Reimold for Thursday night's game. Without Jones, the Orioles' offense accomplished very little until a ninth-inning rally came up two runs short.

Ryan Freel's seemingly ill-fated Orioles career took another hit when he unhappily returned to Baltimore from the Eastern Shore after club doctors refused to clear him for a rehabilitation assignment at Single-A Delmarva. Freel, who was hit in the head with a pickoff attempt against the Boston Red Sox on April 20 and was placed on the 15-day disabled list against his wishes with a nonconcussed head injury, was supposed to play at least three games with the Shorebirds. But when he arrived, he was directed to take an impact test, a cognitive memory and concentration exam often given in post-concussion cases.

Koji Uehara had a history of leg problems, so Japanese reporters were not surprised he was getting treatment yesterday for a hamstring strain. He says he'll have plenty of time to build his stamina for the regular season. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The Orioles have said all spring that their roster logjam at first base and in left field would work itself out, but the last thing they wanted was an injury to make it happen. Jay Payton, whom manager Sam Perlozzo had anointed as the starter in left field, left the Orioles' exhibition game yesterday in the first inning, clutching his left hamstring. He later was diagnosed with a Grade I hamstring strain, an injury that not only puts him in jeopardy of not playing on Opening Day, but also could force him to miss the first week or two of the season.

Return specialist B.J. Sams said he will play in tomorrow night's preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles after missing last week with a hamstring strain. With the injury fully healed, Sams' outlook appears to be in good condition, as well. He was arrested and charged with drunken driving early Monday morning. "People make mistakes," said Sams, addressing the incident for the first time. "I'm just going to go out and play my game." Sams was going 89 mph in a 55 mph zone on a stretch of Interstate 83. However, he does not think this will hurt his chance of being on the team or ruin an otherwise solid reputation.

The team's rash of injuries has now spread to special teams. Punter Dave Zastudil strained the hamstring in his kicking leg yesterday and will miss tomorrow's preseason opener against the Buffalo Bills. A fourth-round draft pick in 2002, Zastudil is listed as day-to-day, but he may be sidelined as long as two to three weeks, a timetable that should allow him to be ready for the season opener in Pittsburgh on Sept. 7. Derrick Frost, an undrafted rookie out of Northern Iowa, will kick in his place.

The Orioles are -- quite literally -- limping toward the All-Star break.Left-hander Jimmy Key was forced out of last night's game after four innings with a hamstring strain and the Toronto Blue Jays took advantage of his discomfort and early departure to score a 5-2 victory before 47,687 and move to the threshold of a deflating four-game sweep at Camden Yards.The Blue Jays have sent the Orioles off on their first three-game losing streak since July 22-26 of last year, when they dropped five straight at home to Minnesota and Cleveland.

COLLEGE PARK -- A weakened Maryland defensive unit reported more bad news, as defensive line standout Mark Sturdivant will miss a minimum of six weeks with a fractured bone in his right ankle.Sturdivant, a 255-pound senior end who was first-team All-ECAC last year, fractured the medial malleolus bone, on the inside of the ankle, early in the fourth quarter of Satur- day's season-opening 43-29 loss to Virginia. He was not on the field when the Cavaliers broke a 29-29 tie with two touchdowns in the final six minutes.

Right-hander Alan Mills has dropped his appeal of the four-game suspension he received for his part in the June 6 brawl between the Orioles and the Seattle Mariners at Camden Yards.Mills, who pitched 5 2/3 innings against the New York Yankees on Friday night, began serving his suspension yesterday and won't be available until Wednesday's homestand finale against the Toronto Blue Jays.If all this sounds very convenient, it should. Mills probably would not have been available to pitch again for at least three days after his lengthy outing on Friday night.

MILWAUKEE -- The Orioles will have a couple of decisions to make soon after they return from their 10-game road trip. Right fielder Sherman Obando will be close to completing an injury-rehabilitation assignment with the Double-A Bowie Baysox and left-hander Arthur Rhodes should be close to embarking on one.Obando, who has been sidelined with a hamstring strain, must be recalled or returned to the disabled list next week. If he comes back, he'll likely push rookie center fielder Damon Buford off the 25-man major-league roster.