Shorebirds

Yesterday Triple-A International League Louisville 9, Ottawa 0: Lynx-killer Rob Stratton - who hit a 10th-inning home run Thursday-connected on the first pitch he saw from Lynx pitcher Eric DuBose (0-1) 368 feet into the left-field seats to give the Bats (3-0) a 2-0 lead that they never relinquished. The Lynx fell to 0-3, as DuBose, who was 4-6 in 2004 for the Orioles, Andy Mitchell and Rodney Ormond gave up 14 hits. Double-A Eastern League Harrisburg 4, Bowie 3: Melqui Torres's wild pitch with the bases loaded allowed Brandon Watson to score the game-winning run, giving the Senators (1-2)

Baseball fans who enjoy watching the stars of the future don't have to go far to watch many of the top prospects, who will be playing on four Orioles affiliates in Maryland. Two of the clubs, the Bowie Baysox and Delmarva Shorebirds, open their seasons today on the road, while a third, the Frederick Keys, opens tomorrow. The Keys have at least three of the Orioles' top prospects, including outfielder Nick Markakis, who is considered to be the No. 1 prospect in the organization. The Orioles' fourth state affiliate, the Aberdeen IronBirds, start in June.

Being named the Orioles' Most Improved Player at their minor league camp this spring was an unexpected honor for left fielder Quincy Ascencion, who was grouped with Double-A players after being demoted to short-season Single-A Aberdeen in 2003. His spring training experience could have been woeful, but it turned into something much better - to the delight of an organization that kept waiting for his skills to take hold. "He should have been overmatched and [in] over his head, but every time I looked at a game report, it would say that he had two more hits," said Doc Rodgers, director of minor league operations.

SALISBURY - Chilly weather and a treacherous infield conspired against left-hander Adam Loewen in his 2004 debut with the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds. Given a second chance to impress last night, the Orioles' top pitching prospect had to contend with a long layoff and a plate that kept moving on him. Going a week between starts because of rain-related postponements, Loewen walked seven batters in five innings in Delmarva's 7-4 win over the Lexington Legends at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium.

Hershey Gardens opens Enjoy the sights and scents of Hershey Gardens, a 23-acre botanical display, which opens for its 68th season today in Hershey, Pa. The gardens are open daily April through October. See shrubs, budding trees, daffodils, forsythia and more. A tulip display includes about 100 varieties of more than 30,000 tulips. Also, the new Children's Garden - opened last year - features 30 theme gardens. Hershey Gardens is open 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily April-May and September; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays and 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Fridays-Sundays June-August; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily October, and is at 170 Hotel Road, Hershey, Pa. Admission $7; $6.50 seniors; $4 ages 3-15; free for ages under 3. Call 717-534-3492 or visit www.hersheygardens.

SALT LAKE CITY - As the sun begins to set, light pours from the sky like water from a tipped pitcher. The Wasatch Mountains glow mauve and pink against the deepening gray-blue dusk. Antelope Island seems to rise from the mist. But where the fading rays of light should be glinting off darkening waters, there is no water to be seen, only cracked gray mud, with grasses turning brown along beaches where waves should be lapping. The Great Salt Lake has disappeared here, just outside Salt Lake City, along the first mile of the causeway leading from the mainland to Antelope Island, a refuge for coyotes, bison, bobcats and antelope.