Three Innings

NEW YORK -- A couple of key members of that plucky Orioles team that gave the New York Yankees fits for much of this season were nowhere to be seen at Yankee Stadium. Corey Patterson, who has hit .390 with seven steals against New York this season, was back in Baltimore yesterday to get his left ankle examined. Erik Bedard, who went 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA and has a streak of 20 scoreless innings against the Yankees, was home in Ontario, resting a strained oblique. Fellow starter Jeremy Guthrie (1-0 in three starts against New York this season)

OAKLAND, Calif. -- For five innings the Orioles were held to one hit by Oakland Athletics starter Gil Heredia and found themselves trailing 5-0. Their answer was one of the most convincing this season.Battering one of the league's better bullpens with 11 hits and consecutive home runs during the next three innings, the Orioles rallied for seven unanswered runs to reward solid relief work by Doug Johns (1-1), Jesse Orosco and Arthur Rhodes. The uplifting result was a 7-5 reversal before 26,247 at Network Associates Coliseum.

A shapeless season within the Orioles' bullpen claimed another victim yesterday when left-hander Arthur Rhodes was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to July 5 with a strained left elbow.Rhodes, third among American League relievers with 57 1/3 innings, had complained of the soreness since before the All-Star break. Yesterday he referred to the cause as abuse in middle relief."I don't have any role and I haven't had one all season," Rhodes said. "Some days I pitch three innings and take two days off. Sometimes I pitch three innings, get a day off, then I'm getting up two or three times the next day. It's hard to deal with that, especially when you're getting up five times in two days."

A shapeless season within the Orioles bullpen claimed another victim yesterday when left-hander Arthur Rhodes was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to July 5 with a strained left elbow.Rhodes, third among American League relievers with 57 1/3 innings, had complained of the soreness since before the All-Star break. Yesterday he referred to the cause as abuse in middle relief."I don't have any role and I haven't had one all season," Rhodes said. "Some days I pitch three innings and take two days off. Sometimes I pitch three innings, get a day off, then I'm getting up two or three times the next day. It's hard to deal with that, especially when you're getting up five times in two days."

They overcame a shaky beginning by starting pitcher Jeff Fassero. They overcame some sparkling defense by the Orioles. And they overcame what had been their biggest obstacle all season -- having to go early to their beleaguered bullpen.In doing so, the Seattle Mariners will see their season continue today with Game 4 of the American League Division Series.Making the first postseason appearance of his seven-year major-league career, Fassero went from uneasy in the first three innings to unhittable during the next five, limiting the Orioles to three hits in all and helping the Mariners stave off elimination with a 4-2 victory yesterday at Camden Yards in Game 3.They still have a 2-1 deficit in the best-of-five series but will have ace Randy Johnson on the mound in Game 4."

DETROIT -- Man up in the middle innings.For most teams, seeing a reliever warming in the fourth or fifth inning is the equivalent of breaking glass in case of emergency. For fear of burning a bullpen, the tactic is to be used as a last resort only, when a game threatens to stretch out of control or a starter is injured.Because of Arthur Rhodes, the Orioles again showed yesterday why they're not most teams. Rhodes Rhodes, the master of the middle-inning win, came on after Shawn Boskie stumbled for four innings and protected a one-run lead for three innings in the first game of yesterday's doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers.

The biggest surprise to hit manager Davey Johnson yesterday wasn't Chris Hoiles avoiding a sixth strikeout, or pitcher Mike Mussina doing more with his first major-league at-bat than just waving at three pitches from the reigning Cy Young Award winner.Johnson was amazed to learn that reliever Arthur Rhodes had worked "only" three innings."Are you sure?" he asked reporters, his eyes widening. "All he did was three? It felt like five or six.""It seemed like six when I was out there," Rhodes said.

Third baseman Rick Short went 5-for-5 last night with three RBIs, and the Frederick Keys scored five runs in the eighth inning to defeat the host Durham Bulls, 8-5, in a Single-A Carolina League game.Keys catcher Jim Foster continued his torrid hitting with a 2-for-4 night and three RBIs. Foster entered the week hitting .347.Dan Reed (4-0) went seven innings, allowing four runs on five hits.Boll Weevils 8, Shorebirds 4: Piedmont (9-8) used four walks and three Delmarva errors to lead 8-0 after three innings on the way to its ninth victory over the past 11 games in Single-A South Atlantic League play.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Not knowing whether ace Mike Mussina would be healthy enough to pitch by Opening Day, Orioles manager Davey Johnson said yesterday, is like "losing your security blanket."That said, Johnson should feel warm all over after Mussina's solid three-inning performance against the Florida Marlins yesterday. Mussina reported afterward that he felt no pain from the strained stomach muscle that sidelined him for almost two weeks."I feel good," Mussina said. "I'm looking forward to getting back out there."

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Almost all players throw knucklers at one time or another, throwing in front of the dugout before the game or tossing in the outfield. Just for fun.Orioles reliever Terry Clark, a sinker-slider pitcher, has been throwing a knuckleball for years, but he got the OK from manager Phil Regan to try it in a game."We decided to starting throwing it when the count reached 0-2," Clark said.In the second of three innings of relief Friday night, Clark jumped ahead of Athletics center fielder Jose Herrera, no balls and two strikes, and cut loose with a knuckler.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -Right-hander Adam Eaton got off to a rocky start in his competitive debut as an Oriole yesterday, but he pulled himself together after giving up four hits in the first inning and declared the afternoon a success. He's off to a late start, but he said he feels pretty good about his chances of opening the season in the starting rotation after completing three innings with just 30 pitches and throwing in the bullpen afterward. "I would think so," he said. "All the signs I'm getting are that there is a spot for me. That feels good.

Limiting runs, anyway Orioles pitchers gave up 17 hits to the Minnesota Twins yesterday at Fort Lauderdale Stadium, but they yielded just four runs in a 4-3 loss. Only Jim Johnson, in the sixth, pitched a perfect inning. The Twins put the lead runner on base in seven of the first eight innings but could not consistently score. Orioles starter David Pauley, who is out of options and is attempting to make the rotation, allowed nine base runners in three innings but allowed just two runs, thanks in large part to Adam Jones' defense in center field.

A recap of the Orioles' 2-0 loss to the Rays last night: Running on empty Shut out again last night, the Orioles have scored only one run in their past 28 innings. They mounted threats in the second, fifth and sixth innings last night against Rays starter Matt Garza but weren't able to break through. In the process, they wasted a quality start from Jeremy Guthrie, who held the Rays to one run and four hits over 6 2/3 innings. The only run off Guthrie came in the fifth on Carl Crawford's two-out single that scored Eric Hinske, who singled and stole second after catcher Ramon Hernandez bounced a throw that Brian Roberts couldn't backhand.

NEW YORK -- A couple of key members of that plucky Orioles team that gave the New York Yankees fits for much of this season were nowhere to be seen at Yankee Stadium. Corey Patterson, who has hit .390 with seven steals against New York this season, was back in Baltimore yesterday to get his left ankle examined. Erik Bedard, who went 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA and has a streak of 20 scoreless innings against the Yankees, was home in Ontario, resting a strained oblique. Fellow starter Jeremy Guthrie (1-0 in three starts against New York this season)

Patterson's run Corey Patterson struck out his first three times at bat, but what he did in the 10th inning made up for it. Patterson led off by singling up the middle. After stealing second base, he tagged up and went to third on a fly to shallow right field. He scored the winning run on Nick Markakis' single. Jenks throws it away White Sox closer Bobby Jenks came into the ninth with a 6-4 lead, but the All-Star managed to cough it up. After Aubrey Huff's one-out RBI single brought the Orioles within one, Jenks retired Ramon Hernandez and got two strikes on Jay Payton.

CLEVELAND -- About 10 years ago in this same place, Jaret Wright established himself as a future pitching star for the Cleveland Indians. He overpowered hitters with a fastball in the mid to high 90s and a hard curveball, and showed enough grit to win three playoff games as a 21-year-old rookie. His potential looked unlimited until a series of shoulder injuries derailed his career. Now a 10-year veteran, Wright has seen his velocity and command wither, but his competitive drive hasn't.

Joe Velleggia grounded a single with one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning to score freshman Pat Blair with the winning run and and give Calvert Hall a 5-4 victory over Gilman in last night's Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference final at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen. Down 4-0 after three innings, the No. 3 Cardinals (27-8) pecked away, and Velleggia's hit capped the comeback as the Cardinals repeated as A Conference champs by winning five straight out of the losers' bracket.

Two junior pitchers with contrasting styles, left-hander Alex Bechta and right-hander Austin Harclerode, led top-ranked Centennial to its 17th consecutive win yesterday, 4-1, at No. 15 River Hill. Bechta started for the Eagles (17-0 overall, 13-0 Howard County) and pitched two outs into the sixth inning for his sixth win using a lot of off-speed stuff. Harclerode came on throwing fastballs to get the last four outs, three via strikeout, for his first save. The duo stranded nine Hawks over the last four innings with the only run coming in the bottom of the fourth on a wild pitch by Bechta with two outs.

SEATTLE - A night after generating no offense against the ageless Jamie Moyer until the eighth inning, the Orioles jumped on Seattle rookie Jeff Harris for four runs in the first three innings last night. It was hardly an offensive outburst, but the Orioles, who have scored the fewest runs in the American League since the All-Star break, will settle for a flare-up these days. Rodrigo Lopez shut out the Mariners for seven innings, exiting one pitch before Richie Sexson tagged reliever Chris Ray for a three-run home run in the eighth inning.

Trevor Gott lets his arm do his talking. The right-hander struck out nine in three innings, didn't give up a hit and walked one to lead Southeast Lexington, Ky., to a 2-0 victory over West Raleigh, N.C., in a matchup of 2-0 teams in the Cal Ripken 12-and-under World Series in Aberdeen yesterday. "I just don't like to talk, but, yes, I expected it to be a good game with them," said the shy Gott, who kept his head down as he barely responded, though several of his teammates were standing around him. The win clinched a berth out of the American Division for Friday's single-elimination playoffs.