Toronto Blue Jays

TORONTO -- Tuesday night, a five-run rally wasn't enough.Wednesday night, 16 hits were too few.Yesterday, Scott Erickson offered the last-place Orioles a quality start after altering his delivery, left after 6 1/3 innings, then watched as the remnants of a 6-0 lead against the Toronto Blue Jays were blown apart in a five-run eighth inning.The resulting 8-6 loss not only completed a three-game meltdown, but was followed by angry exchanges in the clubhouse and a blistering rebuke of the bullpen by manager Ray Miller, whose status is now being scrutinized, as well.

TORONTO -- Cal Ripken awoke yesterday almost unable to straighten.Will Clark took a line drive to his left thumb, fracturing it.If only the Orioles' losses would have stopped with their 6-0 humbling by the Toronto Blue Jays and rookie pitcher Roy Halladay at SkyDome. Maybe then they could have slipped away, dismissing it as just another forgettable day, another squandered series.Instead, the momentum behind the Orioles' embarrassing stagger builds, so much so that first-year general manager Frank Wren cryptically warned that changes are pending if the $84 million payroll doesn't quickly reverse course.

American League East Division champions this decade:Year, Club1990, Boston Red Sox1991, Toronto Blue Jays1992, Toronto Blue Jays1993, Toronto Blue Jays1994, Strike1995, Boston Red Sox1996, New York Yankees1997, Orioles1998, New York YankeesPub Date: 9/10/98

TORONTO -- The hand grenade is gone because he couldn't get it through customs. But the camouflage is here, along with the ankle-high black shoes, the ever-present TV remote and the contrarian attitude.Randy Myers, last year's Orioles MVP, is alive and well with the Toronto Blue Jays, handling a familiar job in a different country for a team carrying less-grandiose expectations. For Myers, past is past no matter how biting the circumstances that accompanied him north of the border."I said my piece in December 1997 and I'm not going to rehash it. I'm with the Toronto Blue Jays trying to help this club win. That's where I'm at," he said yesterday.

TORONTO -- In last night's understated way, they rolled it around like a cigar and savored it like a fine champagne. The Orioles, a team again in touch with a proud tradition, finished a historic rush to their first American League East title in 14 years by beating the Toronto Blue Jays. Once more, they call themselves champions.Randy Myers threw the last pitch. Cal Ripken caught the last out, just as he did when the Orioles won the 1983 World Series. Manager Davey Johnson settled for the last word.

TORONTO -- Only once this season had Roger Clemens thrown fewer pitches, and it came on a freezing April night in Chicago when he strained his groin.His problem yesterday?It was too hot.Too hot with the roof open on an 85-degree day at SkyDome.For the highlights, forget ESPN, and turn to the Weather Channel.The Toronto Blue Jays lured Clemens by agreeing to permit his kids on the field during batting practice.They granted Clemens' request earlier this season to stop posting radar-gun readings when he pitches.

MILWAUKEE -- Though manager Davey Johnson is no longer hopeful of receiving help, the Orioles continue to push ahead in ++ their search for a hitter to plug into the middle of their lineup.General manager Pat Gillick said yesterday that the club is considering other options to Montreal Expos first baseman David Segui, who appeared as a leading possibility before the teams reached an impasse Tuesday."We're still interested in getting another hitter. That hasn't changed," said Gillick. "We're talking to a number of teams to see what we might do."

TORONTO -- How do you celebrate when you win th wild-card race?"Don't ask me," Rafael Palmeiro said.It is a new-school baseball question that the Orioles, much to their delight, are on the verge of having to answer.Just how crazy do you get for making the playoffs as the best of the also-rans?"Do you do handshakes? More? I don't know," Brady Anderson said.Do you spray champagne in the clubhouse and bask in the joy of finishing second?Do you hug and weep and chant, "We're No. 4 [among the playoff qualifiers]

BaseballAmerican League -- Reduced the suspension of Toronto Blue Jays 2B Roberto Alomar from two games to one after he dropped his appeal.Orioles -- Placed P Ben McDonald on 15-day DL retroactive to June 16. Placed P Kevin Brown on 15-day DL. Recalled P Armando Benitez from Triple-A Rochester. Purchased the contract of P Jimmy Myers from Rochester. Signed OF Avery Taylor, their 37th-round draft pick.Cincinnati Reds -- Recalled P John Roper from Triple-A Indianapolis.Colorado Rockies -- Optioned 2B Roberto Mejia to Triple-A Colorado Springs.

TORONTO -- Unless he makes a quicker-than-expected recovery from what the club believes to be a rib-cage muscle pull, Orioles left-hander Sid Fernandez appears headed for the disabled list.Scratched from his scheduled start against the Toronto Blue Jays last night, Fernandez will start Tuesday in Cleveland only if he is able to prove he can pitch pain-free two days before that, said Orioles manager Johnny Oates.Mike Oquist, originally scheduled to make his next start Tuesday, stood in for Fernandez last night.

News item: The Orioles came back from another big deficit Wednesday to defeat the Seattle Mariners and take the rubber game of the three-game series at Safeco Field. My take: It's a pretty weird team that would rather be down three runs in the ninth than up four runs in the third, but you know what they say. This is Birdland. News item: Baltimore has been proposed for a new IndyCar Series race starting in 2011. The Baltimore Grand Prix would mirror similar races in St. Petersburg, Fla., and Long Beach, Calif.

Phillies outfielder Jayson Werth was a first-round pick (22nd overall) by the Orioles in the 1997 draft and was eventually traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for pitcher John Bale without having made a major league appearance in an O's uniform. He was traded to the Dodgers for Jason Frasor in 2004 and signed with the Phillies as a free agent two years ago. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Brian Roberts was hit on the left foot or ankle by Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jesse Litsch in the bottom of the sixth inning and limped off the field to a loud ovation. Clearly, the crowd recognized the possibility that fans were seeing the last appearance by Roberts in an Orioles uniform. ... I think the Orioles will sign him to an extension in the next few months. (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

The Orioles and standout right fielder Nick Markakis engaged in negotiations for a contract extension in the past week, but those discussions halted yesterday and likely will not be rekindled until after the season, several baseball sources said. Markakis, 24, who is considered the cornerstone of the team's rebuilding plan, is eligible for arbitration after the season and is under the Orioles' contractual control through the 2011 season. Asked about the talks between the Orioles and Jamie Murphy, Markakis' agent, club president Andy MacPhail said: "We don't comment on negotiations."

The next time you stop at a downtown intersection, take a close look at the homeless guy holding the cardboard sign. That No. 46 Orioles jersey isn't a replica. And he's not asking for a handout. A second glance at the sign reveals its message: "Will Work For Runs." And then you fully understand. Boy, that Jeremy Guthrie really is becoming desperate. What's more cruel than sending him to the mound, knowing that the offense won't support him? Doing it on a Sunday. Talk about a double-whammy.

TORONTO -- It lasted 4 hours, 25 minutes, and featured two teams that used a total of 15 pitchers and 28 position players and combined to go 5-for-37 with runners in scoring position and leave 27 men on base. When it was over, when the Orioles had finished off the Toronto Blue Jays for an 8-6 win in 12 grueling innings at Rogers Centre, second baseman Brian Roberts tried to put his team's first series victory since mid-August into perspective. There was just one problem. Orioles@Yankees Tonight, 7:05, MASN2, 105.7 FM Starters: Daniel Cabrera (9-16, 5.37)

TORONTO -- If Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo's job is in jeopardy - despite statements to the contrary from the club earlier this week - he could be catching a break from the schedule. The reeling Orioles will play nine of their next 12 games against teams that currently have a losing record, starting today with a three-game series against the Washington Nationals, who despite a recent hot streak still have the worst record in the National League. They also will play the American League-worst Kansas City Royals during the stretch that includes three home games against the Toronto Blue Jays and three against the Oakland Athletics, who are at .500 and dealing with a plethora of injuries.

EVER SINCE RAFAEL PALmeiro packed his bats and syringes and left town, the Orioles have opened their shutters every morning waiting for that ominous dark cloud to disappear. We know now that it hasn?t. We know that Palmeiromight have been just the tip of an enormous iceberg, the bigger mess hiding below the surface.We know now that instead of dissipating, that dark cloud is dropping everything it can onto a franchise with no umbrella. According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, some of the city?

Blue Jays@Orioles Where -- Camden Yards When -- Tonight, 7:05; tomorrow, 4:35 p.m.; Sunday, 1:35 p.m. What now? -- The Toronto Blue Jays, third in the American League East, are still hoping against hope to catch the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. Online -- www.orioles.com Pro Basketball WNBA playoffs: Sun@Mystics Where -- Verizon Center, Washington When -- Tonight, 7 What now? -- In the opener of a first-round WNBA playoff series, the Washington Mystics are looking for their second win over the Connecticut Sun, having lost two of three head-to-head matchups during the season.

TORONTO -- The Orioles started their first multi-city road trip with a victory in New York and ended it with another one here. As they packed their bags and headed back home, everything that happened in between, including closer Chris Ray's nail-biting ride through the ninth inning last night, hardly mattered. Behind a strong outing from Kris Benson and steady contributions from an offense energized by Corey Patterson, the Orioles downed the Toronto Blue Jays, 7-5, before 18,756 at the Rogers Centre last night, salvaging one victory in the three-game series, and breaking a four-game losing streak.