MINNEAPOLIS, May 11 — Scott Erickson provided the sort of tidy pitching performance tonight that the Baltimore Orioles had been waiting for a month to see from him. Rafael Palmeiro and Roberto Alomar took care of the offense with home runs, and the Orioles cruised to a 4-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome.
Erickson's five-hitter gave the Orioles (19-17) their second complete-game shutout in three days. Mike Mussina had one Saturday at Tampa Bay, and the Orioles hope they're in the early stages of a recovery.
They won for the third time in four games. Their starting pitchers have a 2.53 earned run average since Mussina returned from the disabled list eight days ago, and they'll welcome back Scott Kamieniecki from the DL Tuesday.
Erickson (4-3) didn't issue a walk tonight and faced only 31 batters, four above the minimum. He threw 80 strikes among 104 pitches and struck out five.
He had his sinkerball working, getting 16 outs on ground balls — including eight in a row at one point. Erickson kept the Twins hitless for four innings and had a one-hit shutout going with one out in the seventh, then escaped from a bases-loaded, one-out predicament in that inning by getting Javier Valentin to bounce into a double play. He has pitched three of the Orioles' four complete games this season.
"That was Scottie at his best — very dominant," Orioles Manager Ray Miller said. "Everything he threw, the bottom was falling out."
Erickson began today leading the major leagues with 71 hits allowed. He was yielding 13.1 hits per nine innings pitched, as well as the third-most earned runs in the American League, with 35.
He had given up at least eight hits and at least three runs in each of his previous seven starts. He was 0-3 in five outings since his victory on April 12 at Detroit gave him the first 3-0 beginning of his major league career.
Pitching coach Mike Flanagan noticed that Erickson's stride in his delivery had become too short, and the two lengthened it during a bullpen throwing session over the weekend. Flanagan said he noticed the difference in Erickson's sinker within the first five pitches that the right-hander threw that day.
Said Erickson, who lowered his ERA from 6.47 to 5.46: "That minor adjustment, I think, made a big difference. I had a lot more movement on my pitches than in my previous starts. ... It feels good to get back to something that's hopefully more successful.
"It's one game. [But] I'll take it from here and hopefully build on it."
{stuff not about Scott}
The Twins got their first hit in the bottom of the inning, after Erickson — who pitched a no-hitter for Minnesota against the Milwaukee Brewers in 1994 — retired the first 13 batters. With one out in the fifth, Matt Lawton sent a bouncer up the middle. Second baseman Alomar dove and got his glove on the ball, but deflected it into short center field. Lawton hustled his way into second base for a double.
But Erickson retired Valentin on a fly ball to left and Terry Steinbach on a ground ball to first.
From the Washington Post
By Mark Maske
BALTIMORE, June 5—Unlike last year, the interleague matchup between the Baltimore Orioles and the Atlanta Braves isn't a June version of the World Series.
The Orioles have played themselves into a corner with their early-season
struggles in 1998, and every game is vitally important to them these days.
They opened their first interleague series of this year in style, riding
the pitching of Scott Erickson and three solo home runs against Denny Neagle
to a 3-2 victory over the Braves tonight before 48,039 at soldout Oriole
Park at Camden Yards.
Erickson and Neagle crafted complete games, and all of the contest's runs came on homers. Thanks to Erickson and Neagle, the game was played in a snappy 1 hour 53 minutes, making it the Orioles' shortest contest in 15 years.
"The caliber of pitching is what makes quick games," Orioles Manager
Ray Miller said. "It's kind of refreshing to play a National League-paced
game. That game shows you what two powerful teams can do in a small
ballpark, and it shows you the importance of strike one. Both guys were
ahead in
the count all night."
When they completed a three-game sweep at Atlanta last June 15, the
Orioles had a record of 45-19 and firmly were entrenched in first place
in the American League East. This has been a far different sort of season
for them, but they have righted themselves recently. Tonight they improved
to
29-31 with their fourth win in five games and ninth victory in 13 contests.
The NL East-leading Braves fell to 42-19.
"We're in a situation where we have to play our best no matter who it's against," Erickson said. "We have our backs against the wall. If we don't play everyone like they're a first-place team, we're in trouble."
But others in the Orioles' clubhouse acknowledged that the intensity level was a bit higher for the Braves. "If you don't get up for these guys, they're going to bury you," catcher Lenny Webster said.
Said Miller: "You want to play well so you can compete with them. I still think our club is a lot better than a lot of other people think it is."
Neagle crafted a six-hitter. The problem was that the first three Orioles' hits were home runs. Eric Davis, Webster and Joe Carter provided the homers, and Erickson took it from there.
The right-hander limited the Braves to seven hits -- including home
runs by Tony Graffanino in the third inning and Ryan Klesko in the ninth
-- in his AL-leading fourth complete game. Erickson (6-6) issued only two
walks and had four strikeouts. He had his good sinkerball working, getting
19
outs on ground balls. The Braves had three fly-ball outs and one lineout.
Erickson retired 13 consecutive hitters at one point.
Miller visited the mound after Klesko homered over the right field fence with one out in the ninth, but stuck with Erickson. Michael Tucker pulled a two-out single into right field, but Erickson got Andruw Jones to ground the ball to third baseman Cal Ripken for a game-ending force out at second.
"I was throwing strikes and making some pretty good pitches," Erickson said. "Pitching and defense go hand in hand. When guys are making plays, it makes it that much easier to pitch. We played good defense today."
Klesko said: "We played good. We just got beat by a pitcher who didn't miss tonight."
From the Washington Post
By Mark Maske
BALTIMORE, June 20—Ray Miller's plan was simple, yet complex: Keep Baltimore starter Scott Erickson on the mound as long as possible, at least seven innings. A mere 17 1/2 hours after using seven pitchers in the longest game in Orioles history, that was about all the Baltimore manager could hope for.
Erickson kept Miller from going to the bullpen as he went nine innings by working himself out of several jams and getting plenty of offensive help in the Orioles' 11-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays tonight at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
The Orioles, in sole possession of third place in the American League East, got a lift at the plate from Brady Anderson, who tied a career high with four hits, and from Lenny Webster, who drove in three runs.
Erickson (8-6) threw 148 pitches, yielded 12 hits and struck out eight in a game that lasted 2 hours 31 minutes -- a quickie compared with Friday night's 15-inning, 5:49 affair.
After realizing that he had less velocity than normal on his fastball after the first inning, Erickson began to throw a combination of sliders, curveballs and change-ups. After surrendering a run in the third and a two-run homer to Mark Dalesandro in the fourth, Erickson held the Blue Jays scoreless.
"We had a long night last night, and the goal is to go out there and get 27 outs every time you take the mound," said Erickson, who moved into a tie for first with Cleveland's Bartolo Colon with his fifth complete game. "Especially after a game like last night."
[stuff not about Scott]
The Blue Jays got closer in the fourth, though, on Dalesandro's two-run homer that made it 5-3. They threatened to cut the lead again in the fifth with runners at first and third with none out and Jose Canseco at the plate. But Erickson got Canseco, who had hit his 21st home run Friday, to ground into a double play to escape the inning.
[stuff not about Scott]
Erickson encountered more trouble in the sixth, surrendering singles
to Mike Stanley and Ed Sprague and walking Craig Grebeck to load the bases
with two out. This time, Erickson avoided disaster when Anderson was in
perfect position in center field to catch a hard line drive by Alex
Gonzalez to preserve the Orioles' six-run lead.
Miller drew an applause from the fans in the eighth inning after he visited the mound and left Erickson in the game with two out and runners at first and second. Erickson forced Grebeck to fly out to left field to end the inning with the Orioles still ahead 9-3.
Miller visited Erickson again in the ninth after Shawn Green walked and Canseco singled to put runners at first and second with two outs.
"I told him, 'This is absolutely the last batter for you,' " Miller said. And Erickson closed the game by striking out Delgado.
"It was a big game by Scotty when we really needed it," Miller said. "He wanted it. . . . He's a workaholic. Scotty's an animal."
Although Erickson slowed down after retiring the first 13 Boston Red Sox batters, he allowed only four hits in the Orioles' 2-1 victory today before 48,244, the third-largest crowd to see a regular season game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Erickson (9-7) followed strong outings by pitchers Mike Mussina and Sidney Ponson to help the Orioles trim their deficit to 12 1/2 games behind the Red Sox (52-36) in the chase for a wild-card spot.
The Orioles (41-50) appear to be revitalized since the all-star break. Before the break, Baltimore lost three consecutive one-run games to the New York Yankees. But the Orioles have won the past three one-run affairs for their first three-game winning streak since June 1-3.
"We know there's a long road ahead," said reliever Jesse Orosco, who picked up his sixth save. "Fortunately, there's not 30 or 40 games left, there's more than 70. It's encouraging for us."
Erickson struck out eight and yielded a home run in 8 2/3 innings. He was perfect until Troy O'Leary blooped a single to right field with one out in the fifth and the Orioles leading 2-0.
"His stuff was good early," catcher Lenny Webster said. "I went to the dugout after the second inning and said, 'Look, fellas, all we need is a couple of runs because Scotty's looking good.' "
Erickson got his two runs in the fourth. Joe Carter led off with his 10th home run -- all of which have been solo shots -- for the game's first run.
"Before [the break], we were always down trying to get a run. Now, we're jumping out and getting the breaks," Carter said. "But we have to stay focused. It's like a person trying to lose 100 or 200 pounds -- you can't look at the overall goal the first day."
After Carter's homer, Cal Ripken slapped the next pitch from knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (10-4) to left field for a double and advanced to third on a single by Webster. After Mike Bordick reached on a bunt to load the bases, Jeff Reboulet hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Ripken for a 2-0 lead, all the support Erickson would need.
"Right now, I'm in a pretty decent groove for throwing the ball," Erickson said. "I felt good, but I didn't feel any more dominant than normal. Sometimes they hit it, sometimes they don't. . . . Who knows? We're a long way out and we've got a long way to go. So, one day at a time."
Erickson lost his chance for a shutout in the eighth when John Valentin homered to left-center on a 1-1 pitch.
Orioles Manager Ray Miller appeared close to pulling Erickson after Scott Hatteberg drew a walk after Valentin's home run. Miller visited the mound, but drew applause when he returned to the dugout alone. Erickson retired the next three batters -- Mike Benjamin and Darren Bragg grounded out and Darren Lewis had a hit taken away on a scoop by first baseman Rafael Palmeiro -- to avoid more trouble.
Erickson struck out Reggie Jefferson to start the ninth and got Nomar Garciaparra to fly out. But amid some of the loudest booing heard this season, Miller pulled Erickson so Orosco could pitch to Mo Vaughn. Orosco threw one pitch, and Vaughn grounded out to second for the final out.
And for the third straight game, uncharacteristically good pitching saved the Orioles.
"I think the offense will be there," Miller said. "You keep playing good baseball, that takes the pressure off everybody. We've played six straight one-run games, and we haven't exactly been facing mediocre pitching. . . . It's just nice to have a full deck for a change."
From the Washington Post
By Mark Maske
BALTIMORE, July 21 — The Baltimore Orioles launched moon shot home runs, laid down a beauty of a squeeze bunt and got another masterful pitching performance. Wasn't it always supposed to be this way?
A two-month dry spell finally over, they climbed a bit closer to respectability tonight by riding Scott Erickson's six-hitter to a 7-1 defeat of the Oakland Athletics in front of 42,174 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Rafael Palmeiro got the Orioles going with a three-run home run in the first inning, and the rest of the evening seemed easy because Erickson (11-7) didn't allow a runner into scoring position after the first inning.
"Good pitching sets the tone," Orioles Manager Ray Miller said simply. "Scotty was awesome. He's been a godsend for us in being a workhorse."
[several paragraphs not about Scott]
The Athletics scored a run off Erickson in the top of the first inning, but Palmeiro needed one swing to put the Orioles in control in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Candiotti plunked Reboulet with a knuckleball. Davis grounded a single to left, and a Candiotti knuckler fluttered in front of Palmeiro, who slapped it over the wall in right-center for a 3-1 lead.
Erickson didn't need any more. He retired 25 of the last 29 A's, allowing just three singles and a walk after giving up the run.
"He really spotted the ball well," A's Manager Art Howe said. "When he's on, he's tough to score on."
Meanwhile, Erickson's teammates built on the lead. Candiotti kept the margin at two runs until the fifth innings when another knuckleball ended up over the wall.
Bordick singled to open the fifth, and Anderson followed with a single to right, sending Bordick to third. Reboulet's squeeze bunt scored Bordick, and Davis followed with a home run that landed two dozen rows into the left-field seats for a 6-1 lead. An inning later, Ripken made it 7-1 with his eighth home run, a fly just inside the left field foul pole.
"I don't know what changed after the all-star break," Erickson said. "Apparently, everyone is enjoying baseball a little more. We're giving a better effort and having fun. We're so far out, there's not any pressure on us. Maybe that's what it is."
From The Baltimore Sun
Erickson returns to form
By Joe Strauss
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Forgetting Tuesday night's three-hit hangover, the Orioles celebrated a return to normalcy yesterday. Home runs stayed home runs. A slumping expansion team was made to look like a slumping expansion team. Most encouraging, Scott Erickson reclaimed his place as staff plow horse.
Erickson (12-9) provided the Orioles and their weary bullpen a five-hit, 7-0 shutout of the irksome Tampa Bay Devil Rays. In turn, his hitters supported him with early runs and his fielders completed what may have been their best defensive series this season. Shortstop Mike Bordick highlighted a 10-hit attack with a season-high three RBIs while enjoying a rare breakout against left-handed pitching.
The win was the Orioles' second of the three-game series and bumped them to 4-2 on a 10-game road show that shifts to Cleveland tonight. They are 24-7 since the All-Star break and have captured seven of their past nine.
The Orioles are eight games behind Boston in the wild-card race after the Red Sox's 8-4 loss to the Kansas City Royals last night.
After scoring seven runs in their previous three games, yesterday represented a welcome return to form for a revived club hitting .300 since the break.
Bordick helped improve what had been an 0-for-26 performance by the bottom four spots in the lineup in the first two games. Batting ninth, he contributed a sacrifice fly and atwo-run double, and B. J. Surhoff added an RBI.
"We were flat," Rafael Palmeiro said of the club's three-game malaise. "But you've got to give them some credit, too. They pitched well the first two games."
This time, it was the Orioles' turn to pitch most impressively.
Erickson walked one, struck out five and again resembled the pitcher who suffered only one loss in 10 starts from June 5 to July 21. He was given a 1-0 lead in the second inning on Bordick's sacrifice fly and a 3-0 cushion in the third thanks to Palmeiro's two-run homer, his 36th home run, against Devil Rays starter Wilson Alvarez (5-11). Erickson, who retired 17 straight hitters after a nervous first inning, never again faced the tying run at the plate.
"It's a lot easier when you score a few runs. Those guys the last two days had pitched really good. It's always helpful for the pitcher when guys score four or five runs," said Erickson, though the Orioles have scored 49 runs in his last six starts.
"Scotty's a tough guy to read," said Ray Miller. "He can go through 12 hitters then all of a sudden give up five straight hits and a couple runs. Then he'll turn around and go through 20 guys in a row."
In his last start, Erickson had managed only 12 outs, the time before only nine. Three sloppy starts since June 26 had caused concern. During the stretch, Erickson was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA, allowing 31 base runners in only 12 innings.
This wasn't the first time that Erickson struggled this season. Until adjusting the length of his stride before a May 11 start, he often pushed his pitches as a result of overstriding.
Recently he had began suffering similar results but, according to his manager and pitching coach, for different reasons.
Clubhouse wisdom held that Erickson was suffering from a tired arm. The league leader in innings pitched, Erickson was allowed six days before his previous outing, an ineffective four-inning effort in Minnesota on Friday. Pitching coach Mike Flanagan believed he tried to compensate for arm weariness by pushing even harder with his legs. As a result, Erickson dragged his arm, eliminating bite from his slider and velocity from his sinking fastball. Flanagan saw further evidence of fatigue in his lower arm slot.
"Today he was more like himself, a lot more 12-to-6," Flanagan said, likening the motion to the hands of a clock. "Before he was 2-to-8."
Erickson has little use for explaining his mechanics. Asked about the adjustments he made in a Sunday side session, he only acknowledged feeling positive afterward.
"Everybody throws the ball a certain way," he said. "It's important for each guy to know his mechanics and the muscle memory it takes for him to be effective."
Yesterday's lockdown marked his league-high eighth complete game. He is 6-2 with a 1.27 ERA in those games compared with 6-7, 5.25 in his other 19 starts.
His only scare came in the first inning, when the Devil Rays placed runners at first and second with one out. Erickson escaped by getting Fred McGriff to hit into a fielder's choice before striking out Paul Sorrento.
Bordick then gave Erickson the only run he would need on a sacrifice fly driven to deep right field. Five innings later, Bordick would chase Alvarez with a one-out double inside the left-field line to score Surhoff and Rich Becker, who were hit and walked.
Bordick's two-year term in Baltimore has been most notable for consistent defense, a model work ethic and a maddening time against left-handed pitching.
The hitting deficiency is curious, because Bordick arrived from Oakland with a career .259 average against left-handers and a .258 mark against right-handers. However, last season he struggled to a .195 average against left-handers, 59 points less than versus right-handers. He entered yesterday with the league's second-worst average (.174) against lefties, leading only Brady Anderson (.173).
"It's weird, because I see lefties real well. I have been vulnerable to chasing against lefties. I have a tendency to swing at the high pitch. I think every hitter has to get guys down," said Bordick. "The last couple days, I've had a tendency to feel for the ball a little bit. I've swung the bat OK, but I wasn't as aggressive as I like to be. Normally when I get a couple fastballs, I want to stay aggressive."
Bordick's day enabled him to end a 6-for-33 slump and a stretch in which he had produced one RBI in 67 at-bats. Like Erickson, he hoped it was the first step in solving a mystery.
BALTIMORE, Aug. 17—Scott Erickson tied a career high with 10 strikeouts, Harold Baines delivered a timely two-run single and the Baltimore Orioles tonight won for the fifth time in six games, slowly creeping closer to making this a season to remember.
Erickson pitched seven strong innings, Baines's fifth-inning hit gave the Orioles the lead and they held on for a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins before a crowd of 46,606 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
With the victory, the Orioles moved into a tie with the Texas Rangers, 6 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the chase for the American League wild-card berth. The Orioles (66-58) trailed the Red Sox by 15 1/2 games in early July at the all-star break but have won 28 of 36 since.
"We're looking ahead to [catching] them, but those guys have to be looking back and saying, 'Those guys keep winning,' " Orioles catcher Lenny Webster said. "If we can get within three [games of the Red Sox] by the end of the month, that's pretty good, considering where we're coming from. As long as we're in a situation where we're close and we have to play those guys [six times in the season's final two weeks], I like our chances."
Early tonight, Orioles Manager Ray Miller said he was concerned about his team's chances against the struggling Twins (54-69), given the Orioles' late-night return from Cleveland.
"It was kind of a bad scenario today -- I didn't like it," Miller said. "I didn't feel good about the game from the get-go because we didn't get in until about 3 and nobody got to bed until 4 in the morning. And [Minnesota starter] LaTroy Hawkins came out throwing great today. Not that us getting in late made him throw any better, but when [he is] throwing that good, it's nice to be fresh."
Although the Orioles struggled to produce offensively, Erickson and their fielding were enough to carry the team to another victory.
After giving up a run in the first inning, Erickson stranded a runner at third base in that inning and again in the second. He also wiggled out of trouble in the sixth and seventh innings, by which time the Orioles had taken a 3-1 lead.
After the Twins scored once in the seventh to cut the Orioles' lead to 3-2, Erickson struck out Brent Gates on a pitch in the dirt to leave runners on second and third. That was his 10th strikeout, equaling a career high he set while pitching for the Twins on May 14, 1994, at Oriole Park.
"His slider was real nasty as the game went on," Miller said. "And he actually threw about four or five real good slow breaking balls that got outs."
Said Webster: "It was typical Scotty tonight. He threw the ball well and had pretty good velocity. Whenever Scotty gets good velocity on his fastball, it sets up the slider. And he had a pretty decent slider -- he kept it down and that was the key."
Erickson allowed seven hits and walked just one, and 71 of his 108 pitches were strikes. After getting Gates to end the seventh, Erickson gave way to the bullpen.
Jimmy Key and Armando Benitez retired all six batters they faced, with Benitez earning his 18th save.
It was a fitting end to a game in which defense and pitching set the tone.
Erickson was nearly matched by Hawkins (7-12), who allowed only one runner past first base before the Orioles broke through in the fifth inning.
With the Orioles trailing 1-0 and one out, Mike Bordick singled to center field, Roberto Alomar blooped a single to center and Brady Anderson walked to load the bases.
Baines followed with a soft line drive just past the reach of leaping second baseman Todd Walker and into center field. The runners had to wait initially in case Walker caught the ball, but it was hit so softly that Alomar still was able to score from second to give the Orioles a 2-1 lead, with Anderson hustling around to third.
Rafael Palmeiro followed with a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Anderson easily and the lead was 3-1, which proved to be enough.
A well-turned double play ended a two-on, one-out threat in the sixth inning, and Erickson did the job himself to end the seventh.
"I just threw the right pitch at the right time," said Erickson, who shut out the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in his previous start. "I don't know if I could tell how good my stuff was."
BALTIMORE, Aug. 22—Scott Erickson went to the pitcher's mound today and gave the Baltimore Orioles exactly the type of performance they needed.
With the bullpen overworked and the team sagging under the weight of a two-game losing streak in the middle of a wild-card playoff chase, Erickson delivered his American League-leading ninth complete game and a 6-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Erickson threw 125 pitches in 90-degree heat, surviving seven hits and four walks in an effort Manager Ray Miller called "heroic."
With Cal Ripken adding a two-run home run and the offense totaling 17 base runners while threatening nearly every inning, the Orioles made their various woes from the past two days a distant memory.
Just 33 games remain in their season, however, and the Orioles are seven games behind the Red Sox in the AL wild-card chase, after Boston lost, 4-3, at Minnesota tonight. Still, Baltimore (69-60 overall, 31-10 since the all-star break) continued its own blistering pace, winning for the eighth time in 11 games as Erickson earned his team-leading 14th victory of the season.
"Scotty completed the game, which is what our bullpen needed," Miller said. "Jesse [Orosco], [Alan] Mills and [Armando] Benitez have pitched a tremendous amount lately, and we've got a day game [Sunday]. So not only do we get a win and a complete game, but we get a fresh bullpen."
Erickson, who has the best ground ball to fly out ratio in the AL over the past two seasons, turned in a typical performance, getting 16 ground ball outs. No pitcher in the AL this season has started more games (29) or thrown more innings (201 2/3) than Erickson, who has pitched at least into the seventh inning 13 times in his past 17 starts.
"I was trying to help out the bullpen, give the guys a blow and help them get ready for" Sunday, Erickson said. "That's the reason I try to go out and complete games."
Erickson has pitched more than 200 innings in all three of his complete seasons with Baltimore, and has reached that plateau six times during a remarkably durable nine-year major league career.
Erickson ended his outing emphatically, striking out the side with runners on second and third in the eighth inning, then allowing two more runners in the ninth before closing the game. Miller went to the mound in the ninth, but delighted the sell-out crowd of 48,138 by leaving Erickson in the game.
"I told him, 'I'm going to go against my better judgment and keep you in,' " Miller said. "Scotty showed me something in the eighth, and I thought he could finish it off."
The Orioles got most of their offense in the sixth and seventh innings, scoring twice in each and chasing Indians starting pitcher Bartolo Colon after five-plus innings. The right-hander's fastball was clocked in the high nineties for most of the game, but his control was not as impressive. Colon walked six, and three of the four runners who scored off him reached on free passes.
Two of those runs were scored by Willie Greene and Lenny Webster, who walked to lead off the bottom of the sixth after the Indians had taken a 3-2 lead in the top of the inning. A one-out single by Mike Bordick loaded the bases, and Cleveland Manager Mike Hargrove replaced Colon with Doug Jones.
But Jones couldn't hold the Orioles. Roberto Alomar hit a fly ball to the warning track that easily scored Greene, tying the game at 3. After an intentional walk to B.J. Surhoff loaded the bases again, Jones balked home Webster to give the Orioles a 4-3 lead.
The Orioles extended that advantage in the seventh. Rafael Palmeiro
led off with a single, and Ripken tucked his 11th home run of the season
just inside the left field foul pole. For Ripken, who broke Brooks Robinson's
team record for hits on Friday, it was the 1,500th run of his career --
and it was all the insurance Erickson needed.