Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, June 4, 1993 TAG: 9306040250
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Salem Buccaneers and Frederick Keys spent all of 3 hours, 14 minutes to complete their matchup. The Bucs jumped out to a big lead.
Slow game. Big lead. De los Santos just can't stand it.
But there was an upside:
The Bucs beat the Keys 6-3 before a crowd of 1,955 at Municipal Field to arrest a six-game skid.
And De los Santos had a lot to do with it, scattering six hits and striking out seven while walking only one in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander earned his sixth victory while giving up one run.
But the guy clearly acted like somebody who had gotten away with something when it was over.
"I do not like to have a big lead," he said. "I like it when it's close, when it's 2-0, 2-1. I can throw my slider and all my pitches for strikes. When I lead 5-0 or 6-0, I try to overpower people with my fastball. I don't concentrate as well."
Thursday night's victory was the exception rather than the De los Santos rule. He was working with a five-run lead after three innings. But instead of leaning on the heater, he mixed his pitches.
"Last time out, I just used my fastball," he said. "We were leading 5-0 and I tried to go with the fastball the whole way, but it just doesn't work."
This time around, the slider got him a lot of outs. The curve was wicked enough, too.
Doug Harrah served Salem for 2 innings and probably would have finished if not for a pair of Bucs errors that helped start a Keys rally in the ninth. After two runs were in, Jeff McCurry came on to get the last out and his 11th save.
"The way we've been going the last two weeks, any win is a good win," Salem manager Scott Little said.
\ BUCSHOTS: Rick Forney, one of the Keys' better pitchers, struggled from the start. He was ripped for eight hits - five in the first inning - and six runs in 2 1/3 innings. Four runs were unearned. . . . The Bucs' Tony Womack had three hits to raise his average eight points to .303. . . . Reliever Kevin Rychel may come off the disabled list during the weekend.
\ see microfilm for box score
by CNB