Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 14, 1993 TAG: 9307140223
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: BALTIMORE LENGTH: Medium
The nooks and crannies of baseball's most popular park swallowed home runs by Kirby Puckett and Roberto Alomar, and even a double by Ivan Rodriguez, to help the Americans to their sixth consecutive All-Star victory, 9-3 on Tuesday night.
AL manager Cito Gaston, criticized for bringing seven of his Blue Jays, got big efforts from Alomar and Devon White. NL manager Bobby Cox, who brought five of his Braves, saw his players outperformed by Toronto's stars, just as they were in the 1992 World Series. John Smoltz threw a pair of run-scoring wild pitches, and David Justice and Jeff Blauser made errors that set up runs.
But did the AL's seventh victory in 10 games make fans in Baltimore happy?
Not really. Instead, Orioles rooters were so fed up with seeing Blue Jays that they spent the whole ninth inning booing, upset that Gaston allowed Toronto's Duane Ward to close the game.
"We want Mike! We want Mike!" they chanted, a cry for Orioles pitcher Mike Mussina, who could be seen warming up in the two-tiered bullpen in left-center field.
Gaston ignored it.
"My guys have done the job from day one, and they showed they could do it," he said.
"I guess I should just get out of town. They're Oriole fans," he said.
Gary Sheffield homered for the NL and Barry Bonds hit a pair of doubles, but that could not stop the AL from extending its longest winning streak in the series. The NL, however, still leads 37-26-1.
"We came out there strong. Everybody felt confident this time," Bonds said. "But their guys are powerhouses over there, and they're tearing us up."
A crowd of 48,147, the largest at Camden Yards and the 100th sellout since the stadium opened last year, watched the park play a perfect host for the game. And the stadium showed off several of its quirky, old-time features.
Sheffield's two-run homer in the first inning off Mark Langston landed barely inside the oddly angled left-field wall, just over the Crown gasoline advertisement. Puckett's homer over the center-field wall settled into the middle of a small sod farm, shy of the ivy-covered backdrop. Plus, several balls bounced off the 25-foot high scoreboard in right field.
But the most unusual hit in recent All-Star play came in the fifth inning.
The score was tied at 2 when Rodriguez led off against John Burkett with a line drive to left field. Bonds could only watch as the ball stuck in a seam of the padded wall for a ground-rule double.
Alomar advanced the runner with a groundout to the right side, and Albert Belle singled home the go-ahead run. Belle continued to second when Justice fumbled the ball in right, and Ken Griffey Jr. hit an RBI single, making him 6-for-11 in All-Star play.
With two out, Puckett, who hit a solo homer in the second inning off Terry Mulholland and was the game's MVP, added an RBI double that made it 5-2.
"A lot of people say I should not be here because my numbers are down," said Puckett, batting .298 with 11 home runs and 50 RBI at the break for Minnesota.
In the sixth, after the NL scored against Jimmy Key on a double by Bonds and a sacrifice fly by Barry Larkin, the AL came back with three runs.
Atlanta's Steve Avery retired the first two batters, but Blauser made an error. White hit an RBI double to end Avery's outing, and Smoltz threw a pair of wild pitches, each scoring a run.
Jack McDowell pitched one perfect inning to gain the victory, and Burkett took the loss. They are tied for the major-league lead with 13 victories.
The game was full of extra-base hits - an All-Star record-tying 10 - a sharp contrast to the only other All-Star Game held in Baltimore. In 1958, the AL won 4-3 at Memorial Stadium in the only All-Star Game without an extra-base hit.
by CNB