
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, June 7, 1994                    TAG: 9406070509 
SECTION: SPORTS                     PAGE: C4    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY CHIP TOWNS, CORRESPONDENT 
DATELINE: 940607                                 LENGTH: TOLEDO, OHIO

JACOME HURLS 4-HITTER AS TIDES RIP TOLEDO

{LEAD} Jason Jacome did something Monday night that nobody had been able to do all year - shut out the Toledo Mud Hens at home.

The Tides cruised to a 6-0 victory as Jacome threw a four-hitter and improved his record to 5-3. He struck out eight and walked two. Six of his strikeouts came in the last four innings.

{REST} After yielding a one-out single in the first inning, he retired 16 consecutive batters before ex-Tide Steve Springer singled to lead off the seventh inning. Bobby Higginson also singled in the seventh, but Jacome struck out another former Tide, Alan Zinter, with runners on first and third to end the threat.

That was the only time Toledo had a runner in scoring position all night.

``He was right on his game,'' Norfolk manager Bobby Valentine said. ``He had a good changeup, good movement on his fastball and he kept ahead of the hitters. He's been our most consistent starter.''

It was Norfolk's eighth complete game of the season. Jacome, a 23-year-old lefthander, has three of them.

But his teammates helped him out Monday night, scoring four runs before Jacome even took the mound.

Toledo's defense was partially to blame for starting pitcher Felipe Lira's first-inning problems.

Tides leadoff hitter Quilvio Veras reached when his ground ball went under first baseman Ivan Cruz's glove. Aaron Ledesma hit a ground ball to short that could have been turned into a double play, but Toledo shortstop Jim Givens bobbled the ball, then pulled Cruz off the bag with his throw to first.

Rico Brogna's sharp single to right scored Veras, then Jeromy Burnitz doubled down the rightfield line to score Ledesma. Brook Fordyce then hit a long fly to left-centerfield that Higginson appeared to lose in the sun. Brogna scored and Fordyce wound up with a triple.

Norfolk scored again in the fifth. Brogna led off with a triple down the line in right and scored on a wild pitch by Lira (3-5).

Norfolk scored again in the sixth. Patrick Howell tripled down the rightfield line and scored on a two-out single by Ledesma.

Brogna's two hits made him 10-for-18 in the series against his former teammates. In the four games, he had seven extra-base hits, including three triples, scored eight runs and drove in three.

The Tides open a three-game series at Columbus tonight at 7:05.

by CNB