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Wednesday, Apr. 12 10:05pm ET
Blue Jays get back to basics, beat Angels | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Brad Fullmer discarded his thinking cap and just relied on his batting helmet. Tony Batista stopped trying to pound the ball and just tried to put the bat on it. Both players went back to basics and it paid off in the form of a four-run eighth inning for the Toronto Blue Jays, who used Fullmer's tiebreaking two-out double and Batista two-run homer to beat the Anaheim Angels 6-2 Wednesday night. Reliever Mark Petkovsek (0-1) hit Homer Bush with a pitch with one out and Raul Mondesi singled for his first three-hit game for the Blue Jays. After Carlos Delgado struck out, Fullmer lined the next pitch off the low fence in the right-field corner for a 4-2 lead, chasing Petkovsek. "To be honest, I was thinking too much all night in my first few at-bats and not letting my natural ability take over," Fullmer said. "Instead of seeing the ball, reacting and hitting it hard, I was thinking about what they were throwing and getting my timing down. Sometimes you've just got to clear your mind and just go up there swinging." Batista, who hit a career-high 26 homers last season, then worked the count to 2-1 against Lou Pote before driving his fifth of the season to left field. "He's been struggling a little bit because he's been trying to hit the ball too hard," Toronto manager Jim Fregosi said. "But tonight he just had a nice easy swing at the ball. And when he does that, the ball jumps off his bat." Pedro Borbon (1-0) got one out for his first AL victory. The right-hander pitched 70 games in relief with Los Angeles last season, after missing the previous two years because of elbow surgery. "I was getting a lot of opportunity with the Dodgers," Borbon said. "I was in 70 games, but this was the first year since my surgery where I feel real comfortable with my arm and I feel even stronger than I did before the injury. So I'm just trying to go out there, do my job, try to have fun and enjoy it as long as I can. "I'm still learning the league, learning the strike zone and learning the hitters. So the first couple of months is going to be a learning experience for me every time I face a different team. I'm going to have to see how they react to my pitches and go from there." Garret Anderson hit an RBI single in the first and the Angels added a run in the fifth on doubles by Darin Erstad and Adam Kennedy. The Blue Jays tied the score at 2 in the sixth on consecutive RBI singles by Mondesi and Carlos Delgado. "We were due to have a little bit of an explosion, as far as scoring some runs," Fregosi said. "We haven't swing the bats very well, and it was great to see us come back after being down a couple of runs. And Frank pitched a heck of a game to keep us where he did." Delgado made a couple of nice plays at first base. He caught a line drive and made a tag for a game-ending double play. Blue Jays starter Frank Castillo gave up two runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings and struck out six. He lasted only three-plus innings against Texas in his season debut and squandering a 4-0 lead. "He pitched well and kept us in the game," Fregosi said. "He used all his pitches, got all of them over the plate, kept their hitters off balance." Anaheim's Jason Dickson, making his second start after shoulder surgery that sidelined him for the entire 1999 season, allowed two runs, nine hits and no walks over 6 1/3 innings. He has walked only one batter in 13 innings this season. "Those guys can hit," said Dickson, who has walked only one batter in 13 innings. "Maybe they're not the New York Yankees, but they're big-league hitters and they've got some guys in their lineup with some serious pop." Game notesOrlando Palmeiro started in right field in place of Tim Salmon, who took the night off because of flu-like symptoms. ... Fregosi, who recently was selected as the shortstop on the Angels' all-time team, was honored with a video presentation of his career highlights during a pregame ceremony. He also was presented with a piece of crystal at home plate by Angels closer Troy Percival -- who struck out the side in the ninth Tuesday night to preserve Anaheim's 5-4 victory. ... Delgado, whose 82 home runs over the previous two seasons are a Blue Jays' record, is still looking for his first homer after 36 at-bats. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Toronto Clubhouse Anaheim Clubhouse RECAPS NY Yankees 8 Texas 6
Toronto 6
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