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  Monday, Jun. 5 7:10pm ET
Belle has three hits as Mets fall
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME LOG

NEW YORK (AP) -- Albert Belle made the most of his first game at Shea Stadium. So did Jason Tyner.

Belle got three hits off Mike Hampton and drove in two runs as the Baltimore Orioles beat the New York Mets 4-2 on a windy Monday night and broke a five-game losing streak.

"He's a smart hitter. He waits for his pitch and gets it. He knows how to hit," Hampton said.

Tyner, making his major league debut, was 2-for-3 with a sacrifice bunt for New York, including an RBI single off Mike Mussina. The 23-year-old rookie was promoted from Triple-A Norfolk before the game and immediately became the Mets' leadoff hitter.

"The whole day was a whirlwind. It was a blur," Tyner said. "To be honest, I'm glad it's over. But I wish I could remember that my first game was a win."

Orioles manager Mike Hargrove, back after missing two games while attending his son's high school graduation in Cleveland, made an unusual move that worked during a three-run rally in the seventh off Hampton (6-5).

Hampton, who had won four straight decisions, gave up a leadoff homer to B.J. Surhoff that made it 2-all in the seventh. Mark Lewis followed with a single and Mussina, allowed to bat, bunted into a forceout at second base.

Rich Amaral walked and, with Mussina at second, Hargrove sent in Delino DeShields to run for the pitcher. Mike Bordick delivered a single to center field that scored the speedy DeShields -- Mussina likely would not have made it.

"It was his last inning anyway," Hargrove said. "As it turned out, when his turn came up, the bunt was in order. But then I made the move with DeShields and it paid off."

With two outs, Belle blooped an RBI double for a 4-2 lead that finished Hampton. Belle is 6-for-8 in his career against the left-hander.

Right before Belle batted, a fan in the front row teased him, calling him "Joey," the name he was known by when he broke into the majors.

"That's what my big, fat paycheck says," Belle retorted, drawing a laugh from the fan, Christopher Weldon, 28, of Wilton, Conn., and spectators around him.

Mussina (3-6) gave up two runs in the second, ending the inning by getting Mike Piazza on a fly ball with the bases loaded. Mussina allowed little else before leaving after the sixth, retiring his last nine batters.

Mussina, Mike Trombley and Mike Timlin combined to retire the last 18 batters. Timlin got his fifth save.

Piazza's bid for a solo home run in the eighth was blown back in play by the wind.

Tyner, batting .347 at Norfolk and leading the International League with 27 stolen bases, was New York's first-round draft pick in 1998. The left fielder made a fast impression with the Mets, too.

With his wife, father, sister and uncle in the stands, Tyner led off the bottom of the first by hitting a one-hopper off Mussina's glove, beating third baseman Cal Ripken's throw for a single.

Tyner's try at stealing second was foiled when Derek Bell hit a foul ball. Bell then grounded into a forceout at second base, but Tyner hustled and slid into Bordick, forcing a wild throw.

With two outs in the second, Tyner fell behind 0-2 on two curveballs before slicing an opposite-field single to left for a 1-0 lead.

"He threw me curves that I've never seen," Tyner said. "Really, everything looked different up here. The stands seemed to go on forever."

Edgardo Alfonzo later drew a bases-loaded walk for a 2-0 lead in the second.

"He looked like he knew what he was doing," Mets manager Bobby Valentine said of the newest New Yorker. "It's good to have him."

Belle hit a single in the third that drove in Amaral, who scored twice and stole two bases.

Game notes
Tyner was flawless in the field. The Mets hope he can fill the leadoff spot left when Rickey Henderson was released last month. ... RHP Rick Reed will start Tuesday night for the Mets. He missed his last start because of an injured side muscle. ... The Orioles improved to 10-22 on the road. They were coming off a three-game sweep at Montreal. ... Hampton singled twice, giving him a five-game hitting streak and making him 11-for-31 (.355).

 


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