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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Charlie Manuel asked the umpires to call a
triple play and they obliged. He also wanted a big win, and he got
that, too.
Manuel was ejected in the second inning after Baltimore turned a
triple play that's still hard to describe.
|  | | Cal Ripken went 1-for-3 as the DH in Baltimore's 5-2 loss to Cleveland Friday. It was Ripken's first game since going on the disabled list June 28. |
There were some other strange sights Friday night at Jacobs
Field -- Mike Hargrove in the visitors' dugout and Chuck Finley
pitching through the seventh inning as Cleveland beat the Orioles
5-2.
But Hargrove's return to Cleveland and Finley's strong outing
were overshadowed by a disputed triple play that had everyone
searching the rule book.
"To tell you the truth I thought they called it the right
way," said Hargrove. Manuel sure didn't.
He and Hargrove both charged onto the field after a confusing
sequence of events in the second inning with Manuel confronting
crew chief John Shulock, who was working third base.
"He called it a double play and I asked why," Manuel said.
"And he said, 'I can call it a triple play. I said, 'I don't
care.' He said, 'OK, triple play."'
Finley (11-10) had not pitched beyond 6 1-3 innings in his eight
previous starts since July 14. But although the left-hander gave up
several hard-hit outs, he was never in real trouble and got his
second win since July 25. He gave up two runs and seven hits.
"They hit some balls hard and we caught them," Manuel said.
"He stepped up and gave us the innings we needed tonight."
Bob Wickman pitched a perfect ninth for his ninth save.
Wil Cordero had three hits off Sidney Ponson (7-10) and drove in
a run as the Indians, who opened a 13-game homestand, remained atop
the AL wild card race.
Brook Fordyce homered for the Orioles, who made their first trip
to Cleveland this season. It was a homecoming for Hargrove,
Baltimore's manager who guided the Indians to five straight AL
Central titles and two World Series trips before getting fired last
October.
Hargrove received a warm ovation when he took out the lineup
card before the game.
"I haven't done it all year and I don't like doing it," he
said. "But some people thought I should and told me that. It was
nice."
Cal Ripken returned to Baltimore's lineup for the first time
since June 28 and went 1-for-3.
In the second inning, the Orioles turned the 12th triple play in
their history, and it would be tough to find a weirder one in the
bunch.
Cleveland had runners at first and second with none out when
Sandy Alomar hit a pop fly into short left, about 15 feet off the
infield dirt.
Shortstop Melvin Mora went back for the ball, but instead of
catching it, he purposely let it drop. Indians runners, Travis
Fryman at second, and Cordero at first, never left their bases,
thinking the infield-fly rule would be called.
But none of the umpires made a ruling, and Mora alertly threw to
second baseman Jerry Hairston, who tagged Fryman for the first out.
Meanwhile, Alomar apparently thinking he was out automatically on
the infield fly, went back to the Indians' dugout.
"I understand exactly where John was coming from," Fryman
said. "He was correct in not making the call right away. When the
ball left the bat I thought it might fall in. John later told me he
made a mistake, that he should have called it."
Alomar thought he was out right away.
"I figured it was the infield-fly rule," he said. "What was I
supposed to do, stand there? Nothing was going on so I went back in
the dugout. That was ridiculous. Thank God we didn't lose the game
because of that."
Hairston then threw to first, but umpire Ian Lamplugh ruled
Cordero safe. However, with Hargrove and Manuel both on the field,
and players running all over the place, Cordero was called out on a
force at second.
As the Orioles players began running off, Manuel went
nose-to-nose with second-base umpire Rocky Roe. Manuel had no luck
with Roe and began pleading his case to Shulock.
"If it was the infield-fly rule I would have called it,"
Shulock said. Manuel was tossed, and Alomar was called out because he left the
field. The Orioles had not turned a triple play since Aug. 25, 1992,
against the California Angels. The Indians last hit into a triple play on Aug. 8, 1988, when
Joe Carter did it at Minnesota.
Thome's two-run single in the fifth put the Indians up 4-1
against Ponson, now 0-5 in eight career games against Cleveland. Delino DeShields hit an RBI single in the sixth to make it 4-2,
but David Segui countered with a run-scoring single for Cleveland
in the seventh. Omar Vizquel's RBI put the Indians up 1-0 in the first and
Cordero drove in a run in the fourth.
Game notes
Manuel has been ejected three times this season -- all against Baltimore. He hadn't been tossed since the second game of
the year. ... Manny Ramirez extended his hitting streak to 16
games. ... The Orioles are an AL-worst 22-44 on the road this
season. ... Mora left in the eighth with a strained hamstring. ...
The Indians are 19-6 at home since July 2.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Baltimore Clubhouse
Cleveland Clubhouse
It's a homecoming for Hargrove in first trip back to Jacobs
The Iron Man returns: Ripken singles in first at-bat off DL
RECAPS
Boston 6
Seattle 2
Cleveland 5
Baltimore 2
Detroit 7
Texas 5
NY Yankees 4
Minnesota 2
Toronto 4
Oakland 3
Kansas City 9
Tampa Bay 5
Chi. White Sox 9
Anaheim 8
Cincinnati 8
Montreal 2
Houston 3
Atlanta 2
St. Louis 6
NY Mets 5
Colorado 5
Milwaukee 3
Florida 8
Arizona 7
Pittsburgh 3
San Diego 2
Los Angeles 2
Philadelphia 1
San Francisco 7
Chicago Cubs 2
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