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GAME LOG
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Another home run by Albert Belle didn't
minimize the pleasure Tim Belcher derived from his long-awaited return to the major leagues.
Belle homered in a fourth straight game, but Belcher won in his
2000 debut and the Anaheim Angels hit three homers in ending
Baltimore's six-game winning streak with an 8-3 victory Saturday
night.
Belle hit a 411-foot solo shot off Belcher, his sixth home run
in four games and 10th in 14 games. He's the first Oriole to homer
in four consecutive games since Rafael Palmeiro in 1998.
Despite yielding Belle's 16th homer and walking five in 5 1/3
innings, Belcher (1-0) won his first game since September. The
right-hander, who had elbow surgery during the offseason, gave up
five hits and struck out three.
"It felt great to be out there again. It didn't feel great to
throw 58 pitches in the first two innings, but the bottom line is I
made the pitches to get out of it," Belcher said.
Among his big pitches was a double-play ball to Belle in the
first inning with runners on first and second and one out.
"Keeping him in the ballpark these days is a victory," Belcher
said. "The homer in the sixth inning, we were up 6-0 and he was
ahead in the count. I thought I'd give him an opportunity to miss
one. He didn't, a fastball over the plate."
Belle, who also singled in a run, finished the week with six
homers and 17 RBI in six games. The 17 RBI tied the club record
for one week set by Mike Young in August 1985.
"It looks like he's taking batting practice during games,"
Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "It seems like he's on top of
everything."
Troy Glaus, Garret Anderson and Mo Vaughn homered for the
Angels, who snapped a season-high three-game losing streak. Tim
Salmon had two hits and scored twice.
Glaus hit a two-run homer in the second inning and Anderson made
it 6-0 with a three-run shot off Jason Johnson (0-5) in the third.
Vaughn led off the eighth with his 20th of the season on the first
pitch from Mike Trombley.
Johnson (0-5) allowed seven runs and seven hits in seven
innings.
"Jason struggled with his command and we could not get the big
hits for him," Orioles manager Mike Hargrove said. "He hung a
slider to Glaus and Anderson hit a high fastball. But I have
confidence in Jason, yes I do."
B.J. Surhoff had two hits and an RBI for the Orioles, who were
vying for a season-high seventh straight win. Baltimore stranded 10
runners.
"Jason got no run support at all. That is as much a reason why
we got beat as anything else," Hargrove said.
Anaheim used a four-run third inning to take a 6-0 lead. Salmon
hit a two-out RBI single and Anderson followed with his 17th homer.
After Belle homered in the sixth, Darin Erstad singled in a run
for Anaheim in the seventh for a 7-1 lead. Belle and Surhoff hit
RBI singles in the Orioles' half.
The Angels went up 2-0 in the second when Salmon singled and
Glaus hit his 19th homer. In the bottom half, Baltimore loaded the
bases with one out before Belcher struck out Greg Myers and Brady
Anderson.
Belcher walked four in the first two innings and threw 33
pitches in the second inning alone. The strikeout of Anderson was
the 1,500th of his career.
"He really battled to get as far as he did," Scioscia said of
Belcher. "Early, his command wasn't sharp. I was most impressed by
his velocity. For a guy to throw that many pitches by the second
inning, to get into the sixth was a huge accomplishment."<
Game notes
Anaheim's Kevin Stocker snapped an 0-for-13 skid with a
third-inning single. ... Vaughn's homer was his 16th against the
Orioles at Camden Yards, most by a visiting player. He was tied
with Belle at 15. ... Baltimore is 4-16 when scoring fewer than
four runs. ... Orioles reliever Calvin Maduro struck out six in two
scoreless innings in a rehab start for Class-A Frederick of the
Carolina League. Maduro, expected to rejoin the Orioles this week,
allowed one hit.
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