Major League Baseball Roundup : George Bell’s Bat Has Its Say: 2 Homers, 6 RBIs

As usual, George Bell wasn’t talking to the media.

Despite hitting two home runs in a game for the sixth time this year, driving in six runs and leading the Toronto Blue Jays to their ninth straight victory to equal a club record, George Bell wasn’t saying anything.

Not that it made any difference. The outcome remained the same as the Blue Jays defeated the Orioles, 8-6, at Baltimore Thursday night for the 12th win in their last 13 games.

Going in the other direction are the Orioles, who have lost 8 straight and 12 of 13.

Bell’s second homer in the game was a grand slam, the third against Baltimore in two nights. Bell is the American League leader with 23 homers and 60 runs batted in. He has 5 home runs and 14 RBIs in his last four games.

“We’re doing a lot of things well,” Jesse Barfield said. “Besides the clutch hitting of George, others have been chipping in, and we’ve manufactured a lot of runs. We didn’t do that before.”

Toronto led, 7-1, before the Orioles rallied for five runs in the seventh, highlighted by Mike Young’s three-run homer.

Baltimore Manager Cal Ripken Sr., talking about his club’s losing streak, said: “It’s rough, no question about that. But we were out there battling.”

Ripken may have been battling a little too much Thursday. He was ejected for arguing a strike call against his son, Cal Ripken Jr., in the eighth inning. He said it had nothing to do with frustration or losing his patience during the losing streak.

“It was a 7-6 game, and that was an important pitch,” Ripken said. “If that was a ball, the pitcher has to bring the next pitch up. That’s the reason I got hot.”