MAJOR LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Milligan’s Double Lets Orioles Stop Twins’ Streak

The law of averages finally caught up to the Minnesota Twins.

After winning 15 straight games, including four by one run and two in extra innings, the Twins finally lost a close one Monday night when Randy Milligan’s two-out, two-run double capped a three-run ninth inning that gave the host Baltimore Orioles a 6-5 victory.

“We’ve had some close ballgames, but tonight it went against us at the end,” Twins starter Allan Anderson said. “We played good baseball throughout the streak and we played good baseball tonight. But it just didn’t work out this time.”

Milligan’s game-winning double came off Rick Aguilera (2-3), who had pitched three innings on Sunday and got the victory in a 4-2, 10-inning victory over Cleveland.

Aguilera took a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the ninth. But David Segui opened the inning with a single, pinch-runner Juan Bell took second on Brady Anderson’s single and both runners advanced on Mike Devereaux’s sacrifice.

Pinch-hitter Joe Orsulak’s sacrifice fly made it 5-4 and the Twins defied conventional wisdom by intentionally walking the potential winning run, Cal Ripken. The strategy backfired when Milligan drilled a 1-2 pitch into the gap in left-center. Ripken scored without a throw.

“That’s the right thing to do, I believe,” Twins Manager Tom Kelly said of the walk to Ripken. “Rick just put the pitch right down the middle of the plate.”

And Milligan jumped on it, putting it between Dan Gladden in left and Kirby Puckett in center.

“After I hit it, I wanted to see where the center fielder was, because he’s been known to track down a few,” Milligan said. “When I saw it hit the ground, I knew Cal had a chance.”

Puckett knew instantly that the ball was out of his reach.

“I knew as soon as he hit it, it was right in-between Danny and I,” Puckett said. “There was nothing you could do about it.”

The Twins, who lost for the first time this month, were foiled in their effort to match Kansas City’s 16-game winning streak in 1977. Despite the loss, they stayed a half-game ahead of Oakland in the AL West.

New York Mets 10, Cincinnati 6--Howard Johnson and Hubie Brooks hit two-run home runs, and Ron Darling won for the first time in 37 days although his team squandered much of a 10-1 lead.

Darling (3-4), who last won on May 11, got off to a smooth start but finished by allowing three runs and seven hits in six innings. Doug Simons relieved and helped the Reds get back into the game by giving up three runs in the seventh, including Bill Doran’s leadoff homer.