DiSarcina, Stevens End Long Droughts

The subject was home runs, or lack of them, so Lee Stevens was sure that his tale of woe would top anything Gary DiSarcina could say when the two compared slumps before Wednesday’s game at Anaheim Stadium.

“I told him, ‘I’ve never hit one here in the daytime,’ ” Stevens said, “and he said, ‘Yeah, but I’ve never hit one, ever.’ ”

DiSarcina hit a game-tying two-run homer in the seventh inning. Stevens recorded his first run batted in at home this season when his grounder in the 10th inning scored Jose Gonzalez to give the Angels a 4-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.

DiSarcina’s first major league homer--in his 264th at-bat--tied the score, 3-3, and saved starter Chuck Finley from a possible loss. It also brought the crowd of 20,065 to its feet, but DiSarcina claimed he maintained his cool--at least until Gonzalez crossed the plate with the winning run.

“I’m more excited for Lee getting the RBI with the bases loaded than I am for myself,” said DiSarcina, who also made a fine catch on a David Segui pop-up with runners on first and third and one out in the eighth inning.

“Lee needs the confidence,” DiSarcina added after Stevens gave the Angels a four-run game for the first time in nine games. “It was good to see him drive in the run. . . . This could put us over the hump and get us out of our rut.”

Stevens was one for 26 on the nine-game home stand before being sent up to hit for Luis Sojo against Alan Mills (2-1) in the 10th inning. The Angels had loaded the bases when Jose Gonzalez walked, pinch-hitter Alvin Davis singled and Rene Gonzales walked. Stevens’ initial thought was simply to avoid hitting into a double play.

“Then I was hoping for a fly ball, but after two strikes you lose the advantage,” said Stevens, who prolonged his at-bat by fouling back two 1-and-2 pitches. “Then you’re just trying to put it in play, swing through it and put it in play.”

He chopped it slowly toward first baseman Segui, whose throw home was far too late to get Gonzalez.

“Hopefully, this will get us back on track,” said Stevens, who has seven RBIs in 35 games. “It’s been a while since we scored four or five. It’s good to come from behind and win in extra innings.”

Winning in any fashion would have pleased interim Manager John Wathan. He was ejected in the seventh inning for disputing a third strike called on Rene Gonzalez, but watched the game from the runway leading to the dugout.

Not only did he like what he saw, he liked what he heard: Manager Buck Rodgers, released Wednesday from Centinela Hospital Medical Center, congratulated Wathan and the players after the team’s second triumph in 10 games.

“He said we’re driving him crazy, but to keep winning some ballgames,” Wathan said, with a rare smile. “This was an outstanding game for us. Gary made a big defensive play (on Segui) at shortstop. That could have been a big one there, and Lee Stevens has been struggling. But he had a big at-bat. I don’t care if it’s pretty or not, it got the job done. . . .

“A lot of times we’ve scored one, two or three runs. Four is nice. We’d like to have some seven or eights, too.”

The Orioles had seven hits off Finley in the first three innings but scored only once, on successive singles by Cal Ripken Jr., Randy Milligan and catcher Jeff Tackett, who replaced starter Chris Hoiles when Hoiles sustained a cut on the right side of his head after being hit by Von Hayes’ bat in the first inning. Hoiles was not seriously injured.

The Angels matched that run in the third inning on DiSarcina’s double and a single by Chad Curtis, but the Orioles surged ahead again in the fifth. Segui walked and scored on Bill Ripken’s double for a 2-1 lead, and Lance Parrish’s wild throw on Brady Anderson’s bunt put runners on first and third. Mike Devereaux’s single to right provided the third run.

The Angels were stymied by Bob Milacki until the seventh, when pinch-hitter Luis Sojo singled and DiSarcina homered, the first by an Angel shortstop since Donnie Hill hit a three-run homer against the White Sox on May 20, 1991.

Pitcher Bert Blyleven retrieved the ball for DiSarcina, but the rookie had mixed emotions when he saw it.

“Bert got hold of it and wrote some obscenities on it,” he said. “Now I can’t show it to my mom.”