BARCELONA ’92 OLYMPICS / DAY 5 : No Lead Is Safe vs. Cuba : Baseball: U.S. scores five in first inning, then Pacheco’s grand slam and errors spark Cubans to 9-6 victory.

Fidel Castro flew home to Cuba ahead of schedule Wednesday. He missed seeing his favorite team in his favorite sport fight back from five runs behind to frustrate the United States, 9-6, in a game between Olympic baseball’s only unbeaten teams.

He also missed a game that was poorly played (nine errors) and four hours long.

Stung by a five-run U.S. first inning, the Cubans struck back quickly with Antonio Pacheco’s grand slam in the third inning and took the lead for good by the fourth.

Cuba’s record is 4-0, the Americans’ 3-1. Both clubs should qualify easily for next week’s four-team medal round.

“Maybe that five-run lead was the worst thing that could happen,” U.S. Coach Ron Fraser said. “I think it gave our ballclub a sense of false security. Maybe they thought the Cubans would roll over because they’re not used to that.

“By now they should know: Cuba doesn’t roll over.”

Jorge Fuentes, Cuba’s coach, said: “The victory was very important psychologically from our point of view because no team has yet defeated us.”

The endurance test at Estadi de l’Hospitalet dragged on until 1 a.m., which is considerably longer than Cuba’s starting pitcher lasted.

Orlando Hernandez worked one-third of an inning. He retired only the leadoff man, after which Chris Wimmer singled, Jeffrey Hammonds walked and Michael Tucker--the first-round choice of the Kansas City Royals--crushed a three-run homer over the 122-meter (400-foot) sign in center field.

Then Cuba’s defense came unraveled. A walk to Phil Nevin was followed by Jason Giambi’s grounder to shortstop that bounced off German Mesa’s chest. Mesa’s recovery was late, and second baseman Pacheco threw the relay at least 15 feet over the first baseman’s head.

Nevin was awarded home on the double error for a 4-0 lead. Chad McConnell singled in Giambi to make it 5-0 and chase Hernandez.

Relief pitcher Omar Ajete got out of the inning when McConnell was cut down at the plate trying to score on Nomar Garciaparra’s single to right.

Ajete handcuffed the Americans the rest of the way.

Cuba’s first hit off U.S. starter Ricky Helling, a right-hander from Stanford, came with one out in the third inning. Three consecutive singles loaded the bases, and Pacheco’s grand slam to center unloaded them.

Still leading, 5-4, the Americans brought in right-hander Daron Kirkreit from UC Riverside to open the fourth inning. He faced five batters, retiring only the one who bunted for a sacrifice.

After a leadoff single and bunt, Kirkreit deflected a high-hopper off Ermidelio Urrutia’s bat. Garciaparra barehanded it at short but threw wildly to first. His overthrow, one of five U.S. errors, tied the score, 5-5, and two ringing singles put Cuba ahead.

In the fifth, the Americans had a chance to retaliate. Singles by Hammonds and Tucker put runners at first and third with no out, and Tucker outran a pickoff throw to steal second base.

But both Nevin and Giambi, the Nos. 4-5 hitters in the U.S. lineup, took called third strikes and McConnell grounded to second.

The Americans never seriously threatened again. But they did take heart in in that they at least got the Cubans’ attention.

“We did score five runs on them,” said Nevin, the third baseman from NCAA runner-up Cal State Fullerton. “We played with them. If we eliminate some mistakes, we can beat them. We don’t need to think of ourselves as second best.”