Astros’ Rally Ruins Hershiser’s Giant Debut

The Houston Astros rallied to win, 7-6, on a passed ball and ruin Orel Hershiser’s debut with the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night at Houston.

Hershiser, signed after leaving Cleveland in the off-season, pitched six innings. The former Dodger gave up five hits and five runs, and left with a 6-5 lead.

“In the first inning, I hit a batter and walked a batter,” Hershiser said. “Then, they jumped on me. I didn’t get us off to a real good start. The only good grade I should get in this game is that I didn’t give up.

“I was too calm if anything. I was relaxed and all of a sudden I was in trouble.”

With pinch-hitter Jack Howell at the plate in the eighth inning, a passed ball by Brent Mayne allowed Rickey Gutierrez to score the go-ahead run.

Mayne called his passed ball a miscommunication. “That’s all I’m going to say about it,” Maynes said.

Pitcher Julian Tavarez (0-1) took the blame.

“I was supposed to throw a slider and I threw a fast ball, it was my fault,” he said. “I missed the sign.”

For the Astros, Trever Miller got his first career pitching victory and Brad Ausmus got his first hit of the season, driving in the tying run.

Miller (1-0) pitched two hitless innings for the win, and Billy Wagner worked the ninth for a save.

Colorado 6, Arizona 0--Vinny Castilla hit his third home run of the season and John Thomson pitched eight strong innings at Phoenix as the Rockies kept the expansion Diamondbacks winless.

Dante Bichette drove in three runs with four hits, making him eight for 10 in two games. Larry Walker scored three times and had two of Colorado’s 16 hits.

Willie Blair (0-1), one of Arizona’s several big-money free agents, allowed five runs and 12 hits in seven innings. Blair, however, broke an 0-for-41 slump at the plate when he singled in the third.

Travis Lee, who got three hits off Darryl Kile in the opener, was the only Diamondbacks runner to get past first base. He singled and stole second in the first inning.

Unlike opening night, the threat of rain forced the Diamondbacks to keep the retractable roof closed on their high-tech Bank One Ballpark.

That seemed to affect the flight of the ball, notably on Matt Williams’ long fly in the first inning.

But Walker doubled off the center-field wall in the third inning, scoring the game’s first run. Bichette followed with an RBI single.

In the seventh, Walker walked and scored on Bichette’s double. Castilla then homered into the Diamondbacks’ bullpen. Castilla homered twice and drove in five runs in Tuesday’s win.

Walker and Bichette hit doubles in the ninth.

Pittsburgh 4, Montreal 0--Francisco Cordova and a pair of relievers combined on a five-hitter as the Pirates shut down the Expos at Montreal.

“He had a good sinker tonight and a good breaking ball,” Pittsburgh Manager Gene Lamont said. “When he has that, he usually pitches a good game.”

Cordova (1-0) limited the Expos to three hits in seven innings. He struck out five and walked two.

“Cordova pitched a great game,” Expo Manager Felipe Alou said. “He had no-hit stuff. He has a very tight strike zone. We never had a pitch to hit.”

A crowd of 31,220--the smallest for a Montreal opener since 1986--saw the Expos do little until the ninth inning, when they loaded the bases with two outs against reliever Rich Loiselle. Scott Livingstone hit a routine fly for the final out.

Tony Womack’s two-run double highlighted a three-run seventh against Carlos Perez (0-1).

Jermaine Allensworth and Jose Guillen hit one-out singles and Freddy Garcia’s RBI single put Pittsburgh ahead, 1-0, in the seventh inning. Guillen advanced to third, and Garcia to second on left fielder Rondell White’s throw home.

After Perez intentionally walked Lou Collier to load the bases and Cordova struck out, Womack doubled just under third baseman Shane Andrews’ glove.

“Carlos gave us everything he had tonight,” Alou said. “He stopped a big league club for six innings.”

The Pirates made it 4-0 in the eighth inning on Guillen’s RBI grounder off Anthony Telford.

Mark Grudzielanek got the game’s first hit in the third, a single to the right-field corner but was thrown out by Guillen while trying to stretch it into a double.

Chicago 10, Florida 3--Two days into the season, the Cubs are nearly three weeks ahead of last year’s pace as they beat the Marlins at Miami. The Cubs, who started last season 0-14, are now 1-1 in 1998 after Mark Clark struck out 11 and Kevin Orie drove in four runs, both career highs.

“I’ve never been on a team where winning the second game of the season meant so much,” catcher Scott Servais said. “I guess it’s part of being a Cub.”

Orie drove in runs with a single in the first, a double in the third, a solo homer off the left-field foul pole in the fifth and a sacrifice fly in the ninth.

BESTS OF THE DAY

BATTING

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Player Team Performance Team’s Result Kevin Orie Chicago 3 for 4, 4 RBIs, homer Win Steve Finley San Diego 2 for 4, 4 RBIs, homer Win Charlie Hayes San Francisco 2 for 4, 4 RBIs, homer Loss

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PITCHING

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Player Team Performance Team’s Result John Thomson Colorado 8 innings, 3 hits, 0 runs Win Fran. Cordova Pittsburgh 7 innings, 3 hits, 0 runs Win Mark Clark Chicago 7 innings, 11 strikeouts Win

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