Miller Glad to Leave Town After Sweep by Yankees

Even when the Orioles get good pitching, they can’t seem to win, so Manager Ray Miller was glad to escape New York on Thursday night.

Scott Erickson held the Yankees to two hits for seven innings, then fell victim in the eighth of a 3-1 loss, the Orioles’ eighth in a row.

“This whole thing has been a mess,” Miller said, referring not only to a three-game series sweep by New York that was punctuated by a first-game brawl and subsequent suspensions, but to Baltimore’s longest losing streak since 1993.

The Yankees’ Paul O’Neill beat out a slow grounder to drive in the go-ahead run, and Bernie Williams singled in another.

“It’s hard to believe that he loses this game tonight,” a sympathetic O’Neill said of Erickson, who gave up five singles and struck out a season-high nine in 7 2/3 innings. “He got a couple of bad breaks.”

Andy Pettitte (6-4) benefited from New York’s offense to improve to 7-1 in his career against Baltimore. The left-hander gave up eight hits in eight innings, bouncing back from two losses in which he gave up a combined 14 runs on 21 hits.

The Yankees have won five in a row and 30 of 35 since starting the year 1-4.

“That’s what happens to clubs that are playing well,” New York Manager Joe Torre said. “They have a patience about them.”

Texas 9, Seattle 8--Luis Alicea singled in Juan Gonzalez with the game-winner to cap a three-run, ninth-inning rally at Arlington, Texas, in which a fan came onto the field to argue with an umpire and the winning pitcher did not retire a batter.

While Ranger Manager Johnny Oates was involved in an animated argument with third base umpire Brian O’Nora over a call on a stolen base in the top of the ninth, a fan holding onto his cap like Earl Weaver came out of the third-base stands to join the discussion. The man was promptly escorted away by security.

The argument proved to be immaterial when Bobby Ayala (0-3) gave up three runs in the bottom of the inning as Seattle blew its second lead in two nights and its 10th save of the season.

Scott Bailes (1-0) got the victory. After two pitches to Rob Ducey, Bailes picked Russ Davis off first base to end the ninth.

Cleveland 6, Kansas City 2--Jaret Wright (2-3) won for the first time in nine starts and Shawon Dunston hit his first home run for the Indians, who won at Kansas City to give the Royals their sixth consecutive loss.

In losing the three games of the series, 16-3, 14-5 and 6-2, the Royals broke their franchise record for the most runs given up in a three-game span.

Toronto 6, Tampa Bay 1--Jose Canseco homered twice in the Blue Jay victory and had four homers in the three-game series at Toronto.

Canseco’s second homer was a 422-foot drive off Jim Mecir in the seventh inning that broke a scoreboard light just below a restaurant window on the third deck of SkyDome.