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GAME LOG
MONTREAL (AP) -- Randy Johnson finally lost, and the team he
started with beat him.
Johnson made his first start at Olympic Stadium in 11 seasons,
and the Montreal Expos defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 2-0
Tuesday night, becoming the first team to beat Johnson in a
regular-season game since last Aug. 31.
|  | | Expos starter Javier Vazquez upstaged Arizona's Randy Johnson on Tuesday. |
"It's nice coming back here," Johnson said. "I haven't
pitched here since I left. It brought back a lot of memories."
But he didn't add any good ones.
Rondell White hit a 440-foot homer in the seventh inning and
Mike Mordecai singled home a run in the eighth.
Johnson (7-1), traded by Montreal to Seattle on May 25, 1989,
had won 10 consecutive regular-season decisions and was unbeaten in 12
starts since losing to the Expos last August.
He pitched his major league-leading fifth complete game,
allowing one earned run and walking none. He struck out 12 to raise
his major league-leading total to 110, reaching double digits for
the eighth time this year and the 133rd time in his career.
"He certainly did his job and gave us as good a chance to win
as you can," Arizona manager Buck Showalter said.
Johnson's ERA, the best in the majors, rose from 0.95 to 0.97.
Javier Vazquez (4-1) held the Diamondbacks to five hits in
eight-plus innings, struck out seven and walked two.
"Anytime you lose 2-0, the opposing pitcher pitched
outstanding," Johnson said.
Erubiel Durazo singled leading off the ninth to chase Vazquez.
Steve Kline got Scott Finley to fly to center, and Dustin Hermanson
walked Greg Colbrunn and Kelly Stinnett.
Lenny Harris then grounded to shortstop Orlando Cabrera, who
started a game-ending double play. Hermanson got his second save in
three chances.
White hit a full-count fastball from Johnson for his fifth home run of
the season.
"I'm not going to say it hurt me," Johnson said. "I got beat
by my best pitch, that's the way I look at it."
White felt that Vladimir Guerrero's presence in the lineup was a
factor in getting the pitch he wanted.
"It's just a lot of luck," White said. "He struck me out my
first two at-bats. I got a fastball 3-2, and everything went my
way. I had Guerrero coming up behind me so I knew he had to come
after me."
Cabrera singled leading off the eighth and advanced to third
when Johnson's pickoff attempt sailed into the Expos' dugout for an
error. Mordecai followed with a run-scoring single.
"We kept scratching, and we pulled it out," White said.
Johnson retired 17 of his first 18 batters, allowing just a
two-out double to Vazquez in the third before Wilton Guerrero
singled to center with two outs in the sixth.
Arizona threatened in the first, getting runners to second and
third with one out. The Expos escaped when first baseman Lee
Stevens snared Durazo's liner and Vazquez struck out Finley.
"That was a possible double by Durazo," Expos manager Felipe
Alou said. "Stevens is an outstanding fielder, and he has great
sense and anticipation."
Stevens, 0-for-1 with a walk against Johnson coming in, was
0-for-3 with three strikeouts. He was the only left-handed batter
in the Expos' lineup.
Game notes
Johnson was a combined 3-4 with a 4.69 ERA in 11 games for
Montreal, including 10 starts. ... Only Nolan Ryan (215) has more
double-digit strikeout games. ... The Expos are the only major
league team Johnson has faced and yet to beat. Johnson went 0-1
against Montreal in two starts at home last season. He has yet to
pitch against Houston. ... The Diamondbacks haven't lost a road
series since last July. Arizona has won 16 series and split a
four-game series in that span. ... Arizona is 78-28 (.736) since
last July 20. ... Switch-hitter Wilton Guerrero started in center
field in place of Peter Bergeron and made a nice leaping catch at
the wall on Jay Bell's drive to center leading off the sixth. ...
Closer Ugueth Urbina will have arthroscopic surgery Wednesday
morning to remove one or more possible bone chips from his right
elbow. Urbina, who also had bone chips removed from the same elbow
in Dec. 1996, is expected to be sidelined for 4-6 weeks.
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Baseball Scoreboard
Arizona Clubhouse
Montreal Clubhouse
RECAPS
Kansas City 8
Oakland 7
Cleveland 11
Detroit 9
Chi. White Sox 4
NY Yankees 0
Toronto 7
Boston 6
Texas 9
Tampa Bay 7
Baltimore 4
Anaheim 3
Seattle 9
Minnesota 5
Cincinnati 6
Pittsburgh 2
San Diego 7
Florida 3
Montreal 2
Arizona 0
St. Louis 8
Philadelphia 2
Colorado 4
NY Mets 3
Atlanta 9
San Francisco 7
Los Angeles 6
Chicago Cubs 5
Milwaukee 6
Houston 5
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