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Sunday, Jun. 4 1:35pm ET
Armas, Expos complete sweep of Orioles | |||||
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MONTREAL (AP) -- Once again, the Baltimore Orioles won't have any wins to declare at the border when they return to the United States. The Orioles lost their 20th straight game in Canada as Tony Armas Jr. and Steve Kline combined on a three-hitter to give the Montreal Expos a 1-0 win Sunday. Baltimore bench coach Jeff Newman, the Orioles' acting manager with Mike Hargrove attending his son's high school graduation in Cleveland, said the losing streak north of the border wasn't weighing heavily on the team. "Not one bit," Newman said. "We're just trying to win a ballgame." Lee Stevens singled home the only run with two outs in the eighth inning as Montreal completed a three-game sweep. Baltimore has lost five in a row overall. "The way the game was going, all we were going to need was one," Stevens said. "Both teams just kind of battled and we were fortunate enough to string some hits together in one inning." The Expos also swept a three-game set from the Orioles at Olympic Stadium in 1998. Baltimore has lost its last 14 in a row at SkyDome to the Toronto Blue Jays. "It came down to the ninth hour and they scored a run and we didn't," Newman said. Armas (1-3) allowed a leadoff single to Albert Belle in the second and a one-out double to Greg Myers in the third as he recorded his first major league win. "He was around the plate with everything," Expos catcher Brian Schneider said. "He changed speeds really well and was able to throw his offspeed pitches when he was behind in the count. I give him all the credit." Kline relieved Armas to begin the ninth and allowed a two-out double to pinch-hitter Mark Lewis. Lewis advanced to third on Schneider's passed ball and Jeff Conine walked. B.J. Surhoff then hit a grounder to second baseman Geoff Blum, who made a nice play sliding to his left and threw to first for the final out. Kline recorded his fourth straight save. Montreal is 29-23 overall in interleague play, including a 19-7 mark against AL opponents at home. Rondell White doubled off Sidney Ponson (3-3) with two outs in the eighth and advanced to third on Vladimir Guerrero's high chopper for an infield single. Stevens lined a single to center field for Montreal's sixth hit off Ponson to break the scoreless tie. "All we can ask for is to have a chance late in the game," Stevens said. "Our intensity didn't change. We just felt like we were going to score a run, it was just a matter of time. Tony kept them off the scoreboard and one was all we needed." Ponson then struck out Mike Mordecai looking with runners at first and third for his career-best eighth strikeout. Mordecai doubled twice, including a one-out double off Ponson in the seventh. Schneider drew the Expos' third walk off Ponson and Mordecai became the first baserunner to reach third when he advanced on Orlando Cabrera's fly to right. Armas then grounded the first pitch he saw from Ponson to short to end the threat. Ponson allowed just six hits for his second complete game of the season "I'm pretty happy with my outing today, especially since it was a loss," Ponson said. "If I can pitch like that every time out, I'll take it any day." Game notesThe game was played in a brisk 2 hours, 21 minutes. ... Hargrove missed his second straight game in order to attend his son Andy's high school graduation in Cleveland. ... The Orioles are 12-26 since April 22 when they were a season-high six games over .500. ... Belle went 1-for-4 and has hit safely in 28 of his last 31 games, going 39-for-119 (.328) over that stretch. ... Blum made his second straight start at second base for the injured Jose Vidro. Vidro, who was given a cortisone shot Saturday for a sprained ligament in the middle finger of his right hand, is expected to return to the lineup Tuesday against the Yankees. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Baltimore Clubhouse Montreal Clubhouse RECAPS NY Yankees 7 Atlanta 6
Montreal 1
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