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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
TOKYO (AP) -- A sumo wrestler waddled to his seat and the crown
prince sat in the Royal Box. Fans snacked on sushi with chopsticks,
and some even wore surgical masks.
Mike Hampton, however, made this a wild Opening Day.
|  | | Hank Aaron throws out the first ball to open the season. |
Baseball truly turned international Wednesday, and the Chicago Cubs
took advantage of Hampton's career-high nine walks to beat the New
York Mets 5-3 in the first major-league game played outside North
America.
"A loss is always disappointing, however they come," Hampton
said after his Mets' debut. "I wish I could have performed a little
better."
A mostly quiet, sellout crowd announced at 55,000 in the Tokyo
Dome watched the earliest opener ever and saw Shane Andrews and
Mark Grace homer for the Cubs and new manager Don Baylor.
"At home, opening day is completely different than it was
today," Baylor said. "But today was very special."
Mike Piazza hit a two-run shot for the Mets and, in keeping with
Japanese "besuboru" custom, was presented with a stuffed doll
when he reached home plate. He followed tradition, too, and threw
the trinket over the dugout.
Sammy Sosa, who visited the U.S. Embassy with Piazza earlier in
the day, got the biggest cheers. He delivered a double and single
and walked twice, then met with Crown Prince Naruhito and Princess
Masako after the win.
Jon Lieber kept in control, pitching seven neat innings and
allowing one run and five hits. He certainly made his parents proud
-- his mother and father woke up early back home in Council Bluffs,
Iowa, to throw a breakfast party and tune their satellite to the
telecast.
"There's always a little bit of nerves. It's not just opening
day for me, it's almost every start," Lieber said.
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OPENING DAY FIRSTS
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Pitch: A called strike from Mike Hampton to Eric Young at 7:06
p.m. in Japan (5:06 a.m. ET).
Hit: Damon Buford, a single in the first inning off Hampton.
Run: Young, who scored on Buford's hit.
Home run: Shane Andrews.
Double: Edgardo Alfonzo.
Walk: Young.
Strikeout: Todd Zeile, by Jon Lieber.
Stolen base: Young.
Double play: Sammy Sosa, started by Mets shortstop Rey Ordonez.
Hit by pitch: Mark Grace, by Hampton.
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After five women in colorful kimonos presented flowers to both
teams and the umpires, Hampton started the season by throwing a
strike to Eric Young at 7:06 p.m. local time, making it 5:06 a.m.
ET in New York and 4:06 a.m. in Chicago and the Liebers' house.
That was about all Hampton got over the plate as he struggled
with the mound dirt. His previous high for walks was seven, done
twice.
"The consistency of the mound wasn't something I was used to,
but I was the problem," he said.
Traded to New York after going 22-4 for Houston, Hampton lasted
only five innings. In addition to his nine walks -- one short of the
team record set by Mike Torrez in 1983 -- he hit a batter and threw
a wild pitch.
New baseballs were used, ones bearing the signature of
commissioner Bud Selig since the league presidents no longer exist.
They did not seem to be the source of Hampton's problem, though,
since the Mets infield had no trouble in turning four double plays
to back its struggling pitcher.
Lieber wound up with the win and Rick Aguilera got a save, while
Hampton took the loss. The Cubs ended a string of three straight
losses in openers and beat the Mets for the first time in six tries
on opening day.
There was a minor flap with one strike to go in the game. Mets
manager Bobby Valentine came out of the double-bench dugout and put
the game under protest, saying Cubs defensive replacement Jeff
Huson was not listed on the lineup card.
The game ended one pitch later and Valentine said he was
dropping the protest. It turned out Jeff Reed was listed twice and
Huson was mistakenly left off.
"I really did not want to do that," Valentine said. "But if,
in fact, they were playing with 26 men, we had to file a protest."
Baylor said he wasn't peeved but his words sounded like he was.
"Bobby tried to distract the pitcher, which is probably the
right thing to do," he said. "You just have to understand Bobby,
which I try to."
Young, acquired to give the Cubs a leadoff man with speed, led
off the game with a walk, stole second and scored when newcomer
Damon Buford followed with a single.
After the Mets scored in the third on Darryl Hamilton's
sacrifice, the Cubs took the lead for good in the fifth on
Hampton's wildness. Buford singled and one out later, Hampton
walked Sosa, Henry Rodriguez and Andrews to force home a run.
Andrews hit a two-run homer in the seventh off Dennis Cook to
make it 4-1.
"We'll always say that was the first home run of the century,"
Baylor said.
Grace connected in the eighth. Piazza hit a two-run homer in the
eighth off Brian Williams.
Between the lines inside a ballpark that looks like the
Metrodome and is home to both the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants and Nippon
Ham Fighters, it seemed like any big league game in America, except
for uniform ads on the Mets and Cubs. Also, players seemed to have
trouble with the infield dirt, which caused several batters to
stumble coming out of the box.
Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks sang "Take Me Out to the Ball
Game" during the seventh-inning stretch for fans who paid $115 for
the top ticket.
It was off the field where the big differences showed up.
Broiled eel, rice balls and sake were served up in the
concession stands, and beer girls in fluorescent outfits sold beer.
Some fans wore masks to cover their mouths, this being heavy pollen
season.
Missing, though, were the drums and horns that usually mark
games in Japan. There appeared to be a mix-up -- Japanese officials
wanted to create an American atmosphere, and banned the
noisemakers. But major league officials wanted that flavor, and
promised there would be a change Thursday night when the Cubs and
Mets wrapped up the opening two-game series.
Game notes
Mets pitcher Al Leiter and Cubs pitcher Kevin Tapani did
not make the trip. They stayed home to prepare for starts next
week. ... Kyle Farnsworth pitches for Chicago against Rick Reed on
Thursday night. It will be the Cubs' turn to be the home team. ...
This was Chicago's first game at a neutral site since Oct. 15,
1892, when it beat St. Louis 1-0 in Kansas City. ... Cubs SS Ricky
Gutierrez was scratched because of a strained muscle in his left
ribcage. ... Cubs OF Tarrick Brown made his made his major league
debut as a defensive replacement and singled in his first at-bat.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Chicago Cubs Clubhouse
NY Mets Clubhouse
Smith: Welcome to Sammyland
Rogers: Japanese journey
MRI reveals Cubs' Valdes has tendinitis, not torn rotator cuff
RECAPS
Chicago Cubs 5
NY Mets 3
Anaheim 12
Arizona 9
Colorado 7
Chi. White Sox 3
Milwaukee 12
San Francisco 4
Anaheim 8
San Diego 1
Oakland 3
Seattle 3
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Sammy Sosa says the Cubs knew what to expect from Mike Hampton.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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