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Sunday, Jul. 9 1:35pm ET
Clark gets best of Brantley -- 15 years later | ||||||||||
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PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Will Clark got the best of his college teammate 15 years later, and when it counted most. Clark's two-run single off Jeff Brantley in the ninth inning lifted the Baltimore Orioles to a 5-4 comeback victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.
"Jeff doesn't give in and I knew that going in," Clark said. "It's always emotional when you play against somebody you played with a long time. As teammates, you go through a lot. But you have to separate it and do your job." Brantley said he last faced Clark in an intrasquad game at Mississippi State. "I struck him out 15 years ago," Brantley said. "This one counted. That one didn't." Pinch-hitter Harold Baines singled off Brantley to start the ninth and was removed for pinch-runner Luis Matos. Brady Anderson walked, Mike Bordick sacrificed the runners to second and third and Clark hit a soft liner to center. "He's human," Phillies manager Terry Francona said about Brantley. "He's been so good, but it's going to happen. He's been great." Alan Mills (1-0) pitched two innings of hitless relief. Mike Timlin worked a perfect ninth for his ninth save. He struck out Doug Glanville and Ron Gant to end the game. "Mike got some good fastball hitters out," Baltimore manager Mike Hargrove said. "His last two outings have been good steps. I'm not going to say he's the closer, but he's closer than a week ago when we went to a bullpen by committee." The Phillies wasted a solid effort from Dave Coggin, a rookie who did not pitch in Triple-A. Coggin allowed three runs -- two earned -- and seven hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked one. Clark wasn't too impressed, however. "He was no force," Clark said. "The guy was lucky today. He's getting his feet wet. He's got a way to go before he's a force." Mike Lieberthal drove in three runs for the second straight game. Lieberthal, the Phillies' lone All-Star, had a two-run double, an RBI groundout and scored the go-ahead run in the sixth after hitting a double and stealing his second base of the season. Despite the loss, the last-place Phillies head into the All-Star break among the league's hottest teams. They have won 15 of 23 and are 21-14 since June 1, tied with San Francisco for tops in the NL. "There's still a long way to go," Francona said. "We dug ourselves a hole, but we're playing good baseball and guys are feeling good about it." Scott Erickson allowed four runs and eight hits in six innings. It was the second straight start in which he allowed four runs or fewer after giving up 22 in his three previous starts -- all losses. "He's not overthrowing every pitch," Hargrove said. "He's throwing 88 to 90, getting to 91 or 92 with some pitches. He's conscious of backing off and allowing his ball to move." Erickson left the locker room before it was opened and did not speak to reporters. Lieberthal gave Philadelphia a 2-0 lead with a two-run double in the first. After Baltimore tied it with two in the third, Lieberthal made it 3-2 in the bottom half when his grounder scored Bobby Abreu. The Orioles got even again with an unearned run in the fourth after B.J. Surhoff reached on a fielding error by first baseman Pat Burrell to start the inning. Surhoff stole second and scored on a single by Greg Myers. Lieberthal, one of the slowest runners on the team, manufactured a run in the sixth with timely baserunning. He led off with a double, then stole third easily as Erickson failed to pay him any attention. After Burrell walked, Lieberthal scored when Kevin Jordan grounded into a double play. Baltimore scored two runs in the third that started with a one-out double by Mark Lewis on a ball that left fielder Ron Gant misplayed. Erickson followed with an RBI double just inside the first-base line to cut it to 2-1 and Bordick's two-out single tied it.
Game notes | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Baltimore Clubhouse Philadelphia Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 7 Atlanta 2
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