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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Manny Ramirez brought his productive bat back into the Cleveland Indians lineup, and Kenny Lofton was inspired.
|  | | Manny Ramirez returned from the DL, and eventually hit a home run. |
"It was just good to see him out there. Then he ends up hitting
a home run, and that sparked us a little bit, too," Lofton said
after singling home the winning run Thursday night in the Cleveland
Indians' 4-3, 10-inning win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
"With Manny out there, that's your four hitter," Lofton said, "and he basically did his job."
Ramirez, who didn't start in the All-Star Game because of a
strained left hamstring, went 2-for-4 in his first game since May
29, when he was hurt running to first base against Anaheim.
He struck out in the first and homered in the fourth, a 419-foot
drive to left-center off Todd Ritchie. Ramirez left for a pinch
runner in the eighth after a bloop single to left.
"We haven't seen him out there in awhile, and I think the guys got kind of excited about it," Lofton said.
With the score tied at 3 in the 10th, Richie Sexson doubled off
Scott Sauerbeck (3-1) leading off and took third on Enrique
Wilson's sacrifice. One out later, Travis Fryman was intentionally
walked and Jolbert Cabrera walked unintentionally, loading the
bases.
Lofton singled to center, the ball just getting by the
outreached glove of outfielder Brian Giles.
"It cut away from me," Giles said. "When I left my feet on
the dive, I thought I had it, but I missed it by a foot."
Steve Karsay (2-5) pitched a scoreless 10th for the win.
Pittsburgh went ahead in the second on John Vander Wal's RBI
single, but Roberto Alomar's run-scoring grounder tied it in the
third.
Giles, in his first appearance at Jacobs Field since Cleveland
traded him after the 1998 season, put the Pirates back ahead with
an RBI single in the fourth, but Ramirez's two-run shot in the
bottom half, his 14th homer of the season, gave the Indians a 3-2
lead.
"The fans always treated me great here," Giles said. "I felt
comfortable. I didn't have any special feeling to try to beat
Cleveland. I just want to win every game."
Ramirez left quickly after the game without comment.
"This was the kind of win we need to get going," Indians
manager Charlie Manuel said. "We finally got a big hit in a key
situation."
Indians starter Dave Burba went seven innings, giving up three runs and seven hits. Ritchie gave up three runs and six hits in
seven innings.
"We needed to win," Burba said. "It gets the ball rolling for
us and gives us a little momentum, and hopefully we can carry it
out through this home stand and take it on the road and maybe get
something going to get back in the race."
Game notes
Ricky Ledee, acquired by the Indians from the Yankees on
June 29 for David Justice, switched his uniform number from 22 to
23, which is the number Justice had worn in Cleveland. ... Giles,
for the most part a backup outfielder when he was with the Indians,
has 60 home runs and 188 RBIs in 228 games with the Pirates. ...
Jason Kendall, Pittsburgh's All-Star catcher, went 3-for-4 and has
reached base safely in 75 of 80 games he has started.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Pittsburgh Clubhouse
Cleveland Clubhouse
He's back: Indians' Ramirez off DL; will he become trade bait?
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