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Don't blame Cal Orioles blow 4-0 lead; Yankees reduce magic number
Updated: Monday September 24, 2001 12:52 AM
BALTIMORE (AP) -- For five innings, the game belonged to Cal Ripken. Then the New York Yankees turned things around, showing why they've won three straight championships and are poised to make a solid run at making it four in a row. Bernie Williams drew a bases-loaded walk in the 10th inning to force in the tiebreaking run as the Yankees inched closer to another AL East title Sunday night with a 5-4 comeback victory over the Baltimore Orioles. The Yankees snapped a three-game skid and reduced to two their magic number to win a fourth straight division crown. Second-place Boston lost to Detroit 12-6 earlier Sunday. "As we keep lowering that number, the important thing will be to stay healthy and keep playing hard all the way through," Williams said. Ripken had a homer and three RBIs for Baltimore, which blew a 4-0 lead and a chance to complete a three-game sweep. Rookie Nick Johnson homered, had three RBIs and scored the go-ahead run in the 10th after getting a leadoff single off John Parrish (1-2). With the bases loaded and two outs, Williams walked on a 3-2 pitch. "It's good to get back into the swing of things, winning like that," Williams said. "It's what this team has been all about the last couple of years." Mike Stanton (9-4) got the win, and Mariano Rivera got three outs for his team-record 47th save, breaking the mark set by Dave Righetti in 1986. Johnson began the comeback with a solo homer in the sixth, then hit a two-run double in the eighth. New York tied it in the ninth against Baltimore closer Willis Roberts, who blew a two-run lead Friday night. Alfonso Soriano walked, took third on a single by pinch-hitter Tino Martinez and scored on a sacrifice fly by Williams. "We played them tough, but a lead is never safe against them," Ripken said. "That's why they're winners." Ripken was on a helicopter at 9:30 a.m., headed for Dover Downs International Speedway in Delaware, where he served as the official starter for a NASCAR race named in his honor. He returned by helicopter and was at the ballpark by 3 p.m. -- four hours before the first pitch. "I had a great day. I call it a good kind of busy," Ripken said. "It was really exciting, except for the fact that we didn't win." Ripken announced in June that he would retire after the season, and this was originally scheduled to be Ripken's final home game. But the shuffling of the baseball season due to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks means Ripken will play his final game on Oct. 6 in Baltimore. Ripken nevertheless put on a memorable show for the crowd of 46,071, many of whom paid scalper's fees for tickets months ago. After hitting a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning, Ripken received another in a series of standing ovations when he walked to the plate in the fifth. Ripken then hit the first pitch from Orlando Hernandez into the second row of the left-field seats, a two-run shot that put Baltimore up 4-0. "It was a good feeling. It was a big hit at the time," he said. Unfortunately for Ripken, his long day concluded with a game-ending strikeout. Notes: Yankees SS Derek Jeter was held out of the lineup for a second consecutive game. Jeter, hitless in his last 12 at-bats, has been slowed by either a cold or allergies, according to manager Joe Torre. ... New York DH David Justice ended an 0-for-15 skid with a second-inning single. He finished 2-for-6. ... Martinez is 3-for-5 as a pinch hitter this season.
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