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Connect four Bonds homers twice -- again -- in Giants' rout of DodgersPosted: Wednesday April 03, 2002 10:36 PMUpdated: Thursday April 04, 2002 4:06 AM
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Barry Bonds insists he's not locked in yet. Honest. If that's true, it's difficult to imagine what he'll do when that time comes. The San Francisco slugger hit another pair of home runs Wednesday night, giving him four in two games and leading the Giants over the Los Angeles Dodgers 12-0. Bonds became the second player in history to record multihomer games in his first two games of the season, joining Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews, who hit two homers in each of the Milwaukee Braves' first two games in 1958. The two homers -- both over 440 feet -- lifted Bonds' career total to 571, leaving him two behind Harmon Killebrew for sixth on the career list, and gave him 58 multihomer games in his career. "I just try to see it and hit it," Bonds said. "I'm strong enough to hit it out of the ballpark. I'm just trying to stay consistent and hit it. "It's fun when you're winning. We're all hitting the ball pretty good, it's not just me." That's true -- the Giants have outscored the Dodgers 21-2 in a pair of one-sided victories. But the 37-year-old four-time MVP has five hits in six at-bats, five runs scored and nine RBIs. He has reached base eight straight times after popping out in his first at-bat. And that's in only two games. "I realize I'm playing with one of the best players in the game," said Russ Ortiz, who pitched seven shutout innings and hit the third home run of his career. "You just kind of shake your head. You can't really say too much beside that, he's just an unbelievable player. "I think it's natural to be awe-struck a little bit. We're fans of the game, too. You just feel privileged to play with someone like that. He's spoiling us right now, it's definitely fun to watch." Bonds hit a three-run homer off Hideo Nomo (0-1) in the first inning and added a solo shot off Terry Mulholland in the fourth, triggering a six-run burst that gave the Giants a 10-0 lead. Bonds, who set records by hitting 73 homers and drawing 177 walks last year, had two homers and five RBIs Tuesday as the Giants opened the season with a 9-2 victory over the Dodgers. "You just accept it, you know what I mean? You accept it and be thankful for it," Giants manager Dusty Baker said of Bonds' accomplishments. Bonds was walked intentionally by Nomo in the second, and Mulholland walked Bonds on four pitches in the fifth before he left the game along with several other regulars from both teams. "As I said yesterday, you're seeing one of the best players ever to play the game," Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said beforehand. Ortiz (1-0) allowed three hits while walking one and striking out two. He retired the final 10 batters he faced before Jason Christiansen relieved to begin the eighth. Tsuyoshi Shinjo walked and Rich Aurilia singled before Bonds hit a 1-2 pitch from Nomo an estimated 443 feet to give the Giants a 3-0 lead before an out had been recorded. "We had him set up for a fastball inside," Dodgers catcher Paul Lo Duca said. "(Nomo) just didn't get it in there." Bonds tagged a 1-0 pitch an estimated 459 feet into the right-field seats in the fourth to make it 5-0. Benito Santiago hit a three-run homer, and Ortiz a two-run shot later in the inning. Nomo lasted only three innings, allowing six hits and four runs while walking six and striking out three. He threw 88 pitches, 44 for strikes. Mulholland gave up seven hits and eight runs -- seven earned -- in two innings. "I'd rather lose this way than 2-1 in 12 innings," Lo Duca said. "You're 0-2, so be it. We've got to have a short-term memory. We've got to swing the bats a little better." The Dodgers have nine hits in the two games while the Giants have 27.
Notes: Bonds came in with four hits, including one homer, in 25 at-bats against Nomo. ... Tracy made it official -- Japanese left-hander Kazuhisa Ishii will make his big league debut Saturday night against Colorado. "He had a very good bullpen yesterday," Tracy said. Ishii struggled in spring training and walked five straight batters Sunday at Seattle in the final exhibition game. ... Nomo started his first game for the Dodgers since May 30, 1998. He was traded to the New York Mets five days later. ... Nomo, who signed a two-year contract with the Dodgers last winter, pitched a no-hitter for the Boston Red Sox in his first start last season and also had one for the Dodgers at Colorado in 1996. ... Ortiz won 49 games during the last three seasons, the most by any Giants pitcher since Hall of Famers Gaylord Perry and Juan Marichal won 58 and 51, respectively, from 1969-71.
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