BASEBALL : JAPAN KNOCKS U.S. OUT OF THE PARK.

Byline: Daily News Wire Services

Kris Benson put his pitching hand on his hip and watched another ball clear the wall. Like the rest of the U.S. baseball team, he couldn't believe it was ending this way.

A team that was on the verge of the gold-medal game by hitting home runs got knocked out Thursday by giving them up. Japan hit five in all - three off Benson - for an 11-2 semifinal victory.

Instead of a Cuba-U.S. rematch for the gold today, it will be Japan (4-4) trying to deny the Cubans a second Olympic gold. The United States (6-2) will play Nicaragua (4-4) for the bronze.

The U.S. lineup that had produced 11.6 runs and 3.9 home runs per game during the seven-game round-robin - losing only to top-seeded Cuba - ran into a power hitter's worst nightmare. Three fly balls died on the warning track. Mark Kotsay struck out four times.

First baseman Travis Lee turned out to be prophetic when he said before the game: ``We live or die by the home run. We don't like to say it, but it's true.''

Afterward, Lee could only wish he'd been wrong in that assessment:

``We're (ticked) off, man. We worked two years for this and now all we have to show for it is a chance at the bronze. It stinks.''

``The script wasn't written like this,'' catcher A.J. Hinch said. ``The script called for us to play Cuba in a one-game playoff for the gold medal. It feels like somebody stabbed me right in the heart. We didn't put in all this effort the last couple of years to lose a game that meant the most.''

Lee produced two early hits, but almost everyone else had trouble with Masanori Sugiura, considered the best pitcher on the Japanese staff. Sugiura, who had pitched just once before in the tournament because of a thigh injury, went 5-2/3 innings as, once again, the United States found itself unable to beat Japan in an important Olympic game.

The Japanese beat the Americans 6-3 in the final game at Dodger Stadium in 1984, when baseball was an Olympic demonstration sport.

In Barcelona four years ago, Japan beat the United States 8-3 to win the bronze and send the Americans home empty-handed.

Thursday's loss was just as painful for the Americans.

``Their guy pitched the game of his life,'' said U.S. coach Skip Bertman. ``This was a tough loss. I looked at the scoreboard during the game and saw that the women's soccer team won, that Michael Johnson did his thing, but we couldn't get it going. I knew there was the possibility of an upset.''

The odds seemed to be on the United States' side this time. The Americans beat the Japanese Olympic team twice during their preview tour and rolled to a 15-5 victory in the round-robin game by hitting a then-Olympic-record five home runs in the first inning.

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Photo

PHOTO (color) Coach Skip Bertman sees where his U.S. team i s going in semifinal game.

Associated Press