DODGERS FALL SHORT IN HOUSTON : HOUSTON 5, DODGERS 4.Byline: Tim Brown Timothy Donell Brown (born July 22, 1966) is a retired wide receiver, who played in the National Football League. He spent sixteen years with the Oakland Raiders, during which he established himself as one of the League's most prolific wide receivers. Daily News Staff Writer A peripheral player on a baseball team stacked with All-Stars and veterans, rookie Roger Cedeno found himself in the middle of it all Tuesday night. He stood at home plate and attempted to do what utility players do and that was to set up somebody else. It didn't work out well. Cedeno struck out trying to sacrifice bunt in that eighth inning. And after all the events of the evening were gathered - the sound early pitching, the mediocre late pitching, the runners left on base and the late rally - the Dodgers lost 5-4 to the Houston Astros “Astros” redirects here. For other uses, see Astros (disambiguation). The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The team is in the Central Division of the National League. in part because Cedeno could not push a ball into fair territory. ``The game went right there, when I missed in that situation,'' Cedeno said. In the on-deck circle, just prior to the at-bat, manager Tom Lasorda put his arm around Cedeno, who made the club out of spring training because of his speed, his defense and his potential. Then Cedeno, in a 2-2 game, left Raul Mondesi at second base and Mike Blowers Michael Roy Blowers (born April 24, 1965, in Würzburg, Germany) is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and first baseman. He is an alumnus of Bethel High School in Spanaway, Washington, Tacoma Community College and the University of Washington. at first. The Dodgers did not score and the Astros scored twice in the bottom of the inning Noun 1. bottom of the inning - the second half of an inning; while the home team is at bat bottom inning, frame - (baseball) one of nine divisions of play during which each team has a turn at bat . ``He wanted me to bunt,'' Cedeno said of the one-way conversation with his manager. ``He wanted to make sure I made a good bunt to move the runners. I never miss that. I tried to be perfect. When you try to do too much, sometimes you don't do it right.'' In truth, there was a lot of that going around. After Ismael Valdes
John Scott Cummings (born July 6, 1943) is a British politician. He is the Labour Member of Parliament for Easington. all allowed a run - two in the eighth and another, the game-winner, with one out in the ninth - to render meaningless two clutch ninth-inning runs by the Dodgers. Guthrie, the left-hander, got one out in the eighth, but first allowed a double to clean-up hitter Derek Bell Derek Bell can refer to different people:
Described by everyone in the organization as a pure starter less than a week ago, Park appeared uncomfortable in his new role, though he denied it. Sean Berry Sean Berry (born March 22, 1966 in Santa Monica, California), is a former Major League Baseball player who served primarily as a third baseman from 1990-2000. He was a member of the Houston Astros' original "Killer B's", along with Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, and Derek Bell. sharply doubled home Bell and, after an intentional walk to Rick Wilkins Wilkins was selected #99 on the list of the "Top 100 Cubs of All Time" compiled by the Cubs blog , Park threw the ball into center field in an attempt to pick off Berry. Orlando Miller flicked a single to left field because the infield was in after the error allowed Berry to reach third base and the Dodgers had to cut down the tying run. Park called Berry's hit, ``Lucky.'' Miller's bloop bloop Baseball n. A blooper. tr.v. blooped, bloop·ing, bloops To hit (a ball) into the air just beyond the infield. adj. Hit just beyond the infield. , just over shortstop Greg Gagne's head, was the more fortunate one. ``That's what happens when you bring (the infield) in,'' Lasorda said. ``You make .400 hitters out of .200 hitters.'' The Astros scored again in the ninth, because Bell hits .410 against left-handers and because Cummings is left-handed. With runners on first and second, Bell lined a single to left field. A 4-4 score, forged because the Dodgers scored twice on consecutive singles in the top of the ninth by Brett Butler, Mike Piazza and Eric Karros, did not make it to the 10th inning. These indiscretions cost the Dodgers their one-day lead in the National League West, though it took half-an-inning longer than expected. In the eighth, the Dodgers needed a right-handed pinch-hitter, which they lost because Billy Ashley started in left field. They needed a few more hits, though Karros had four, because they left 11 runners on base for the second consecutive game. And they needed a bunt. Any of it would have helped. ``Isn't it what I keep telling you about the fundamentals?,'' Lasorda said. ``I told him in spring training, there will come a time when you will get beat by a bloop hit in the ninth inning, and you'll think you got beat then. Except when you really lost was in the fifth inning, when you didn't advance the guys over.'' Butler, Cedeno's bunting mentor since the two spent endless morning hours in a batting cage in Vero Beach, told Cedeno it might happen again. In fact, that it probaDbly would. ``It's the `hard' of the game that makes it tough to do,'' Butler said. ``It's the `hard' of the game that makes it so great. Roger felt bad. He said, `The whole game could be different if I get it down.' I said, `Hey, it won't be the last time.' A big part of the game is mental. That's what separates the men from the boys.'' |
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