| Gwendolyn Burrell. 29th June, 2005 - 6:05 pm
 A sellout crowd of 47, 465 filled Camden Yards to witness the end of the Orioles’ losing streak. Even former Oriole Cal Ripken came out. “I wanted to come out and bring them some luck, hopefully break the streak,” Ripken stated. “I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Last night also brought a loss for the first place Boston Red Sox bringing Baltimore within 1½ games of regaining the top slot in the AL East.
Pitcher Sidney Ponson allowed the Yankees two runs in the first but bounced back only allowing a pair of solo homers over the next seven innings. "I always bring my A-game against the Yankees," Ponson said. "I don't know how to put a finger on it. You always want to beat the best, and they always think they're better than us, so just to prove a point, I guess."
Closer B.J. Ryan retired each of the six Yankees batters he faced in the ninth and 10th innings.
Despite an early 4-1 lead by the Yanks, the Orioles battled back earning two runs in the sixth and another in the eighth tying the score. A scoreless ninth took the game to extra innings.
But it’s likely the late homer by Brian Roberts will be remembered as the shining moment of the game. After an internal debate about whether or not to take left-hander Mike Stanton’s first pitch, Roberts decided to swing. That 10th inning walk-off home run guaranteed the Orioles victory 5-4.
"We have a sense of urgency," Roberts said, "more so than in the past week. There was more emotion, more excitement, more energy in the past couple of days.”
This is the second time this season Roberts has been the decision-maker in a game against the Yankees this year. He also hit a three-run homer on April 16 giving the Orioles a 7-6 win.
It’s Orioles versus Yankees again tonight for the final game in the three-game series at Camden Yards. |
