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GAME LOG
BALTIMORE (AP) – On a day in which Cal Ripken was saluted for
playing more games with the Baltimore Orioles than anyone else,
Mike Mussina felt odd facing his former team for the first time.
The game itself, however, was hauntingly familiar.
|  | | Scott Brosius' solo shot in the eighth was the difference for the Yankees on Sunday. It was the third home run of the season for New York's third baseman. |
Mussina, who left Baltimore as a free agent in November, allowed
one run in seven innings Sunday to help the New York Yankees
complete a four-game sweep with a 2-1 victory.
Scott Brosius hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth inning,
his third homer of the series, to provide Mussina with an emotional
and hard-earned victory.
Walking to the mound from the visiting dugout at Camden Yards
was a weird sensation for Mussina, as was pitching to former
teammates and friends Ripken and Brady Anderson.
"The first hitter, Brady's up there, Cal came up, guys I played
quite a bit of time with. It was odd, and I expected it to be that
way," Mussina said.
Ripken was playing in his 2,897th game with the Orioles – the
first against Mussina.
"He's someone I looked up to," Ripken said. "It was strange
seeing him out there, going up against him after all the years that
we've been teammates."
Mussina spent 10 years with the Orioles before signing a
six-year, $88.5 million contract with New York. Upon his return,
the right-hander experienced something he became all too familiar
with during his final season with Baltimore – poor run support.
Mussina yielded only four hits through six innings but trailed
1-0. It was reminiscent of last year, when the Orioles provided him
with an AL-worst 3.71 runs per nine innings.
The Yankees finally broke through against Baltimore starter
Jason Johnson in the seventh, drawing even with two singles and
Jorge Posada's sacrifice fly.
Mussina worked out of trouble in the bottom half, then moved
into position for the win when Brosius connected on the fifth pitch
from Mike Trombley (1-1).
Mussina (3-3) gave up six hits and two walks, striking out
three. Mike Stanton worked the eighth, and Mariano Rivera got three
outs for his ninth save in 10 tries.
"Mike made what we gave him work," Brosius said. "We didn't
give him much to work with; a key hit here and there was the only
difference."
It was the Yankees' first four-game sweep in Baltimore since
1996. New York, which improved to 13-0 against sub-.500 teams, has
won eight of 10 to move six games over .500 for the first time this
season.
Ripken had his second straight two-hit game for the Orioles, who
have lost a season-high five in a row.
As Mussina hustled to the mound in the bottom of the first, a
portion of the sellout crowd – many wearing Yankees colors – stood
and applauded. Some yelled "Moose!", his nickname, and others
shouted "Boo!"
A trio of fans held a sign that read, "Thanks For The
Memories." No one threw objects at the pitcher, an indignity that
New York's Chuck Knoblauch experienced in left field a few days
earlier in Minneapolis, where he played from 1991-97.
"I've been saying for a couple weeks now that I expected a
little bit of everything, and there was a little bit of
everything," Mussina said. "There were people cheering and people
not cheering. I play for the Yankees, and it's a situation that's
tough for a lot of people to swallow."
As Baltimore took the field for the second inning, the public
address announcer told the crowd that Ripken had set the record for
most games played for the Orioles – one more than Brooks Robinson.
As Ripken doffed his cap, the third baseman received a warmer
ovation than Mussina had.
"Maybe if you ask me in a week I'll have a bigger smile on my
face," said Ripken, referring to his .200 batting average.
Mussina retired the side in order in the second and got two outs
in the third before Anderson doubled off the wall in right field
and scored on Mike Bordick's single.
The Yankees put runners in scoring position in every inning from
the third through the sixth, but Johnson survived each threat.
"Everything was solid. It was a pretty good all-around effort
for me," said Johnson, who was charged with one run in seven
innings.
But this day was all about Mussina.
"He's never been on that mound when he wasn't in a Baltimore
uniform, and I think he handled the situation well," said New York
manager Joe Torre, whose 1,400th victory gave him sole possession
of 22nd place on the career list.
Game notes
Johnson has a 1.00 ERA at home in four starts this year.
... New York has at least one steal in 17 straight games, the
longest such run since St. Louis had a 20-game streak in 1986. ...
Yankees 2B Alfonso Soriano missed his second start in three games
because of a tight hamstring. ... Anderson's double broke a
2-for-18 skid. ... David Justice had two hits to end an 0-for-18
drought.
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Cleveland 10
Tampa Bay 3
NY Yankees 2
Baltimore 1
Minnesota 4
Kansas City 2
Chi. White Sox 10
Texas 5
Anaheim 3
Detroit 2
Toronto 11
Seattle 3
Boston 5
Oakland 4
Atlanta 7
St. Louis 5
Florida 5
Milwaukee 1
Arizona 8
NY Mets 2
San Diego 8
Cincinnati 2
Houston 13
Montreal 7
Philadelphia 10
San Francisco 8
Pittsburgh 4
Colorado 3
Chicago Cubs 3
Los Angeles 2
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Mike Mussina expected the mixed reaction from fans, but felt a little strange facing his old team.
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