Happy homecoming: D-backs' Anderson returns to knock off Indians
6/30/2002CLEVELAND - At least one Finley was on his game last night.
Steve Finley collected two of his three hits and two RBIs off Cleveland Indians starter Chuck Finley as the Arizona Diamondbacks hung on for a 4-2 victory before a sellout crowd of 42,466 fans at Jacobs Field.
Steve Finley singled in the tying run in Arizona's three-run fourth inning and scored the third run on Jose Guillen's RBI single. Finley also added an RBI single in the fifth.
The Indians threatened in the bottom of the ninth against Diamondbacks closer Byung-Hyun Kim.
Chris Magruder drew a leadoff walk and Ellis Burks beat out an infield single with one out. Jim Thome then lined a sharp single to left to load the bases.
Kim struck out Travis Fryman looking on a 2-2 pitch on the outside corner of the plate, then Milton Bradley swinging on an 0-2 count to register his 20th save.
“We had a chance, we just didn't get it done,” Tribe manager Charlie Manuel said.
Chuck Finley (4-10) remained winless in his last five starts, allowing seven hits and four runs (three earned). He walked three and struck out three, then walked out without speaking to reporters.
“It seems like every year we have a pitcher we can't score runs for,” Manuel said. “Evidently, he drew the short straw. We just can't make anything happen for him - we just can't get any runs.”
Meanwhile, Arizona starter Brian Anderson, a former Indians pitcher, enjoyed a nice homecoming.
An off-season resident of the Cleveland suburb of Bratenahl, as well as a Browns season ticket holder, Anderson (3-7) has now won his last two starts after going winless in his previous 17.
He allowed one hit in each of the first two innings - including a homer to Jim Thome to lead off the second - then didn't allow another hit until Eddie Perez lined a one-out single to left in the sixth. Perez was erased on a inning-ending double play that was started by Anderson.
Anderson left after 71/3 innings, his longest outing of the year. He allowed four hits and two runs while striking out two and walking none.
The defending World Series champion Diamondbacks wiped out a 1-0 deficit with three runs in the fourth and another in the fifth.
Junior Spivey opened with a single to center off Chuck Finley, extending his career-best hitting streak to 13 games, and Steve Finley eventually drove in Spivey with a single to left on the first pitch.
Chuck Finley then walked Damian Miller to load the bases with one out. Craig Counsell followed with a sacrifice fly, scoring Greg Colbrunn, then Steve Finley scored on Jose Guillen's single to center.
Finley's two-out single in the fifth made it 4-1. His hit also plated Quinton McCracken, who extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a leadoff single.
Cleveland, which earlier got a solo homer from Thome, added another run in the eighth on a questionable ground-rule RBI double by pinch-hitter Billy Selby that was caught by a fan in the seats just to the left of the foul pole.
Thome, the Tribe's cleanup hitter, homered for the fourth consecutive game, cracking a 1-2 pitch from Anderson into the right field seats to lead off the second. His 23rd homer of the season carried 428 feet and landed in the second deck.
“It's really frustrating,” Thome said. “We just can't get anything going consistently.”