By Dave Sheinin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 17, 1999; Page D1

TORONTO, April 16 – Ten games into the season, the Baltimore Orioles' offense is humming just the way they envisioned: an average of 10 hits and more than five runs a game. Tonight against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Orioles built leads in the first, fifth and seventh innings.

But the Orioles didn't hold any of those leads, and the result was another painful loss, 7-6, to the division rival Blue Jays – whom the Orioles once were believed to be competing against for a playoff spot this year.

The Orioles (3-7) still have yet to win a game in which ace Mike Mussina did not start. They are tied with the Florida Marlins and Detroit Tigers for the worst record in the major leagues. All of their losses have come against American League East teams.

Orioles third baseman Cal Ripken, who is going through a horrific stretch in which he has more errors (five) than hits (four), was given the night off by Manager Ray Miller – the third game Ripken has missed this season, but only the fourth in 17 years.

Tonight, facing their third consecutive former Cy Young winner – Toronto veteran Pat Hentgen, following Yankees aces David Cone and Roger Clemens – the Orioles pounded out 12 hits and scored six runs. But as they have found out so far this season, it's never enough.

The Orioles should be "a couple of games over .500, I would guess," Miller said, "if we had pitched decent. . . . I can't fault anything with the offense."

"We've had our share of leads," said first baseman Will Clark, who doubled in a run and has hit safely in all 10 games. "What winds up happening is, you either put the other team away or you finish the game. Early in the season, we haven't been able to do that yet."

This was a night in which the Orioles could have used another reliever, preferably a left-hander – such as Doug Johns, who was sent down because of a decision to keep only 11 pitchers.

The Orioles' bullpen was at a distinct disadvantage against a lineup that included seven left-handers and switch-hitters. Because the Orioles used up Arthur Rhodes on Thursday in New York, Jesse Orosco was the only available left-hander in their bullpen, and Miller used him in the seventh – leaving only right-handers to deal with all the Blue Jays' left-handed bats in the late innings.

On top of that, Miller was trying to save an arm or two (especially Heathcliff Slocumb) for Saturday, when journeyman fifth starter Doug Linton pitches. That's why right-handed long reliever Ricky Bones (0-1), was in the game in the eighth inning – the setup role. Bones allowed the winning run to score when he issued a pair of one-out walks and an RBI single by Shannon Stewart.

The Blue Jays' tying run in the seventh off right-hander Mike Fetters also began with a leadoff walk to Stewart.

"The walks killed us," Miller said. ". . . We walked five guys, and three of them scored. You can't defend a walk."

The Orioles continue to get major production from the top two-thirds of the lineup. However, they still hit decidedly better when the bases are empty (.314,) and early in the game (.301 in the first six innings) than when runners are on base (.272) and late in the game (.276 in innings seven and beyond).

Even more problematic is the team's continued costly defensive lapses. In the second inning, rookie Willis Otanez, filling in for Ripken at third, booted Alex Gonzalez's grounder with one out and runners at second and third, allowing a run to score.

All that charity adds up: The unearned run was the ninth allowed this season by the Orioles, who gave up only 31 all last season.

Following a disturbing trend in the Orioles' pitching, Ponson was unable to pitch around the defensive mistake, and the Blue Jays wound up with three runs in the inning when Pat Kelly doubled and Stewart singled.

The tendency to give up big innings – many of them helped along by poor defense – has been another of the Orioles' more problematic trends. The Blue Jays' three-run second marked the 10th time in 10 games the Orioles have given up three or more runs in an inning. By contrast, Baltimore has scored three or more runs in an inning only five times.

Ponson, the Orioles' talented 22-year-old right-hander, pitched his best game in nearly a month, dating from the middle of spring training. But Miller saw some of the same problems – lack of concentration and a tendency to rush – that he has seen with Ponson all spring.

"I have all the patience in the world, but we have to get more production out of our starting rotation," Miller said. "Our offense has been producing. But I want to get the [starting pitching] fixed before those [hitters] lose heart."