By Dave Sheinin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 24, 1999; Page D6

BALTIMORE, April 23 – The Baltimore Orioles knew what it would take to end their losing ways, and it had nothing to do with a return to Camden Yards, or a reunion with injured teammates Cal Ripken and Will Clark, or any pregame meetings, prayers or promises. What the Orioles needed was a well-pitched game, a clutch hit, some solid defense, a big break.

Tonight, they got it all in a 7-4 victory over the Oakland A's before 42,978 dedicated fans. The victory broke the Orioles' six-game losing streak and, following a 1-8 road trip, offered a small piece of hope that all is not yet lost.

"It was an outstanding crowd, considering what we had done on the road," Manager Ray Miller said. "It picked everybody up. There was a lot of good feelings in the dugout. I don't know if it took the crowd for that to happen, but it was a great atmosphere."

This was a night for the Orioles (4-12) to break miserable trends – to get out of bases-loaded jams, to get bases-loaded hits, to take a lead for the first time in a week, to score a run on a wild pitch instead of allowing one, and for a couple of unexpected players to deliver the night's biggest blows.

First baseman Jeff Conine, who came into the game batting .160, won the game with a three-run double with two outs in the seventh. The double, which came on the first pitch from A's reliever Tim Worrell, broke open a 4-3 game. Conine also redeemed himself for a double-play grounder in the second inning with runners on first and second and nobody out.

"To come through in a situation like that, with two outs, late in the game, and with the way we've been playing lately," Conine said, "it makes me feel awesome."

Said Miller: "He's a quiet guy, but he snapped big-time after that double-play. But he got another chance, and he came through."

It was fitting that the key hit came in a bases-loaded situation, because the Orioles' failures in such situations – they came into the game hitting .111 (2 for 18) with the bases loaded – has mirrorred their overall failure. For a change, it was the Orioles' opponent who failed (twice) to convert.

Although he didn't get the win, Juan Guzman pitched six strong innings and became the first Orioles starter other than Mike Mussina to start a victory.

Guzman threw first-pitch strikes to 20 of the 26 batters he faced and fell behind 2-0 only twice. He wove his hard fastball in and out of the strike zone effectively to get ahead, then got the majority of his outs with his slider to right-handers and his two-seamed fastball – which breaks the opposite way – to left-handers.

The Orioles said they were looking for something small, anything they might be able to build on. Perhaps they got it when Guzman escaped bases-loaded jams in the third and fifth – no small accomplishment for this team, which is used to seeing opponents turn those situations into multiple runs, while the Orioles themselves turn them into squandered chances.

Then Delino DeShields, batting .103 at that point, got his first extra-base hit as an Oriole, a double over the head of A's right fielder Matt Stairs, and Brady Anderson – batting just .154 with runners in scoring position – followed with an RBI single up the middle.

It was the Orioles' first lead in almost exactly one week – a span of 52½ innings. And four pitches later, it was gone. Guzman gave up a home run to Stairs leading off the sixth inning. "At that point," said catcher Lenny Webster, "I was just happy to be in a game where we had a chance at the end."

Conine's bases-loaded double came after Miller decided to have B.J. Surhoff lay down a sacrifice bunt with Albert Belle on deck, even though it meant the A's would intentionally walk Belle, which they did.

"Conine's hit was big," Webster said. "Everything finally came together tonight. We scored seven and held the other guys down. Hopefully this will turn into something big."