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Arizona heat Finley, Womack help Diamondbacks maintain lead
Updated: Thursday September 27, 2001 9:25 AM
PHOENIX (AP) -- After a sputtering season, Tony Womack is off and running in the nick of time for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Womack drove in four runs, two with a bases-loaded, two-out single to cap a fifth-inning rally, as the Arizona Diamondbacks pounded the Milwaukee Brewers 15-9 on Wednesday night. "Tony's been our hot guy lately, so we've got to ride him out," Arizona's Luis Gonzalez said. "He's been getting on base, he's been driving in runs, he's been doing a little bit of everything for us." Womack, who lost his everyday shortstop job for a time, singled twice to extend his hitting streak to a season-high 10 games. He is batting .425 (20-for-48) during that span. "Tony is working a lot more counts," manager Bob Brenly said. "Early in the season, it seemed like his at bats lasted two pitches and that was about it. But he just looks very hitter-ish up there at the plate. He looks like he feels he's going to get a hit every time he goes up there." Steve Finley, out of the lineup to rest a sore back, entered the game with a pinch-hit, RBI single in Arizona's five-run sixth inning, then hit a grand slam in the seventh, his 200th career home run. "I told him [Brenly] I was ready to play, but he wanted to give it one more day," Finley said. "I just made myself ready if I ever got a chance during this game. Thank goodness I did." "I made myself ready I did a lot of treatment the last couple of days The Diamondbacks stayed 1 1/2 games ahead of second-place San Francisco in the NL West with a rare laugher. "It was nice not to have to chew my fingernails or grind my teeth," Brenly said. Jeromy Burnitz hit a grand slam, his fourth home run in two games at Bank One Ballpark, to put Milwaukee up 5-2 in the fifth. The slam off Bobby Witt came just after Richie Sexson was thrown out of the game for arguing a called third strike by umpire Greg Gibson. The previous night, Burnitz and Sexson became the first pair of teammates to each hit three home runs in a game. The Diamondbacks, whose 18 hits were one shy of a season high, scored four in their half of the fifth to regain the lead 6-5. Womack's single to left field on a 3-2 pitch from reliever Mark Leiter drove in the tying and go-ahead runs. "They're a first-place team. They're not just going to lay down," Burnitz said. "They've got a lot of really good players. To be in the position they're in, they've obviously been down before and come back. That's what good teams do." Craig Counsell narrowly missed a three-run homer when his hit bounced off the top of the right-field fence for what turned out to be an RBI single earlier in the inning. "That inning right there really exemplifies this team," Witt said. "This could really get things rolling." The other run in the fifth scored on a wild pitch from Mike Buddie (0-1), who was hammered for four runs on three hits in one-third of an inning. "Obviously, things got a little out of hand," Buddie said. "I threw some decent pitches that they laid off of, and made mistakes and paid for them. I kind of opened the floodgates." Arizona blew it open with five more runs in the sixth, two on Danny Bautista's double. Womack drove in one when he hit into a fielder's choice. Witt (4-1) shut out the Brewers for four innings before allowing five runs, including Burnitz's slam, in the fifth. The 37-year-old right-hander is 3-0 in his last five starts. Luis Lopez hit a three-run homer for Milwaukee in the eighth. Notes: Arizona C Miller is expected to miss two or three games with a strained muscle in his right shoulder. ... With the Dodgers' Shawn Green sitting out Wednesday's game to observe Yom Kippur, Arizona's Luis Gonzalez has the longest streak of consecutive games in the majors at 317. ... The Brewers had won two in a row. They haven't won three consecutive since Aug. 19. ... Womack has five hits in his last two games. ... Erubiel Durazo, in his first start for Arizona in more than two months, singled, doubled and walked three times.
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