Blue Jays Ring Orioles Belle

A winter of retooling doesn't seem to have improved the Baltimore Orioles.

Shannon Stewart singled home the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, and the Toronto Blue Jays rallied to beat the struggling Orioles 7-6 Friday night.

Despite a $78 million payroll, the second-highest in the major leagues, the Orioles are 3-7 and off to their worst start since 1993. Baltimore wasted leads of 2-0, 5-3 and 6-5 Friday night, losing for the fourth time in five games.

The only games the Orioles have won this season are those started by staff ace Mike Mussina.

"With the way were swinging the bat we should be .500," Orioles manager Ray Miller said. "We have to get more production out of our pitching."

With the score 6-all, Ricky Bones (0-1) walked Alex Gonzalez and Pat Kelly with one out in the eighth, and Stewart singled to right as Gonzalez scored standing up.

"There are no excuses for those walks," Miller said.

Bones also gave up a game-tying single in the seventh to Tony Fernandez.

Slumping Cal Ripken, who has five errors and is hitting just .174, failed to start for the third time this season. While the first two were due to a bad back, Ripken aid Thursday night he was feeling fine and had no explanation for a double error against the New York Yankees that led to five unearned runs.

"We didn't get to the hotel until 4 a.m., so I gave him the day off," Miller said.

Graeme Lloyd (2-0) allowed one hit in 1 1-3 innings and Robert Person, activated from the disabled list on Monday, got the final out by throwing a called third strike past Albert Belle. It was Person's first save of the season.

"On paper, the Orioles' lineup can match up with anyone," Person said. "But it's still early."

Orioles starter Sidney Ponson gave up four runs - three earned - and six hits in five innings.

"It certainly didn't help that he threw almost 100 pitches by the fifth inning," Miller said.

Toronto's Pat Hentgen allowed five runs and eight hits in six innings.

Brady Anderson's leadoff homer - the 30th of his career - and Harold Baines' RBI single gave Baltimore a 2-0 lead in the first.

Toronto went ahead 3-2 in the second after Charles Johnson's passed ball, getting a run-scoring error by Willis Otanez -- playing in place of Ripken -- Pat Kelly's RBI double and Stewart's run-scoring single.

B.J. Surhoff's first homer of the season tied it in the fourth, and the Orioles went ahead 5-3 lead in the fifth on Will Clark's RBI double and Belle's run-scoring groundout.

"When we have leads like that we should be able to put a team away, but early in the season we haven't been able to do that," said Clark, who is hitting .415.

Toronto tied the score on Carlos Delgado's RBI double in the fifth and Willie Greene's sixth-inning homer off Mike Fetters.

Jeff Conine' pinch RBI single gave Baltimore a 6-5 lead in the seventh.

"When you score six runs, you expect to win a game," Delino Deshields said.

Notes:

• Clark extended his hitting streak to 10 games with his double in the fifth.
• Jose Cruz Jr. leads with major leagues with 16 walks.
• Greene made his second consecutive start at DH. Toronto manager Jim Fregosi is giving Dave Hollins , who has struggled, a two day "mental break."

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