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Orioles avoid collapse, sweep Astros

Jun 20, 2008 - 3:20 AM BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- Jay Payton had a two-run single in a three-run fifth and the Baltimore Orioles avoided a late collapse en route to a three-game interleague sweep of the slumping Houston Astros with a 7-5 victory Thursday.

Brian Burres (6-5) allowed three runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings to pick up just his second win in his last six starts. Ramon Hernandez, Aubrey Huff and Alex Cintron all homered for Baltimore, which nearly squandered a 7-3 lead in the ninth but was able to notch its first sweep in six tries.

"When you've got a chance to sweep, it's great to take it," Orioles manager Dave Trembley said. "We certainly had to work for it, they didn't give it up easy.

Former Oriole Miguel Tejada homered for Houston, which has lost eight straight games.

Hernandez and Cintron hit home runs two batters apart off Astros starter Shawn Chacon (2-3) to give the Orioles a 3-2 lead in the fourth. Kevin Millar had an RBI double and Payton laced a two-run single to make it a 6-2.

Trembley was relieved Payton came through after the Orioles had scored just one run in the third after loading the bases against Chacon.

"I thought the biggest hit in the game was definitely Payton's," Trembley said. "You don't like to lose an opportunity like that, especially after we let him (Chacon) off the hook earlier."

Tejada sliced the deficit to 6-3 with a solo shot - his 10th of the season - in the sixth. However, Huff answered with a blast of his own one frame later, and the Orioles carried a four-run lead into the ninth.

That is when things got dicey.

Dennis Sarfate relieved Jim Johnson and things quickly started to unravel for Baltimore. After Sarfate issued a walk to Ty Wigginton, Mark Loretta reached on an error by Cintron at shortstop. Sarfate struck out pinch hitter Darin Erstad but departed after walking Michael Bourn to load the bases.

Closer George Sherrill entered and allowed a sacrifice fly to Kaz Matsui and an infield single to Tejada, which sliced the lead to 7-5. Sherrill then got Lance Berkman to fly out to left to record his 24th save of the season.

"It was only a four-run lead, so I knew it was only two or three guys getting on that would get me in the game," Sherrill said. "I was able to make a slider look good enough to get ahead of (Berkman) and got the out."

Chacon was tagged for six runs and eight hits in five innings.

Berkman, who had three hits including an RBI single, wasn't overly concerned with his team's slide, which has seen the Astros drop into last place in the National League Central Division.

"We've got a lot of veterans on this team, so it won't do us much good to panic," he said. "We just have to do something to right the ship."