Sunday, May 19, 2002
Notes from Saturday's games
The Associated Press
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Royals-Indians
KANSAS CITY: Including the Royals' 4-2 win over Cleveland in the first game of a day-night doubleheader on Saturday, Kansas City's pitching staff has a 2.89 ERA in the last 12 games and have allowed three earned runs or fewer in 11 of the 12 games. “Our staff is doing a great job right now,” said reliever Dan Reichert, who worked three scoreless innings for the win. “We're throwing strikes, and when you do that good things can happen.” ... Carlos Beltran's stolen-base streak ended at 27 in Saturday's first game when he was thrown out in the fourth inning by Eddie Perez. Beltran has been successful in 60 of his last 62 attempts. ... The Royals entered Saturday second in the AL in steals, and added two more when Carlos Febles swiped second twice in Saturday's first game. Kansas City is 47 of 57 in steal attempts.
CLEVELAND: RHP Bob Wickman's loss in the first game Saturday was his first since Sept. 28, 2000, against Minnesota. Wickman went 5-0 last season. ... Indians fans took out some of their frustrations by booing 3B Russell Branyan, who struck out three times in Saturday's first game, once on three pitches with the bases loaded in the fifth. “The fans deserve a winning team and we're not putting one on the field right now,” Branyan said. “I know the fans feel like they've been let down.” ... Utilityman Jolbert Cabrera, who began the season on the DL after being shot this winter in a carjacking, snapped an 0-for-22 slump with a single in the first game off Royals LHP Jeremy Affeldt. Cabrera, batting .088, is still 0-for-24 against right-handers. ... 1B Jim Thome said it's time for the slumping Indians to put up or face the consequences. “We've talked about it and talked about it,” Thome said. “It's time we started getting it done.”
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Rangers-Tigers
DETROIT: 1B Randall Simon, the target of a racial slur from John Rocker when both played in Atlanta, admitted to enjoying Saturday's RBI single off the Texas reliever. “It's nice to get any hit right now, but it was great to get one off him. I wasn't thinking about it when I was up there, but I know people know about it. My wife even asked me when I was going to get a hit off him.” ... Dmitri Young has been hitting well since coming off the disabled list May 14, but has not played the field. “I'm not going to rush that. It has been really cold — and that doesn't work too well with an injury. I'll get out there when it warms up.”
TEXAS: Manager Jerry Narron enjoyed seeing Rafael Palmeiro at the plate in the ninth inning, even if his long drive was caught on the track. “It's nice to be able to use him again,” Narron said. Palmeiro, who hadn't played since straining a calf muscle Sunday, said that he hopes to be back in the lineup as soon as Tuesday in Minnesota. ... Jason Romano picked up his first career RBI with an eighth-inning sacrifice fly, but is still hitless in 13 at-bats.
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Twins-Yankees
MINNESOTA: 1B Doug Mientkiewicz is missing this series because of a sore left wrist and is expected back Tuesday. ... The five innings were a career high for Tony Fiore, who has not allowed a home run in 35 innings dating to last season. It was his first major league start. “I thought the kid Fiore, out of the bullpen, kept the Yankees at bay,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “He pitched pretty well He kept us in the game. We were right in it until that sixth inning.” ... The Twins are 0-5 against the Yankees this season, getting outhomered 13-2. ... Minnesota is 16-6 at the Metrodome, 9-13 on the road.
NEW YORK: Ted Lilly couldn't watch Jason Giambi's 14th-inning grand slam, which gave the Yankees a 13-12 win Friday night. Lilly left in the fifth or sixth inning because he was starting Saturday and went home. But his cable system doesn't get the YES network. He went to sleep in the 13th inning. ... Friday was only the fifth time the Yankees rallied from three runs down in extra innings to win, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the first since April 29, 1984, against Milwaukee. The other times were in 1910, 1925 and 1980. ... Torre was especially pleased Lilly lasted seven innings and 114 pitches. ... Steve Karsay, who struck out four in two scoreless innings, made a nice across-the-body-throw from the third-base side of the mound to get Dustan Mohr at first base with two on in the eighth. “I didn't think he had a prayer,” Torre said.
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Athletics-Blue Jays
OAKLAND: The Athletics are 1-4 on their current six-game road trip and 4-12 in their last 15 road games. ... SS Miguel Tejada is 9-for-21 (.429) in the first five games of the trip. ... RHP Chad Bradford has retired nine straight batters over his last three outings. ... Starter Mike Fyhrie matched a career-high with six strikeouts. ... The Athletics have lost six straight series for the first time since April 25-May 13 in 1997. ... Oakland starters are 14-22 this season.
TORONTO: 3B Eric Hinske leads all AL rookies with 26 RBIs. He has 11 in his last nine games ... Hinske has also 12 errors this season. ... Closer Kelvim Escobar has a strikeout in 17 of his 18 appearances this season. ... Former Blue Jays and current Mariners GM Pat Gillick, who keeps a home in Toronto, watched the game from seats behind home plate. ... INF Chris Woodward earned his second straight start, replacing Felipe Lopez at short. ... The Blue Jays have won five of six against the Athletics this season.
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Angels-White Sox
ANAHEIM: Cutting down on strikeouts has been a key to the Angels' offensive improvement and. In winning 17 of their last 19 heading into Saturday night, Anaheim had outscored opponents 151-54 during that span. For the season, the Angels' 189 strikeouts are the second lowest in the AL. “I think we have a lot of good situational hitters ... guys who put the ball in play,” manager Mike Scioscia said. “We have a team that score a lot of runs without home runs because we do a lot of things you're supposed to.” ... Backup C Jorge Fabregas started Saturday instead of regular C Bengie Molina ... SS David Eckstein was back in the Angels' lineup Saturday despite fouling a ball off his face to lead off Friday's game. Eckstein remained in Friday's game despite cutting the area around his nose and eyes and went 1-for-5.
CHICAGO: Manager Jerry Manuel isn't sure how long it will take sidearm LHP Kelly Wunsch to round back into form at the major league level. Wunsch, on the DL since March 28 with inflammation in his left rotator cuff, was recalled following Friday's game from a rehab assignment at Triple-A Charlotte. “We're going to ease him back in,” Manuel said. “I have to make sure I communicate with him to see how he feels.” Wunsch led the AL with 83 relief appearances in 2000 and went 6-3 with a 2.93 ERA. Last year, however, he underwent surgery for a torn rotator cuff and was appeared in 33 games, going 2-1 with a 7.66 ERA. ... SS Royce Clayton, whose career-high 69 game errorless streak ended Friday, was replaced by Tony Graffanino on Saturday. “I just wanted to give him a break today,” Manuel said. “He's playing extremely well defensively.” Manuel also wanted to keep Graffanino in the lineup. Entering Saturday's game, he 9-for-20 with three home runs and eight RBI in his last five games. “Tony's been playing well for us and swinging the bat well,” Manuel said.
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Mariners-Red Sox
SEATTLE: With its 4-1 loss at Boston on Saturday, the Mariners fell to 29-13 — two games behind last year's record pace. ... The Mariners lost to Boston ace Pedro Martinez for the second time in a week and fell to 0-10 against the three-time Cy Young Award winner. “We're due,” manager Lou Piniella sad.
BOSTON: With his eight-inning, nine-strikeout performance in Boston's 4-1 win against the Mariners on Saturday, Pedro Martinez improved to 10-0 with a 0.94 ERA in 10 lifetime starts against Seattle. ... Trot Nixon homered in his first at-bat, after serving his four-game suspension for releasing his bat in the direction of Tampa Bay starter Ryan Rupe on May 5. ... Shea Hillenbrand extended his hitting streak to 12 games. ... Every Red Sox batter got a hit except 2B Rey Sanchez.
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Devil Rays-Orioles
TAMPA BAY: C Toby Hall is day-to-day with a bruised right thumb after taking a foul tip in Friday's eighth inning. Hall is 4-for-12 after going 6-for-66. ... RHP Travis Harper (0-1, 4.09) will make his second start Sunday in place of injured rookie Delvin James. Manager Hal McRae said he hopes to get five innings from Harper, who lasted 3 2-3 against New York on Tuesday. ... SS Chris Gomez's two-double game Friday was his third this year. ... DH Greg Vaughn's .107 average entering Saturday's game was the lowest among major leaguer regulars, 80 points behind the next lowest player. ... Tampa Bay's 192 games without a complete game through Friday is the longest streak in major league history.
BALTIMORE: The Orioles placed 1B-DH David Segui on the 15-day DL and purchased the contract of 1B-OF Ryan McGuire from Triple-A Rochester. Segui will undergo surgery on his left wrist Tuesday to repair torn cartilage and tendon damage and is expected to miss 10-to-12 weeks. McGuire, one of the team's last cuts out of spring training, was hitting .298 with seven home runs and 22 RBIs for Rochester. ... RHP Jorge Julio got Tampa Bay's Randy Winn on a grounder to second to notch his eighth save Friday night. Last Saturday in St. Petersburg, Fla., Winn beat Julio with a game-winning, three-run homer. The difference in their Friday meeting? Winn, who got a steady diet of fastballs last week, saw more changeups and sliders from Julio, who throws a 100 mph fastball. ... ... Four hours before Saturday's game, members of the grounds crew were on their hands and knees combing the outfield grass for leftover remnants of the postgame fireworks display from the previous night.
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Cubs-Brewers
CHICAGO: Prized prospect Mark Prior, the No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, will make his highly anticipated major league debut Wednesday at Pittsburgh. ... Mark Bellhorn has started at all four infield positions this season — 13 games at third base, five at second, two at first and one at shortstop. ... During their eight-game losing streak, Chicago pitchers have a 7.28 ERA from the sixth inning on by allowing 55 earned runs in 68 innings. ... Also in that streak of futility, the Cubs have batted .208. ... The Cubs have scored three runs or less in 21 of their first 39 games.
MILWAUKEE: Geoff Jenkins entered in an 0-for-18 slump. “You just keep swinging and things will turn around my way,” Jenkins said. “Hitting is all about feel, once you get that feel, it'll come.” ... INF Eric Young celebrated his 35th birthday. He's also off to a slow start in his first season with Milwaukee, batting .187 and is 7-for-12 on stolen-base attempts. ... It was Armed Forces Day at Miller Park, and several hundred re-enlisted in an on-field ceremony before the game. ... RHP Curtis Leskanic, recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, has pitched four times in his rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Indianapolis. He started Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader against Syracuse, throwing 1 2-3 hitless innings. He walked one and struck out three. ... Jenkins has four of Milwaukee's six assists by outfielders this season. ... Last year, catcher Henry Blanco threw out 42 percent (30-of-71) of basestealers. This year's duo of Raul Casanova and Paul Bako have combined for only 24 percent (10-for-42).
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Pirates-Astros
PITTSBURGH: Of the Pirates' first 40 games, 18 were decided by two runs or less. The Pirates were 14-4 in those games. ... The .226 team batting average is lower than the franchise-worst of .231, set in 1952. The last time Pittsburgh hit lower than .245 for a season was 1989, when the Pirates batted .241.
HOUSTON: RHP Wade Miller pitched in a rehab assignment at New Orleans on Saturday night and allowed one earned run and five hits in three innings. Miller, out with pinched nerve in his neck since April 12, said he felt good after the outing. He will have another start in New Orleans on Thursday and if everything goes well, he could return to the Astros after that. ... Houston's seven-game home winning streak ties the best mark at Astros Field. The club record is 14 straight, set in 1980 at the Astrodome.
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Reds-Cardinals
CINCINNATI: RHP Jose Rijo has lasted just five innings his last two starts, and he's not pleased even though he has a pair of victories. “It's happened to me twice with my shoulder getting a little tired and my slider getting flat and I lose a little bit of velocity,” Rijo said. “Not that I need to lose any more. I've got to start working on my shoulder to try to get past that stage.” ... Aaron Boone singled in the seventh, ending an 0-for-14 slump. Boone entered in the sixth inning. ... RHP Jose Acevedo, who starts Sunday, is 0-2 with a 13.50 ERA in two starts against St. Louis — both last year. ... Brady Clark had been 2-for-13 with one RBI as a pinch-hitter before hisdouble in the sixth off Matt Morris. He had been in a 2-for-26 slump overall.
ST. LOUIS: Tino Martinez, batting .206, didn't want to talk about his hitting after connecting for his fourth homer. “Ask about the team, ask about the game,” Martinez said. “I'm tired of getting abused. If you want to talk bad about me in the papers, just write it. Don't ask me to quote myself. I'll talk about the game, though.” Martinez hit .280 with 34 homers and 113 RBIs last year for the Yankees. ... The Cardinals lead the majors with 330 runners left on base, an average of 7.9 per game, although they stranded only three Saturday. ... RHP Luther Hackman hasn't allowed a run in 13 innings over his last seven outings. ... RHP Garrett Stephenson, who starts Sunday, is 0-4 with a 5.45 ERA in eight career games against Cincinnati. ... The Cardinals have come from behind in 15 of their 21 victories. They've been outscored 62-27 in the first two innings.
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Braves-Rockies
ATLANTA: The Braves called up INF Jesse Garcia from Triple-A Richmond after SS Mark DeRosa was placed on the 15-day disabled list with ligament damage to his right ankle. DeRosa, injured while rounding first base Friday night, went back to Atlanta on Sunday to be re-evaluated. Garcia was hitting .311 with eight RBIs in 28 games for Richmond. ... Atlanta's starters are yet to throw a complete game this season.
COLORADO: RF Larry Walker, an avid Colorado Avalanche fan, plans to take advantage of Monday's day off with a trip to Detroit for Game 2 of the NHL's Western Conference finals. “It's my only chance to see a game in the series,” said Walker, who has the Avalanche's logo over his locker in the clubhouse. “This is the Stanley Cup as far as I'm concerned.” ... Manager Clint Hurdle said OF Benny Agbayani, on the DL since May 12 with a hamstring strain, has been running and started sprinting a little. He took batting practice Friday and hit in the cage Saturday. ... According to Stats Inc., Todd Zeile is tied with Cincinnati's Adam Dunn for most pitches per plate appearance in the NL at 4.39.
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Phillies-Diamondbacks
PHILADELPHIA: With his team 0-5 on this road trip and 3-17 away from home overall, manager Larry Bowa finally snapped in an eighth-inning tirade in a 12-9 loss Friday night. First, Bowa argued with first base umpire Bruce Froeming, then he went chest-to-chest with plate umpire Tony Randazzo after Randazzo threw him out of the game. Bench coach Gary Varsho had to pull Bowa away. ... Among the reasons for Bowa's anger was Randazzo's blown call on Travis Lee's headfirst slide into home in the fifth inning. Randazzo called him out, but replays showed Lee's hand hit the plate well before the tag, and catcher Rod Barajas had the ball in his other hand anyway, as a photo in Saturday's Arizona Republic clearly showed. ... Philadelphia's bullpen has a 13.50 ERA on this trip and 8.07 on the road overall.
ARIZONA: X-rays were negative on Erubiel Durazo's right ankle and Junior Spivey's left hand after Friday's game. Durazo fouled a ball off his ankle and Spivey was hit by a pitch. Both were back in the lineup Saturday night. ... Durazo's three home runs, nine RBIs and 14 total bases Friday night were all club records. Durazo said he had never hit three homers in a game at any level. ... After a slow start this season, Luis Gonzalez has hit .500 (14-for-28) in his last six starts to raise his average from .246 to .288. His four runs Friday night tied a club record. ... After the four-game series with Philadelphia ends Sunday, the Diamondbacks play 12 in a row against NL West rivals San Francisco and Los Angeles.
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Marlins-Giants
FLORIDA: 2B Luis Castillo has been bothered by a sore right hamstring, but it's hard to keep him out of the lineup. Marlins manager Jeff Torborg thought about resting him with a day game following a night game, but that didn't last long. “He has that tender leg, but he's running well and playing well,” Torborg said. “It hurts him at times with different moves. He doesn't feel it running. It's usually when he's trying to stop.” Castillo has hit safely in six straight games following a two-day absence because of the hamstring. ... An MRI exam on C Ramon Castro, on the DL with a strained right elbow, didn't reveal a tear. The team will still send him to a specialist in Birmingham, Ala., to be examined further. ... RHP Julian Tavarez will skip his next start to help build arm strength. He came off the DL last Saturday and was the losing pitcher in Thursday's game at Colorado. Tavarez went on the DL with a right shoulder strain April 17.
SAN FRANCISCO: While there's talk of a possible labor stoppage during the summer, Giants manager Dusty Baker will try to keep it business as usual. “It might be a distraction to some people, but you still have to go out and play,” he said. “Right now it's a threat, just talk. If it becomes definitely, then it becomes a distraction.” Baker has been involved in all nine labor stoppages since the 1972 season. “I quit counting,” he said. “Nobody like it, I can say that much.” ... LHP Jason Christensen reported no pain a day after throwing on the side. He's on the DL with elbow tendinitis and probably won't return to action until June. “He's getting closer and closer to a bullpen session,” Giants trainer Stan Conte said. ... Baker said he'd like to see his team play a few more games before he can make a proper assessment of where it stands. “You want to see yourself at your best and worst,” he said. “We've seen pitching at its best, but we haven't seen the total offense at its best. It's still too early to assess things, though its great to win games in the meantime. It's hard to make moves when you're winning.”
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Expos-Dodgers
MONTREAL: The Expos are trying to go about their business and not get caught up in talk about contraction and relocation. But as reliever Joey Eischen points out, they're only human. “Nobody really knows what's going to happen, but it will be good for the game if they do move somewhere and keep the team going,” Eischen said. “I just think they're holding this contraction stuff over our heads as a negotiating tool. Movement is a viable option, and I think that's something that they probably are going to end up doing. I mean, why would the owners get rid of something that they could sell for between $500 million and $700 million and split it between themselves? Doesn't that sound like something they would do? I just don't see them passing up the opportunity to put some greenbacks in their pockets. That's normally what they do, and I think that's what they'll do in this case.” ... Rookie RHP T.J. Tucker has pitched 24 1-3 innings of relief without allowing a home run. Two years ago, in his only other stint with the Expos, Tucker allowed five homers over seven innings in two starts. Last year, he gave up 21 homers as a starter while splitting time between Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Ottawa. “I like my new role coming out of the bullpen — I like it a lot better than starting,” said Tucker, who changed his style of pitching during the second week of the season on advice from pitching coach Dick Pole. “I get in a lot of trouble when I start spotting my pitches instead of just throwing the ball. So now I just go after the hitters and let it all hang out.”
LOS ANGELES: After sustained pressure from teammate Odalis Perez, LHP Kazuhisa Ishii finally got his first haircut in the United States. A barber trimmed his locks in the clubhouse for $30, including tip. Thinking team publicist Luis Garcia was serious when he suggested selling the hair on E-bay to raise money for the Dodgers Dream Foundation, interpreter Scott Akasaki scooped the hair off the floor, placed it in a Zip-Lock bag and had Ishii autograph it. Garcia eventually emptied the bag in a trash can in the middle of the clubhouse. ... One day after saying he would not sit slumping RF Shawn Green, manager Jim Tracy did just that. Green is hitless in his last 18 at-bats, has gone 89 at-bats without a home run and has not hit a ball out of the infield in five straight games. ... RHP Eric Gagne is convinced the reason he's doing so well as a closer is that he no longer has to spend four days analyzing his previous outing, as he did when he started. “The last two years were a struggle for me. But in this role, I feel confident,” said Gagne, who entered 14-for-15 in save opportunities with a 1.17 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 23 innings. “My stuff's good right now and I'm throwing all my pitches for strikes. My confidence level is real high. The guys believe in me and I believe in myself.” ... Home runs by Marquis Grissom and Eric Karros in Friday night's 8-5 victory increased the team's total to 25 — second-fewest in the NL, and only four more than Pittsburgh. “We don't have that much power on this team this year,” Grissom said. “I mean, Shawn Green, E.K. and (Paul) Lo Duca are going to get their home runs, but we don't have a Barry Bonds or a Gary Sheffield over here. It makes a big difference that Sheffield's not here anymore.”
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Mets-Padres
NEW YORK: Joe McEwing played his seventh position of the season when he made his first start at third base. He has seen action at every spot except pitcher and catcher. He was previously the only player in the majors to have started at six positions. ... 1B Mo Vaughn entered nine RBIs shy of 1,000.
SAN DIEGO: RHP Brett Tomko made his 100th start. He entered with a career record of 43-34, spanning six seasons with three clubs. He came to San Diego this season in a trade with Seattle. ... While his teammates took batting practice on the field, injured 1B Phil Nevin worked out in an indoor cage. He went on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left elbow May 12.
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Notes from Saturday's games
