Seitzer Makes Mark Quickly For Indians
American League
Kevin Seitzer didn’t need long to get comfortable in his new role with the Cleveland Indians.
Plucked from Milwaukee about 90 minutes before postseason rosters were set, Seitzer went 4 for 5 with an RBI in his debut to help Cleveland finally beat Texas at home with an 8-2 win Sunday.
The victory ended the Indians’ five-game losing streak at The Ballpark in Arlington and helped Cleveland salvage a 4-8 record against the Rangers this season.
“We wanted to win this game very badly because we haven’t beaten this team in a while and because everybody looks at this as (a matchup) that could happen down the road in the playoffs,” said Charles Nagy (14-4), who improved to 8-0 in 12 starts following an Indians loss.
Nagy limited Texas to one run and seven hits over 7-2/3 innings, and Julio Franco broke the game open with a grand slam in the fifth off Rangers starter John Burkett (2-1).
White Sox 4, Jays 2 (11)
Toronto
Tony Phillips scored the winning run on shortstop Tomas Perez’ error in the 11th inning as Chicago beat Toronto to complete a three-game sweep.
Chicago starter Alex Fernandez allowed one run on five hits in nine innings, lowering his ERA to 3.47 and helping the White Sox to their fourth straight win.
Angels 4, Yankees 0
Anaheim, Calif.
Chuck Finley pitched seven strong innings and Tim Salmon hit a three-run homer as California beat New York.
The Yankees’ fifth loss in seven games keeps their A.L. East lead over Baltimore at four games. The Orioles lost a chance to cut the gap when they lost at Seattle.
Red Sox 8, Athletics 3
Oakland, Calif.
Nomar Garciaparra homered in his first major-league start to help Boston avoid its first three-game losing streak since July with a victory over Oakland.
Red Sox starter Aaron Sele (6-9), activated earlier in the day from the disabled list where he was nursing a strained rib cage muscle, allowed four hits in six innings for his first win since Aug. 3.
Twins 6, Brewers 2
Milwaukee
Rich Becker went 4 for 5 with three RBIs as Minnesota beat Milwaukee.
Royals 3, Tigers 2 (13)
Detroit
Tom Goodwin singled in the go-ahead run with two outs in the 13th inning, sending Kansas City past Detroit.
Clearing the bases
The five-run fifth for Cleveland was the 22nd time the Indians have scored that many runs or more in an inning… . The White Sox have four players with 20 home runs for the first time since 1987 and fifth time overall. Harold Baines was on all five teams.
Oakland’s club record for holding opponents scoreless is 37 innings, set Aug. 13-17, 1983. The A’s had held the Red Sox scoreless for 29 consecutive innings before Mo Vaughn hit an RBI single in the first.