Orioles Lose First Of Season

American League

Dean Palmer drove in three runs and Rusty Greer had four hits as the Texas Rangers beat Baltimore 9-3 Sunday and sent the Orioles to their first loss of the season.

The Orioles, also 4-0 at the start of last season, fell one game short of tying their team record for consecutive wins to open the year. Baltimore became the last major league team to lose a game.

Mike Mussina, making his first appearance of the season, gave up four runs in the first inning and wound up allowing seven runs and eight hits in four innings. He had been scheduled to pitch on opening day but was pushed back because of calcium deposits in his right elbow.

Winner Roger Pavlik (1-0) gave up two runs and four hits in 6 innings, walked five and struck out three. Cal Ripken hit a 389-foot solo homer in the second inning and singled home a run in the third.

Indians 10, Angels 8 Anaheim, Calif.

Brian Giles and Sandy Alomar homered in the ninth inning after Cleveland had overcome a six-run deficit.

With the score 8-all, Giles homered with one out off Troy Percival (0-2). One out later, Alomar hit his third home run of the season.

Athletics 3, Yankees 0 Oakland, Calif.

New York, which had not committed an error this season, booted two grounders as Oakland broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the eighth inning.

Third baseman Wade Boggs and first baseman Tino Martinez made the miscues as the Yankees, the last team in the majors to commit an error, wasted a stellar pitching performance by David Cone.

White Sox 5, Tigers 3 Chicago

Jaime Navarro struck out a career-high 11 batters in seven innings while claiming his first A.L. victory since 1994 and leading Chicago over Detroit.

Navarro (1-0), who left the Cubs to sign with the White Sox as a free agent, allowed five singles and walked two on another blustery day at Comiskey Park. The wind, gusting at 43 mph as the game started, ripped a giant banner off the huge scoreboard in center field and caused a 7-minute delay in the top of the third.

Royals 12, Twins 2 Minneapolis

Glendon Rusch allowed four hits in eight innings and retired 19 consecutive batters, making a superb major league debut to lead Kansas City to its victory over Minnesota.

Rusch, a 22-year-old left-hander, struck out four and walked none. He allowed a pair of unearned runs in the first inning and Ron Coomer’s leadoff single in the second, then retired 19 straight men until Chuck Knoblauch singled with two out in the eighth.

Brewers 4, Blue Jays 2

Toronto Jeff Cirillo doubled home the go-ahead run in the seventh inning off Pat Hentgen, leading Milwaukee over Toronto.

Clearing the bases

Mark McGwire’s single in the fourth was his first non-extra base hit of the season. His previous four hits were a homer and three doubles… . Texas shortstop Benji Gil left in the fourth with a pulled right groin muscle… . Otis Nixon stole his second base of the game in the fifth inning for the 500th steal of his career. The base was changed while Nixon received a standing ovation from the SkyDome crowd.