Rocket’s 2-Hitter Good For 21st Win
American League
Roger Clemens pitched a two-hitter Sunday, tying Jack Morris’ Toronto club record for wins in a season with his 21st, leading the host Blue Jays to a 4-0 victory over the Texas Rangers.
Clemens (21-5) struck out 14, his 12th time this season with 10 or more strikeouts and the 80th in his career. He struck out six of the last nine batters, including the side in the ninth.
He didn’t walk anyone in his third shutout of the season and 41st of his career. The complete game was his ninth of the year, tying him with teammate Pat Hentgen for the A.L. lead, and the shutout lowered his ERA to 1.85, best in the A.L.
The only hits off Clemens were singles by Juan Gonzalez in the fourth and Rusty Greer in the sixth.
Angels 5, Tigers 4 (15) Detroit
Anaheim ended a five-game losing streak when Tony Phillips doubled and scored on Robert Eenhorn’s sacrifice fly.
The game took 5 hours, 2 minutes. Phillips, who was 3 for 6, led off the 15th with a double off Glenn Dishman (1-2) and went to third on Darin Erstad’s sacrifice bunt. The teams combined for 33 strikeouts, including 21 in extra innings, tying the M.L. mark set by Atlanta and St. Louis on May 16.
Yankees 10, Orioles 3 New York
Kenny Rogers got his first win in more than a month and New York used four home runs to defeat Baltimore for the first time this season.
New York had dropped its first seven games to Baltimore in 1997, a radical switch from last year when the Yankees went 10-3 vs.
The Orioles in the regular season and defeated them in five games in the ALCS.
Bernie Williams hit a three-run homer, Paul O’Neill and Jorge Posada had two-run homers and Tim Raines added a solo shot as the Yankees won the finale of the four-game series to halt a six-game losing streak.
Jeffrey Hammonds went 4 for 4 and Cal Ripken homered for the Orioles.
Indians 5, White Sox 2 Cleveland
Matt Williams extended his career-high hitting streak to 23 games, and Cleveland held Albert Belle hitless in his second homecoming series to finish a sweep of Chicago.
Jim Thome and Tony Fernandez also homered for Cleveland. Belle was 0 for 11 in the series.
Fernandez replaced Bip Roberts at second base in the sixth after Robin Ventura ran into him in the basepath.
Red Sox 11, Brewers 2 Boston
Troy O’Leary hit his first career grand slam, John Valentin homered twice and Bill Haselman, Jeff Frye and Wilfredo Cordero also homered for Boston.
The Red Sox tied a season-high with six home runs and avoided elimination in the A.L. East. Butch Henry (6-2) earned his first victory as a starter since Aug. 10, 1995.
Athletics 9, Royals 4 Kansas City, Mo.
Eric Ludwick earned his first major league win and Oakland scored nine runs for the third straight game.
Jason Giambi recorded his seventh consecutive multi-hit game for the A’s. Ernie Young, who went 3 for 4 and scored three times, hit an RBI single during a six-run fourth inning.
Ludwick (1-1) began the day with an 0-3 career record. He held the Royals to one run and four hits before he was hit in the right leg by Yamil Benitez’s line drive leading off the sixth.
Clearing the bases
Yankees ace David Cone, sidelined since Aug. 19 with tendinitis, will throw off a mound Tuesday or Wednesday in Boston to test his shoulder. Teammate Andy Pettitte, hit by Cal Ripken’s line drive Friday night, expects to make his next start Thursday in Baltimore. … Indians announcer and former pitcher Herb Score was honored before the game. He is retiring after this season, his club record 34th in the booth. … Mark Holtz, 51, announcer for the Texas Rangers since 1981, died in Dallas of complications from a bone marrow transplant for treatment of leukemia. He broadcast his final game for the Rangers May 22. He was elected to the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990.