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Baseball Today
SCOREBOARD
Wednesday, Sept. 2
Los Angeles at Seattle (6:40 p.m. EDT). Scott Kazmir will make his first start for the Angels after being acquired from Tampa Bay on Friday. He will face Mariners ace Felix Hernandez, who has 13 wins and a 2.77 ERA.
STARS
—Andy Pettitte, Yankees, retired his first 20 batters before a seventh-inning error spoiled his perfect game and a hit later that inning wrecked the no-hit bid, and New York went on to beat Baltimore 5-1.
—Adam Lind, Blue Jays, had two homers, including a grand slam, and a career-high eight RBIs as Toronto beat Texas 18-10 after nearly blowing an 11-0 lead.
—Carlos Pena, Rays, hit his AL-best 38th homer and drove in four runs to help Tampa Bay beat Detroit 11-7 for a split of their four-game series.
—Vladimir Guerrero, Angels, hit two home runs, one a monster shot into the upper deck, and Los Angeles routed Seattle 10-0.
—Rusty Ryal, Diamondbacks, homered to lead off the 10th inning and Arizona beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 for their fifth consecutive victory.
—Carlos Lee, Astros, hit a two-run home run and drove in four runs, leading Houston to a 5-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
SHIPPED
The Los Angeles Dodgers made a big push to lock up the NL West, acquiring slugging first baseman Jim Thome from the Chicago White Sox and right-hander Jon Garland from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The deals were announced by Los Angeles in the top of the eighth inning of Monday night’s game against Arizona. Both trades were completed before the midnight EDT deadline required for postseason eligibility.
SWINGS
Toronto built an 11-0 lead over Texas in the first five innings before the Rangers scored 10 unanswered runs over the next three frames. The Blue Jays sealed the victory with seven runs in the ninth inning, including a solo homer and three-run double by Adam Lind. He also hit a grand slam earlier and drove in a career-best eight runs.
STILL SITTING
Ichiro Suzuki’s maddening wait is almost over. The Seattle Mariners again held out the All-Star and Gold Glove outfielder, plus active home run leader Ken Griffey Jr. and Gold Glove third baseman Adrian Beltre, for their series opener against the first-place Los Angeles Angels on Monday night. Mariners rookie manager Don Wakamatsu said before the game that he expects Suzuki and Beltre back in the lineup Tuesday.
SIGNING
Brad Penny and the Giants agreed to a minor league contract Monday night, adding another proven arm to San Francisco’s strong rotation for the stretch run. Penny cleared waivers after he was released by Boston last week. Because he reached a deal with San Francisco by Aug. 31, he is eligible for postseason play with the Giants.
SIDELINED
Rangers catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia has been shut down again after experiencing more numbness in his right arm. He might need season-ending surgery. Saltalamacchia, on the disabled list since Aug. 15 because of recurring numbness, had the same problem when catching during a minor league rehab assignment Sunday. He caught seven innings, instead of the scheduled nine, before coming out of the game.
SMALL TOKEN OF GRATITUDE
Three members of the San Diego Padres — brothers Adrian and Edgar Gonzalez, and Tony Gwynn Jr. — were thrilled on Monday when they received caps autographed by the team from suburban Chula Vista that won the Little League World Series on Sunday. The Park View All-Stars signed the powder blue caps last week in South Williamsport, Pa., and sent them to Petco Park. Edgar Gonzalez said they were a gesture of thanks for both moral and financial support.
SPEAKING
“You could hear everything. I saw one guy who was missing a finger catch a foul ball, and I could hear him say, ’That hurt like hell,’ but he caught it. That’s one of those days where everyone could get a foul ball and a T-shirt.” — Reds manager Dusty Baker said after fewer than 2,000 fans showed up for the start of a day-night doubleheader between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.
SEASONS
Sept. 2
1952 — Mike Fornieles of the Washington Senators, in his major league debut, pitche a one-hitter for a 5-0 victory over the Philadelphia Athletics in the second game of a doubleheader.
1965 — Ernie Banks hit his 400th home run as the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-3 at Wrigley Field. The blow came off Curt Simmons in the third inning.
1971 — Cesar Cedeno’s 200-foot fly ball in the fifth inning fell for an inside-the-park grand slam as second baseman Jim Lefebvre and right fielder Bill Buckner of the Dodgers collided. The hit helped the Houston Astros beat Los Angeles 9-3.
1972 — Milt Pappas of the Chicago Cubs retired 26 consecutive San Diego Padres before walking pinch-hitter Larry Stahl on a 3-2 pitch. Pappas then retired Gary Jestadt to finish his 8-0 no-hitter.
1987 — Houston’s Kevin Bass went 4-for-4, including home runs from both sides of plate, and drove in three runs as the Astros posted a 10-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Bass became the first National League player to homer from both sides of the plate twice in one season.
1990 — Dave Stieb, who had lost three no-hit bids with one out to go in the previous two seasons, finally pitched one as the Toronto Blue Jays beat Cleveland 3-0. It was the record ninth no-hitter of the season.
1993 — The expansion Colorado Rockies drew 47,699 fans for their 6-1 loss to Montreal to set a single-season NL attendance record with a 62-game total of 3,617,863. Los Angeles set the previous record of 3,608,881 in 1982. Toronto set the major league record of 4,028,318 in 1992.
1996 — Mike Greenwell set a major league record by driving in all nine Boston runs, the final one on a 10th-inning single to give the Red Sox a 9-8 victory over Seattle.
1999 — Cal Ripken hit his 400th career home run, connecting off right-hander Rolando Arrojo in the third inning of the Baltimore Orioles’ game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
2001 — New York’s Mike Mussina came within one strike of pitching the first perfect game in the 89-year history of Fenway Park in a 1-0 win over Boston. Mussina’s bid was broken up by pinch-hitter Carl Everett’s clean single.
2002 — Miguel Tejada had his second straight game-ending hit when he singled home Terrence Long with the bases loaded in the ninth inning and Oakland tied the longest winning streak in AL history with a 7-6 victory over Kansas City. Oakland, which overcame a 5-0 deficit, equaled the 19 straight wins by the 1906 Chicago White Sox and the 1947 New York Yankees.
2003 — Eric Gagne set a major league record with his 55th consecutive save in Los Angeles’s 4-1 victory over Houston.
2004 — Gary Sheffield became the second player in history to drive in 100 runs for five different teams, picking up three RBI in the New York Yankees 9-1 win over Cleveland. Sheffield and Hall of Famer Dan Brouthers (1887-94) are the only players to accomplish the feat. Sheffield previously drove in 100 runs for San Diego (1992), Florida (1996), Los Angeles (1999-01) and Atlanta (2003).
Today’s birthday: Jason Hammel 27; Rich Aurilia 38.