American League Roundup : Petralli Leads Attack as Rangers Rough Up Clemens and Red Sox, 10-3

Geno Petralli had a career-high five hits to pace a 19-hit attack and lead the Texas Rangers past the Red Sox and pitcher Roger Clemens, 10-3, Wednesday night at Boston.

Petralli had a double, four singles and drove in two runs. Rafael Palmeiro and Julio Franco each had three hits and Sammy Sosa added his first major league homer.

Clemens, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, had not allowed more than nine hits in 16 starts this season. Texas’ 12 hits against him were the most he had allowed since the Yankees had 15 on June 13, 1988.

Bob Stanley relieved Clemens (8-5) in the sixth, but the Rangers broke open a 4-3 game with six runs in the seventh.

In that inning, Steve Buechele ended an 0-for-16 slump with a two-run double, Chad Kreuter had a run-scoring double and Palmeiro a two-run single. Another run scored on catcher Rick Cerone’s throwing error.

The Red Sox took a quick lead off Ranger starter Bobby Witt in the first. Jody Reed doubled, took third on the first of three singles by Danny Heep and scored on Wade Boggs’ sacrifice fly.

Mike Greenwell then doubled, moving Heep to third, and Dwight Evans scored both with a double to left-center field.

Petralli singled home the Rangers’ first run in the fourth. Then Texas went ahead to stay in the fifth on Sosa’s home run, a run-scoring single by Franco and a double by Petralli.

Gary Mielke (1-0) pitched 2 1/3 perfect innings for the victory.

Kansas City 6, Milwaukee 0--Bret Saberhagen pitched a three-hitter for his American League-leading seventh complete game and the Royals supported him with four first-inning runs at Milwaukee.

Saberhagen (7-4), who pitched his 10th career shutout, allowed two singles by Paul Molitor and one by Gary Sheffield. He walked none and struck out five en route to lowering his ERA to 2.63 and winning his fourth consecutive game.

Singles by Kurt Stillwell and Kevin Seitzer and Bo Jackson’s blooping double to right field gave the Royals a 1-0 lead. Jim Eisenreich’s sacrifice fly made it 2-0, and run-scoring singles by Pat Tabler and Bob Boone capped the six-hit inning as Kansas City batted around.

Eisenreich also had a two-run single in the fifth, extending his hitting streak to 10 games.

Jackson hit back to the pitcher in the sixth inning and, in frustration, hit himself in the head with the bat as he walked to the dugout. The bat snapped.

Chicago 7, New York 3--Carlton Fisk set an league record for home runs by a catcher and drove in three runs to lead the White Sox past the Yankees at New York.

Fisk hit his 307th homer as a catcher in the second inning off Andy Hawkins, passing the Yankees’ Yogi Berra as the league’s all-time leader for catchers. He still trails major league record-holder Johnny Bench, who hit 327 for the Cincinnati Reds.

Fisk’s homer broke a scoreless tie, and he tied the score, 2-2, in the fourth with an RBI single.

Harold Baines’ leadoff homer snapped the tie in the eighth when Chicago got five runs in the inning off Hawkins (7-8) and Lee Guetterman.

Donn Pall (2-1) picked up the win in relief of rookie starter Greg Hibbard and Bobby Thigpen pitched the final two innings. Don Mattingly and Roberto Kelly each hit solo homers for the Yankees.

Minnesota 5, Cleveland 1--Kirby Puckett had three singles for his 32nd multihit game of the season and Shane Rawley won for the first time in more than a month as the Twins prevailed at Cleveland.

Puckett, the league hit leader with 95, had one of four run-scoring singles off John Farrell (3-8), who has lost seven of his last eight decisions.

The Twins, who have won eight of their last 11 games, also got three hits from Dan Gladden.

The left-handed Rawley (4-6) gave up four hits and one run, Cory Snyder’s 10th home run, in 5 1/3 innings. Juan Berenguer and Randy St. Claire followed, with St. Claire going 1 2/3 innings for his first American League save.

Baltimore 8, Seattle 6--Jay Tibbs won his fourth consecutive decision as the Orioles extended their winning streak to six games at Seattle.

Tibbs (4-0) allowed eight hits and two runs in eight innings. Down 8-0, Seattle rallied for six runs in the eighth and ninth innings, but Gregg Olson got the final out for his 10th save and his second in as many nights.

Oakland 6, Detroit 3--Dave Parker hit a pair of two-run homers and Mike Moore allowed five hits over eight innings as the Athletics beat the Tigers at Oakland.

Parker, who has 11 homers this season, had his first multihomer game since Sept. 15, 1987, when he played for Cincinnati.

Moore (9-5) lowered his league-leading ERA to 2.15. He allowed only one earned run in eight innings, striking out eight and walking three.