NEW YORK – Back at Yankee Stadium and playing under the glowering eye of their impatient owner, Mike Mussina and the New York Yankees looked every bit the dominant team they are expected to be.

Mussina pitched a five-hitter, Hideki Matsui homered, and the Yankees beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-0 in the teams’ first meeting since the memorable 1960 World Series.

With George Steinbrenner watching from his private box, the Yankees put on a performance worthy of their $205 million payroll – nearly $168 million more than the Pirates – and one much crisper than their just-completed 3-9 road trip that manager Joe Torre called “terrible.”

Converted second baseman Tony Womack made a diving catch in left field; center fielder Bernie Williams and second baseman Robinson Cano executed a perfect relay to Jorge Posada to get Matt Lawton trying to score in the sixth inning; and beleaguered fading star Jason Giambi turned jeers to cheers with a two-run double.

The last pitch between these teams resulted in one of the most well-known home runs in baseball history – and certainly the most dramatic: In the 1960 World Series, Bill Mazeroski homered leading off the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 7 to give Pittsburgh an improbable Series win. It’s still the only Game 7 World Series-winning homer.

Orioles 6, Astros 1

BALTIMORE – Bruce Chen allowed three hits over seven scoreless innings, Miguel Tejada hit his 18th homer, and the Baltimore Orioles beat longtime nemesis Andy Pettitte and the Houston Astros 6-1 on Tuesday night.

Larry Bigbie had his second straight three-hit game for the Orioles, who broke open a scoreless duel with a three-run sixth inning that included a two-run shot by Tejada.

Chen (6-4) struck out five and walked four in lowering his ERA to 3.31. He was 0-2 in four starts since May 18 despite allowing only 10 earned runs in that span.

Brewers 4, Devil Rays 0

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Tomo Ohka had an impressive debut for the Milwaukee Brewers, scattering nine hits in his first career shutout, a 4-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Tuesday night.

Ohka (5-3) struck out six and walked none in his first outing since being acquired from the Washington Nationals for infielder Junior Spivey last week.

The trade came less than a week after the right-hander was fined by the Nationals for showing disrespect to manager Frank Robinson while being removed from a game against Florida. Ohka turned his back to the manager as he walked to the mound. Robinson then had to grab the ball out of Ohka’s hand to make the pitching change.

Advertisement

Indians 11, Rockies 2

CLEVELAND – Jake Westbrook was given some rare run support and the Cleveland Indians opened their longest homestand this season with an 11-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night.

Westbrook (3-9), who has pitched much better than his record shows, allowed two runs and eight hits in seven innings. The right-hander hasn’t gotten much help as the Indians averaged an AL-low 2.6 runs in his previous 13 starts, scoring just 15 in his nine losses.

But the Indians pushed across five runs in the first three innings off Colorado’s Jeff Francis (5-4) while cruising to their fourth straight victory. Cleveland, 7-1 since June 4, has won 15 of 22 and moved two games over .500 for the first time since Aug. 21.

Cubs 14, Marlins 0

CHICAGO – Aramis Ramirez hit two home runs and Sergio Mitre pitched his second shutout in a week, leading lead the Chicago Cubs over the Florida Marlins 14-0 on Tuesday night.

With the wind blowing hard out of Wrigley Field, the Cubs took advantage, ending an ugly two-game stretch in which they were outscored 17-2. The Cubs had 10 extra-base hits, including Derrek Lee’s NL-leading 18th homer. Lee also had two doubles and a run-scoring single.

Braves 7, Rangers 2

ARLINGTON, Texas – Rookie Kelly Johnson hit his first major league homer and 46-year-old Julio Franco also connected in a five-run fifth inning to help the Atlanta Braves beat the Texas Rangers 7-2 on Tuesday night.

Jorge Sosa (3-0) allowed two runs and five hits in five innings in his first start of the season after 21 relief appearances. He struck out seven and walked none.

Advertisement

Royals 3, Dodgers 2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Rookie Shane Costa’s first major league home run snapped a fifth-inning tie and led the Royals past Los Angeles 3-2 Tuesday night in the Dodgers’ first game in Kansas City.

David DeJesus hit a two-run homer in the first for the Royals, who improved to 9-4 under new manager Buddy Bell. They were 8-25 when Tony Pena resigned on May 10.

Hee-Seop Choi homered in the first inning for the Dodgers, giving him four home runs in five at-bats. The first baseman has hit seven homers in his last four games, including a career-best three in his previous game on Sunday.

D-backs 10, White Sox 4

CHICAGO – Troy Glaus homered and drove in four runs, Shawn Green hit a two-run shot and the Arizona Diamondbacks routed the Chicago White Sox for the second straight game, winning 10-4 Tuesday night.

Glaus was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and his 16th home run, while Green, the reigning National League Player of the Week, was 2-for-4.

Twins 4, Giants 3

MINNEAPOLIS – Shannon Stewart’s two-out RBI single in the 11th inning lifted the Minnesota Twins to a 4-3 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night.

Michael Cuddyer led off the 11th with a broken-bat single off Jeff Fassero and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Brent Abernathy.

Tigers 8, Padres 4

DETROIT – Craig Monroe’s pop fly was misplayed for two runs in the sixth inning, lifting the Detroit Tigers over the San Diego Padres 8-4 on Tuesday night.

With the score tied 3-3, Detroit had two men on base with two outs when Monroe popped to left field. Ryan Klesko misjudged the ball and it fell safely, allowing Placido Polanco and Rondell White to score. Polanco led off with a single and White walked.

Fernando Rodney (1-0) got the win. He allowed a run and two hits in an inning of relief. Jake Peavy (5-2) took the loss, allowing three earned runs and four hits in six innings.

Copy the Story Link

Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.