Baseball Roundup : Yankees Win Despite 3 Beniquez Homers

Juan Beniquez of the Baltimore Orioles hit three solo home runs against the New York Yankees Thursday night at Baltimore, then grounded out in the ninth inning with a man on second, and the Yankees won, 7-5.

Beniquez, Baltimore’s designated hitter, got his first two homers off New York starter Alfonso Pulido. In the sixth, after Eddie Murray’s two-run home run finished Pulido, Beniquez greeted reliever Brian Fisher with a homer into the left-field bleachers that tied the game, 5-5.

But in the seventh, Rickey Henderson and Don Mattingly hit consecutive doubles off Tippy Martinez (0-2) to give the Yankees a 6-5 lead, and New York added a run in the ninth on an RBI single by Dave Winfield. Mattingly also hit a two-run homer in the first.

In the bottom of the seventh, Beniquez popped out to first base.

The game was delayed 33 minutes by rain in the fourth, following the second homer by Beniquez.

Beniquez, who entered the game with only one homer this season, became the second Oriole to hit three homers in a game this week. Lee Lacy hit three Sunday, also against New York, but at Yankee Stadium. The Orioles won that game, 18-9.

Toronto 9, Detroit 0--Kelly Gruber hit a three-run, inside-the-park homer that was lost in a dense fog, and Cliff Johnson and Jesse Barfield also homered in a game at Toronto called in the bottom of the seventh inning because of rain and fog.

With two out in the seventh, Gruber hit a routine fly ball to center that disappeared into a thick fog. Center fielder Pat Sheridan did not make a move until the ball landed behind him.

Right fielder Kirk Gibson retrieved the ball at the fence in right-center, but Gruber had already crossed the plate for his third home run of the season. Gruber, breaking an 0-for-26 slump, went 3 for 4.

Plate umpire Dave Phillips waved the players off the field after Gruber’s homer, and the game was called 35 minutes later when it started to rain.

Chicago 8, Seattle 4--Carlton Fisk doubled home two runs, and Harold Baines hit the next pitch for a two-run homer in a five-run ninth inning as the White Sox won at Seattle. Joe Cowley (3-3) gave up six hits and no walks in eight innings to earn the victory.

Houston 4, San Francisco 1--Rookie Manny Hernandez won his first major-league game, and Mark Bailey hit a two-run homer at Houston as the Astros increased their lead over the Giants in the National League West to three games.