American League Roundup : Record 3 Grand Slams as Rangers Top Orioles

The Orioles won the record-breaking battle of the grand slams Wednesday night at Baltimore, 2-1, but in one of the wildest games of the season, the Texas Rangers outscored the Orioles, 13-11.

The three grand slams were a major league record. The Orioles’ bases-loaded home runs were both hit in the fourth inning, the first by Larry Sheets and the other by Jim Dwyer, to tie a major league record. It was the fifth time a team has had two grand slams in an inning. The last time was in 1980, when Milwaukee’s Cecil Cooper and Don Money did it.

In addition to the 24 runs, there were 26 hits, 19 of them by the Rangers.

The Rangers, who blew a 6-0 lead, battled back from an 11-6 deficit by scoring six times in the eighth inning to win it. Larry Parrish climaxed the uprising with a two-run double. It enabled the Rangers to pull within 1 1/2 games of the Angels in the West and dropped the Orioles 3 1/2 behind the Boston Red Sox in the East.

Toby Harrah’s grand slam in the second inning helped the Rangers jump off to their 6-0 lead. Bobby Witt was working on a no-hitter going into the fourth. But he walked the bases full before Sheets got the first Oriole hit, his 13th home run. It was the third home run in the last three games for Sheets.

Tom O’Malley singled and Jeff Russell relieved Witt. With two out Russell walked Rick Dempsey and Fred Lynn. An error brought in the fifth run and Dwyer followed with his first grand slam. Dwyer has 29 runs batted in this season and 15 have come in the last seven games.

Lee Lacy hit a two-run home run in the sixth to give the Orioles a five-run cushion. Ordinarily, the Orioles, with bullpen ace Don Aase, don’t blow a five-run lead. But Aase, who has a tender elbow, injured his back earlier in the day picking up his son. So, the Orioles called on Rich Bordi.

Bordi gave up six hits and six runs in the eighth to lose it. Steve Buechele opened the inning with a home run and later Pete O’Brien hammered a three-run home run.

Mitch Williams (8-3) pitched only one inning to earn the victory. Dale Mohorcic pitched the last two innings and earned his fourth save.

Although they only had seven hits, the Orioles were issued 10 walks by Ranger pitchers.

The start of the game was delayed more than an hour because of rain. Once play was started, it rained long balls.

Boston 9, Chicago 0--After all the things that have gone wrong for the Red Sox in the last three weeks, there was reason for rejoicing in Boston.

In the first place, Bruce Hurst, finally exhibiting his best form for the first time since he pulled a groin muscle May 31, pitched a three-hitter. In improving his record to 7-5, the left-hander threw only 98 pitches, 65 of them strikes.

Then, too, in a way of celebrating Manager John McNamara’s new two-year contract, a revamped lineup produced 15 hits, their biggest offensive outburst in six weeks.

In the new lineup Wade Boggs moved into the lead-off spot and Marty Barrett dropped into the No. 2 position. Boggs walked in the first and Barrett followed with a home run.

Boggs went 2 for 2 and scored three times and Barrett had three hits. Boggs regained the batting lead over Don Mattingly of the Yankees. Boggs is hitting .3454 to Mattingly’s .3446.

McNamara said he would go with the same lineup against Detroit Friday. Another switch dropped Bill Buckner from third to sixth and the veteran hit a bases-loaded double in the second inning.

New York 5, Milwaukee 3--Dave Winfield broke out of a slump at New York just in time to lead the Yankees to one of their infrequent wins over a left-hander.

Winfield had gone 3 for 20 in the previous five games, but he had a home run and two singles to lead the assault on Juan Nieves (10-5).

Ron Guidry (6-9) gave up seven hits and struck out seven in 7 innings to win his second in a row.

“I just went back to throwing hard stuff,” Guidry said. “Early in the season I threw too much off-speed.”

Toronto 8, Kansas City 0--The Royals couldn’t prevent Jimmy Key from pitching his third shutout in this game at Toronto, but a cramp in his left forearm did.

Key (10-7) gave up just four hits, but had to leave after seven innings.

The Blue Jays broke a scoreless tie with five runs in the fourth inning. Cecil Fielder hit a bases-loaded single in the inning and Garth Iorg drove in two runs with a bloop double.

“I wanted to go out for the eighth,” Key said, “but the consensus in the dugout was that it wasn’t worth taking a chance.”

Oakland 7, Seattle 5--Jose Canseco doubled home Alfredo Griffin to start a two-run ninth-inning rally at Seattle.

With the score tied, 5-5, Griffin opened the ninth off loser Matt Young (7-5) with an infield single and went to second on Harold Reynolds’ throwing error. Canseco then greeted reliever Pete Ladd with a double into the right-field corner to score Griffin.

Dave Kingman flied to center, moving Canseco to third, from where he scored on Carney Lansford’s single to left.