American League Roundup : Bunt Single Breaks Up Leibrandt’s No-Hitter as Brewers Lose Again

Charlie Leibrandt pitched a one-hitter and he’s not happy about it.

Leibrandt allowed only a bunt single to Bill Schroeder in the sixth inning as the Kansas City Royals routed the Milwaukee Brewers, 13-0, Saturday night, and afterward Schroeder was apologetic.

“That’s a horrible way to lose a no-hitter, but we weren’t thinking along those lines,” Schroeder said. “We were just trying to get back in the ball game. Later in the game, I probably wouldn’t have thought about doing it.

“He was dazzling us. I thought my best opportunity to get on base was to do that.”

Leibrandt (5-2) carried a 6-0 lead and a perfect game into the sixth. With one out and third baseman Kevin Seitzer playing behind the bag, Schroeder laid down a bunt and easily beat it out.

Leibrandt, who struck out six and walked one, was hesitant to say Schroeder violated baseball etiquette, but he didn’t seem pleased.

“I don’t really want to comment on that,” Leibrandt said after dealing the Brewers their 10th straight defeat. “We’re up, 6-0. A big guy like him, he’s going to have to answer those questions. I don’t want to say anything about it.

“Well, there’s such a thing as baseball etiquette. Maybe that shouldn’t be done. I don’t know. It was still early in the game.”

Schroeder was booed when he came to bat in the eighth and the crowd cheered when he struck out.

Frank White drove in four runs with three doubles as the Western Division-leading Royals won their sixth straight home game.

Seitzer hit a two-run homer and Bo Jackson added a two-run triple.

Detroit 5, Cleveland 3--Lou Whitaker started a four-run first inning with his third home run in four at-bats and Jack Morris pitched a five-hitter with 11 strikeouts as the Tigers downed the Indians at Detroit.

Morris (4-2), bothered by a stiff neck since the beginning of May, pitched his third complete game despite allowing three home runs. Chris Bando connected in the third, Pat Tabler in the sixth and Tony Bernazard in the eighth.

Whitaker had four home runs in seven at-bats in a three-game span. It was the second time this season and 20th time in his career he has homered to open a game.

Phil Niekro (2-3) got two quick outs after Whitaker’s homer, but Pat Sheridan, Billy Bean and Tom Brookens reached him for run-scoring singles.

Seattle 10, New York 8--Ken Phelps drove in five runs with a pair of homers, including a three-run shot in the decisive seventh inning, to power the Mariners past the Yankees at Seattle.

After Phelps’ 12th homer, off Cecilio Guante (3-2) in the seventh, Jim Presley hit his seventh.

Steve Shields (1-0) picked up his first American League victory in relief.

The Mariners scored four runs in the first off Rick Rhoden, highlighted by Phelps’ two-run homer. The Yankees got solo home runs by Gary Ward and Joel Skinner off Scott Bankhead in the fourth.

Seattle led, 6-3, but the Yankees scored five runs in the seventh, two on Dave Winfield’s pinch double.

Rickey Henderson stole his 31st consecutive base, leaving him one shy of the major league record shared by Willie Wilson and Julio Cruz.

Boston 6, Minnesota 1--Bill Buckner hit a three-run homer and Wade Boggs added a two-run shot as the Red Sox beat the Twins at Minneapolis.

Roger Clemens (4-4) scattered eight hits, striking out seven and walking three while pitching his third complete game of the season. The 1986 Cy Young Award winner beat Bert Blyleven (4-4), who yielded just three hits before Boston scored four times in the ninth.

Blyleven, who gave up a major-league record 50 home runs last year, has surrendered 15 this season. Boggs slugged his sixth home run in the first with Ed Romero aboard and Clemens held the 2-0 lead going into the ninth.

Jeff Reardon replaced Blyleven in the ninth one run already in and yielded Buckner’s homer.

Minnesota scored on Gary Gaetti’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the ninth.

Oakland 10, Toronto 3--Mark McGwire and Mickey Tettleton hit three-run homers to power the A’s past the Blue Jays at Oakland.

Moose Haas (1-0) allowed nine hits in five innings and earned his first victory in exactly one year. Haas, who suffered from bursitis in his right shoulder and made only two starts the second half of last season, last won May 16, 1986, against Baltimore.

Toronto scored all its runs against Haas in the fourth on consecutive home runs by George Bell and Jesse Barfield, and a run-scoring single by Ernie Whitt.

The A’s jumped on Jimmy Key (5-3) for 6 runs and 11 hits in 3 innings. It was the first time in nine starts this season that Key failed to reach the seventh inning.

Texas 7, Chicago 2--Larry Parrish’s tie-breaking, two-run single triggered a five-run seventh inning that carried the Rangers past the White Sox at Chicago.

The Rangers took a 2-0 lead on run scoring singles by Steve Buechele in the second and Scott Fletcher in the fifth.

Chicago pulled even on home runs by Daryl Boston and Gary Redus in the sixth.