Baseball Roundup : Indians’ Swindell Holds Chicago Hitless Until 7th in 1-0 Win

Greg Swindell pitched 6 no-hit innings en route to his second two-hitter of the season, and Cory Snyder hit a home run with one out in the ninth inning Thursday night, enabling the Indians to complete a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox with a 1-0 victory at Cleveland.

Swindell (8-1) struck out nine and walked two. He faced 31 batters in completing his fourth game. It was Cleveland’s major league-leading 15th complete game. Swindell previously had a two-hitter May 2 against the Angels. Kenny Williams collected both White Sox hits off the left-hander.

Bobby Thigpen (1-4) replaced starter Dave LaPoint to begin the ninth for Chicago and struck out Brook Jacoby. Snyder followed, lining a 1-2 pitch to left field for his eighth homer and fourth game-winning hit.

Swindell walked former Indian Dave Gallagher on a 3-2 count with one out in the Chicago first. The left-hander retired the next 18 batters, 7 on strikeouts, before Williams snapped his 0-for-23 streak by lining a 1-2 pitch to left for a clean single with one out in the sixth.

Kansas City 14, Minnesota 1--Bill Buckner hit two homers, and Kurt Stillwell drove in four runs to pace an 18-hit attack by the Royals at Minneapolis.

Charlie Leibrandt (2-6) scattered three hits in six innings to gain his first victory since April 10. Twin starter Les Straker (1-2) lasted only one-third of an inning, giving up four runs.

Kansas City tied a club record with three homers in the third inning to boost its margin to 10-1. Buckner, picked up on waivers last week, started it with his first homer of the year. Bo Jackson walked and came around on singles by Scotti Madison and Brad Wellman.

Stillwell then connected for his fifth homer of the year, and third in three days, to drive in three runs. George Brett hit his eighth homer.

New York Mets 9, San Diego 4--Keith Hernandez got 3 of the Mets’ season-high 16 hits at San Diego, and pitcher Ron Darling’s single sparked a four-run seventh inning as New York posted its fourth straight victory.

Darling (4-3) gave up three runs on five hits in eight innings. He had allowed three hits in each of his two previous starts. Darling had two singles off Ed Whitson (3-3) and scored on Wally Backman’s single for a 3-2 lead in the seventh.

The Padres absorbed their fourth consecutive loss. It was the first time since July 14-17, 1973, that San Diego was swept in a four-game series at home.

“They’re just waiting around to get beat,” Padre Manager Larry Bowa said. “I don’t know what’s going on in their minds. You would think they’d be angry about the way things are going. If they’re not, then there’s something wrong with them.”

St. Louis 5, Chicago Cubs 1--Rookie Cris Carpenter pitched a four-hitter, and Bob Horner hit a two-run single to lead the Cardinals to a sweep of their three-game series over the Cubs at Chicago.

Carpenter (1-0), making his second start since his major league debut May 14 in Atlanta, struck out five and walked two.

Chicago’s Al Nipper (0-2) gave up 5 runs on 8 hits. He walked 3 and struck out 2 in 6 innings.

The Cardinals took a 3-0 lead in the first. Horner hit a bases-loaded single, scoring Ozzie Smith and Willie McGee. Chicago third baseman Vance Law then allowed Tony Pena’s grounder to slip under his legs, sending home Tom Brunansky. Brunansky had walked and gone to third on center fielder Dave Martinez’s misplay of Horner’s line drive up the middle.

The Cardinals scored two more runs in the seventh. Brunansky singled in Smith, who had reached base on an error and advanced to third on a single by McGee. Pena singled home McGee for his second RBI of the day.

The Cubs scored their only run in the sixth when Rafael Palmeiro singled and Jody Davis doubled.