American League Roundup : Playing to Big Audience Doesn’t Faze Orioles in Victory Over Athletics

It has been awhile since a national audience saw the Baltimore Orioles flying high.

Phil Bradley drove in three runs with a pair of doubles as the Orioles beat the Oakland Athletics, 4-2, Saturday at Baltimore in their first national television appearance in a year and the first from Memorial Stadium in almost three years.

TV viewers didn’t get to see the end of the game, however. When the contest was halted by rain in the bottom of the seventh inning, NBC switched to the Angels-Detroit Tigers game (which was seen in Southern California) and didn’t return to Baltimore when that game resumed 38 minutes later.

“I started out the day looking to see where the cameras were,” said Oriole reliever Gregg Olson, who pitched the final 1 2/3 innings for his eighth save.

“But by the time I went out to warm up, it was just like a regular game. They were already off the air, but life goes on.”

It was the first national television appearance for the Orioles since last June, when they played the Yankees in New York. The last national telecast from Memorial Stadium since Aug. 23, 1986.

Bradley has eight hits in his last 20 at-bats for the Orioles, who are leading the American League East after finishing with the worst record in the majors last season.

Bradley doubled home a run in the third and doubled home two more in the fourth, when Mike Devereaux added a run-scoring single.

Jose Bautista (3-4), pitching for the first time in four weeks after recovering from back problems, went six innings and earned the win. Bautista allowed five hits and two runs, struck out two and walked one.

Bautista gave up a two-run home run to Mark McGwire, his 14th homer of the season, in the first inning but allowed only one hit after the second inning.

Oakland starter Matt Young took the loss in his first major league appearance since Sept. 19, 1987, when he was with the Dodgers. Young, who missed all of last season because of arm troubles, gave up three runs in 3 2/3 innings.

New York 5, Texas 3--Dave Eiland, promoted to the majors earlier in the day, pitched seven strong innings, and the Yankees defeated the Rangers at New York.

Steve Sax had three hits, including a two-run single that broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth inning. Steve Balboni added a two-run homer for the Yankees, who totaled 13 hits.

Eiland, 22, recalled from triple-A Columbus, gave up seven hits, walked four and struck out three.

Geno Petralli singled home the tying run in the sixth, but Texas left the bases loaded when Eiland struck out Steve Buechele.

Mike Jeffcoat (2-1) gave up four runs on 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Boston 6, Chicago 1--Dwight Evans hit a grand slam, and Nick Esasky added a two-run homer as the Red Sox routed the White Sox behind Mike Smithson at Boston.

Evans hit his 10th homer, Boston’s first in seven games, off Melido Perez (3-9) in the third inning. It was his second slam this season and the fifth of his career. He hit one against Oakland May 19.

In the fifth, Wade Boggs doubled, and Esasky hit his 10th homer.

Smithson (3-4) allowed four hits, walked three and had three strikeouts in seven innings.

Minnesota 7, Milwaukee 3--Gary Gaetti drove in four runs, and the Twins broke a 3-3 tie with four runs in the eighth inning to defeat the Brewers at Minneapolis.

It was the Twins’ first victory in seven games against the Brewers this season.

Dan Gladden’s run-scoring single off Mark Knudson (2-2) in the eighth broke the tie. After Gaetti hit a sacrifice fly, Gene Larkin and Carmen Castillo added RBI singles.

Lee Tunnell (1-0), the third of five Minnesota pitchers, worked the eighth.

Kirby Puckett started Twin rallies in the first and seventh innings with two doubles, increasing his total to 25, tops in the majors. Gaetti hit his 10th home run after Puckett’s double in the seventh.

Glenn Braggs hit his 11th homer for Milwaukee.

Toronto 3, Seattle 2--At Toronto, Kelly Gruber hit a run-scoring single in the ninth and the Blue Jays got their second consecutive victory against Mariner relief ace Mike Schooler.

Schooler entered the series with 14 saves in 15 opportunities but has failed to hold one-run leads on consecutive days.

Mike Jackson (2-1) walked Manny Lee and Nelson Liriano with one out, and the Mariners brought in Schooler. He struck out Junior Felix, but Tony Fernandez singled to left field to tie the game, and Gruber singled home Liriano.

Duane Ward (4-7) got the win although his wild pitch on a third strike allowed Seattle to take a 2-1 lead in the top of the ninth.

Cleveland 4, Kansas City 3--Joe Carter drove in four runs with a home run and a single, and Scott Bailes won his first start of the season as the Indians edged the Royals at Cleveland.

In getting his first win as a starter since last August, Bailes (2-2) worked eight innings, allowing three runs on six hits. Doug Jones pitched the ninth inning for his 15th save in 18 opportunities.

Bailes walked one, struck out two and did not allow a runner past first after the second inning.

Carter hit a two-run homer in the first and a two-run single in the third off Mark Gubicza (6-5), who lost for the first time since May 21.

Kansas City scored three runs in the second, two on the first home run by rookie Rey Palacios.