American League Roundup : Henderson Has 3 Hits as A’s Beat Blue Jays

Rickey Henderson had three hits and drove in two runs as the Oakland Athletics beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-3, Sunday in Oakland.

Henderson, who rejoined the A’s Wednesday in a trade with the New York Yankees, was on base five times with three singles and two walks. He also scored two runs and stole three bases.

In four games since returning to Oakland, Henderson has gone 7 for 16, with five walks, six runs scored, a home run and three runs batted in.

“I’m a lot more relaxed. It’s great to play,” Henderson said. “Since I’ve been back, the fans have welcomed me.”

Stan Javier hit the first homer by an Oakland right fielder this season. Jose Canseco, who hit 42 homers last season, has been on the disabled list with a wrist injury.

Storm Davis (6-3) retired 14 consecutive batters after Toronto scored two runs on five hits in the first three innings. Davis, who gave up six hits in seven innings, has not lost a start since May 5 and is 4-0 in five starts after returning from the disabled list--where he had been placed with a strained left hamstring--June 10.

Against Toronto, Davis is 4-0 with a 1.91 earned-run average over the last two seasons.

Rick Honeycutt pitched the final two innings for his eighth save after Davis gave up a leadoff single in the eighth to Manny Lee.

Minnesota 7, Boston 0--Allan Anderson yielded six hits in eight innings and Gary Gaetti stole home and drove in a run to help the Twins to beat the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Anderson (9-4), who led the American League with a 2.45 ERA in 1988, pitched himself out of jams in the fourth and fifth innings. Jeff Reardon got the final three outs, giving up one hit.

“This game is luck,” said Anderson, who was 0-2 in three previous starts against the Red Sox. “I knew those guys have had my number. I just wanted to go out and throw strikes and change speeds.”

The Twins, earning a split of a four-game series, had 14 hits to beat Mike Boddicker (4-7).

New York 5, Kansas City 4--Steve Balboni hit a two-run homer, and Don Slaught’s run-scoring single capped a three-run sixth inning as the Yankees beat the Royals at Kansas City.

Andy Hawkins (8-8) gave up seven hits and four runs in 6 1/3 innings. Newcomer Eric Plunk relieved with one out and a run home in the seventh and ended the threat. Dave Righetti pitched the final 1 2/3 innings for his 13th save, giving up one hit.

Jim Eisenreich went 0 for 4, snapping a 13-game hitting streak.

Milwaukee 3, Chicago 1--Rookie Jaime Navarro gave up one run in 7 1/3 innings in his second major league start, and the Brewers defeated the White Sox at Milwaukee.

Navarro (1-0) yielded nine hits and struck out seven. Dan Plesac finished for his 18th save in 23 opportunities.

“I’ve learned a lot of things and that I have to throw a lot of strikes to be a more consistent pitcher,” Navarro said. “The more you throw strikes, the more your team will be closer and the better chance you have to win the game.

The Brewers beat Jerry Reuss (7-3) for the first time in the 40-year-old left-hander’s career. He was 4-0 against the Brewers before Sunday, including a shutout earlier this season. Reuss pitched seven innings and gave up eight hits.

Seattle 5, Detroit 3--An obstruction call on Tiger first baseman Dave Bergman led to three unearned runs in the second inning, and the Mariners won at Seattle.

The Mariners scored four runs in the second, helped by Bergman’s error, off David Palmer (0-3).

Omar Vizquel hit a run-scoring single that enabled Scott Bradley to reach third base. Harold Reynolds then hit a grounder to first base that Bergman fielded and ran across the infield chasing Bradley back to third. Bergman threw to third base but was called for obstructing the runner’s progress, allowing Bradley to score.

“Bradley ran for home on contact, but the ball took a nice hop for Bergman to nail him,” Seattle first-base coach Rusty Kuntz said. “Bradley did the right thing by getting in a rundown, and the one-in-a-million thing happened--he was able to force the interference call.”