National League Roundup : Bonds Gets Record, but Pirates Fall Short, 6-4

When Barry Bonds connected for a pinch three-run home run in the ninth inning Wednesday night at Pittsburgh, it was too late to avert the Pirates’ loss to the San Francisco Giants, but it did give the Bonds family a record.

Bonds’ home run was his 11th this season and the 76th of his brief career, enabling him and his father, Bobby Bonds, to set a father-son home run record. Bobby, who spent most of his career with the Giants, and Barry have combined for 408 home runs.

They broke the record of 407, held jointly by the Berras, Dale and Yogi, and the Bells, Gus and Buddy. Buddy recently retired, so Barry figures to add considerably to the record before he is finished.

But the player who is hitting home runs at a faster clip than anyone in the majors this season is Kevin Mitchell, who is helping to keep the Giants in first place in the National League West.

Mitchell, taking treatments and medicine for a severe knee problem, hit his 28th home run as the Giants held off the Pirates’ late rally and won, 6-4. With the victory, the Giants still lead the Houston Astros by 1 1/2 games.

Manager Roger Craig’s ailing pitching staff received a big boost from Trevor Wilson, a 23-year-old left-hander.

Wilson, brought up in the middle of last month from Phoenix of the Pacific Coast League, held the Pirates to two hits in seven innings and earned his first victory in the majors. Wilson, who has batted only six times this season, also delivered a run-scoring single in the second inning.

Then, Mitchell, who learned last week that he might have to miss a game occasionally but won’t need surgery, put the Giants ahead for good in the third inning. The home run gave him 76 runs batted in. He is only four RBIs under his career high. His previous best in home runs was 22 in 1987.

Mitchell might be chasing Roger Maris’ single-season home run record if he played the Pirates a few more times. He already has six home runs and is batting .360 against Pittsburgh this season.

Mitchell threatened to charge the mound after Bob Walk hit him with a pitch in the first inning. Instead, he got even with the home run the next time around.

“If I was the same person I used to be,” Mitchell said, “I would have charged the mound. But I’ve matured and I decided to try to get him at the plate. I really enjoyed doing it.”

Barry Bonds said he would have enjoyed the record more if the home run had won the game.

Wilson admitted that when he took the mound he was thinking about his first victory. But after the Pirates loaded the bases with nobody out in the first, he had other thoughts.

“All of a sudden, I figured I’d better get out of the inning, or I’d be gone,” he said. “I was happy to get out with the one run.”

Montreal 7, Atlanta 5--It was not the kind of performance the Expos have learned to expect from him, but Dennis Martinez remains their foremost good-luck charm.

The Expos had to rally from a four-run deficit at Atlanta to give Martinez his eighth victory in a row.

Martinez allowed nine hits in five innings. He is 9-1. In addition, the Expos have won four other games when he started but received no decision.

Hubie Brooks’ sacrifice fly in the sixth drove in what proved to be the decisive run for the leaders of the East.

Rex Hudler and Tim Wallach had home runs for the Expos, and Lonnie Smith hit his 12th for the Braves.

Philadelphia 3, Cincinnati 2--First, the Reds tried to kick away this game at Philadelphia. When that didn’t work, they managed to let it bounce away in the 10th inning.

Steve Jeltz opened the 10th with a single off John Franco and stole second while Bob Dernier was striking out. Jeltz stopped at third base when Len Dykstra singled to right field.

Right fielder Paul O’Neill fumbled the ball twice, then thinking that Jeltz had scored the winning run, kicked the ball toward first base. Dykstra took second, and Tommy Herr was walked intentionally.

On the second pitch to Von Hayes, the ball bounced away from catcher Jeff Reed, and Jeltz finally scored.

“It was a screwball that broke the other way,” Reed explained. “I jabbed at it but couldn’t make the play.”

It was the Reds’ sixth loss in their last eight games.

Chicago 5, San Diego 3--Mark Grace hit a two-run home run and three doubles in Chicago to lead the Cubs to their sixth victory in seven games against the Padres.

For Grace, who was sidelined earlier because of an injury, it was his first home run since April 29.

Scott Sanderson (8-6) was the winner but lasted only five innings after being hit on the pitching arm by a Jack Clark line drive.

Houston 6, New York 5--Danny Darwin pitched well in relief at Houston to improve his record to 8-2, and Billy Hatcher had three hits.

The Astros hit Ron Darling hard, getting six runs and 11 hits in 4 2/3 innings, but Bob Knepper, despite a 5-0 lead, couldn’t make it through five for Houston.

Darwin gave up two hits in three innings, striking out four and walking none. He also drove in the Astros’ final run with a sacrifice fly.