AMERICAN LEAGUE ROUNDUP : McGwire, Eckersley Save Day for A’s Again

The Oakland Athletics have had two constants in their bid to stay in the race in the American League West:

Mark McGwire keeps hitting home runs and Dennis Eckersley keeps saving games.

They combined their talents again Wednesday at Seattle to lead the A’s to a 3-1 victory that kept them tied for first place with the Minnesota Twins.

McGwire, who walked with the bases loaded to drive in the go-ahead run Tuesday night, hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning to break a 1-1 tie. It was his major league-leading 27th.

Eckersley breaks a record with every outing. The bullpen star needed 20 pitches to retire the Mariners in the ninth for his 28th save. He has saved 32 in his last 32 opportunities carrying over to last season, and he saved all three games in the series sweep of the Mariners.

McGwire’s 427-foot drive over the center-field fence ruined the return of Mark Grant (0-1). Grant, who sat out last season because of right shoulder surgery, matched Mike Moore (8-7) until McGwire unloaded.

“It was a fastball,” said McGwire, who was only two for 11 in the series. “In fact, it was the only fastball I got over the plate in the entire series. I was kind of surprised it went out. People think the ball carries well here, but it doesn’t. There’s lot of dead air here.”

McGwire also made a big defensive play at first base in the bottom of the eighth. With a runner on first, Harold Reynolds hit a line drive and McGwire made a diving backhand catch to turn it into a double play.

“It was a big play,” McGwire said. “If that gets through, it’s runners on second and third with nobody out.”

It was Grant’s first start in the American League and his first in the majors since Aug. 11, 1990, when he was with Atlanta.

In the last two days, the A’s have put pitcher Dave Stewart and slugger Jose Canseco on the disabled list. Stewart has a sore elbow. Canseco has a sore shoulder and went on the list after hitting his 18th home run Tuesday night.

The loss marked the Mariners’ first game under the new Japanese-led ownership.

New York 7, Kansas City 6--Some players who hit game-winning home runs talk about how they were trying to only put the ball in play. Not Matt Nokes.

When Nokes hit a two-run pinch home run in the seventh inning at New York to climax the Yankees’ comeback from a six-run deficit, he was trying to hit a home run.

“That’s just what was on my mind,” he said after hitting a home run in his second game in a row. “When you come in late in the day, you have to go for the home run.”

Wally Joyner hit a three-run home run in the second inning as the Royals hammered Tim Leary for six runs in 1 2/3 innings. It was Leary’s first outing since being cleared of cheating allegations by Baltimore.

Toronto 3, Texas 2--After two nights at Toronto in which the teams combined for 44 runs, the pitchers took charge.

Although he didn’t get the victory, the Blue Jays’ Juan Guzman pitched another strong game. He gave up two runs and five hits and struck out nine in eight innings.

Todd Burns of the Rangers held a 2-1 lead until he faltered in the eighth, and Greg Myers doubled in the winning run in the 10th.

Baltimore 7, Milwaukee 4--Billy Ripken had four hits, including a home run, and drove in three runs at Baltimore to help Ben McDonald win for the first time in a month.

McDonald gave up all four runs and eight hits in six innings. Greg Olson, despite a one-hour rain delay, got his 21st save.

After getting the first two outs in the ninth, Olson had to outlast the rain. He needed only one pitch to get Pat Listach on a fly to end it.

“I really didn’t want a delay,” Olson said. “I was back in the clubhouse thinking about what could go wrong. I was thinking, “So what if you walk Listach? Then you’ve got (Kevin) Seitzer and (Paul) Molitor coming up.’ I finally had to tell myself to shut up.”

Ripken had gone six for 38 in the previous 14 games. However, Bill Wegman (7-6), who gave up the three-run home run, is one of Ripken’s favorites. Ripken is nine for 11 against Wegman.

Boston 6, Detroit 4--The Red Sox are winning in dramatic fashion these days at Boston.

Tuesday night, rookie Bob Zupcic hit a home run with the bases loaded in the ninth to bring the Red Sox from behind.

In this game, Tom Brunansky hit a bases-loaded double to climax a five-run seventh-inning rally.

Wade Boggs, hitless in 18 at-bats, shaved the mustache he had worn for three years and went two for three.

Chicago 8, Cleveland 5--Craig Grebeck went five for five with three doubles, two RBIs and scored two runs at Cleveland to lead the streaking White Sox.

Grebeck has been a key in the surge. He is hitting .462 in the last 11 games, and the White Sox have won nine of them.

“I think I’m kind of a streak hitter,” Grebeck said. “When I’m going good I can put a few hits together, but five hits? I wouldn’t go that far.”

Kirk McCaskill (6-6) went six innings for the victory. Bobby Thigpen, the fifth White Sox pitcher, went 1 2/3 innings for his 19th save.