AMERICAN LEAGUE ROUNDUP : He’s Starting to Look Like Righetti of Old

Dave Righetti sees his latest comeback as a can’t-lose situation.

“If I get clobbered, everybody expects it. If I do good, then I’m ahead of the game,” Righetti, 36, said Sunday after continuing his remarkable rebirth as a starter, beating the Cleveland Indians, 5-1, and giving the Chicago White Sox their first victory in seven games at Jacobs Field.

With a steady wind blowing in from right-center field, Righetti (3-0) limited baseball’s best-hitting team to one run and six hits in five-plus innings. He struck out five and walked one.

The White Sox are using Righetti exclusively as a starter for the first time since the New York Yankees converted him to a reliever in 1984.

“It’s hard to put into words. It’s hard to measure how much winning at this age means to me,” Righetti said. “There’s no question I feel a lot of excitement. . . . I really don’t know how all this is going to turn out for me.”

Chicago stopped its own three-game losing streak and the Indians’ four-game winning streak.

Dennis Martinez (9-2) took the loss.

Seattle 15, Oakland 8--Bill Krueger pitched well in place of the injured Randy Johnson (shoulder stiffness) and Mike Blowers hit another three-run homer as the Mariners matched their season high in runs for the second consecutive game.

Krueger (2-0) gave up two runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings.

Blowers has driven in 15 runs in four games.

Todd Stottlemyre (9-4) was the loser.

Detroit 6, New York 5--Derrick White’s bases-loaded infield single with two out in the 12th inning gave the Tigers a victory over the Yankees to avoid a three-game sweep at Detroit.

White’s hit--which his first RBI of the season--came after a hit batter, an error and an intentional walk loaded the bases with one out against Dave Eiland (1-1), the last of six Yankee pitchers.

Joe Boever (5-6), the last of six Tiger pitchers, got the win with two innings of scoreless relief.

Darryl Strawberry, hitting .444 in two games for New York, did not play.

Kansas City 11, Minnesota 1--Mark Gubicza (8-9) pitched a four-hitter, retiring 21 in a row at one point, to lead the Royals at Minneapolis.

The Royals hit a season-high five home runs and had 15 hits. Gary Gaetti’s 23rd and 24th home runs gave him five in six games. He has 12 hits, five homers and 10 RBIs in 31 at-bats this season against his former team.

Wally Joyner and Kevin Lockhart also hit solo homers and rookie Joe Nunnally added a two-run shot. Scott Klingenbeck (2-3) took the loss.

Boston 6, Toronto 4--John Valentin had three hits, drove in three runs and gave the Red Sox the lead with a two-run home run in the seventh inning in Toronto.

Vaughn Eshelman (4-2) pitched three scoreless innings for the win, Boston’s fourth in a row. Rick Aguilera got his 20th save despite loading the bases in the ninth.

Red Sox starter Zane Smith had to leave the game with one out in the second because of a strained muscle in his left rib cage.

Milwaukee 3, Baltimore 2--Kevin Seitzer singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning and the Brewers overcame a homer by Bobby Bonilla to beat the Orioles at Baltimore.

Mike Fetters pitched a perfect ninth for his 16th save.