Blue Jays Hit Jackpot in Las Vegas Victory

In a city known for slot machines and poker tables, the Toronto Blue Jays opened their season with three of a kind: home runs.

Major league baseball made its Las Vegas debut Monday night, and the Blue Jays defeated the Oakland Athletics, 9-6, behind home runs by John Olerud, Alex Gonzalez and Domingo Cedeno.

The A’s were forced out of the Oakland Coliseum this week because of uncompleted renovations for the Raiders, so they’ll play their first six games at Cashman Field. The game drew 7,294 to the 9,353-seat ballpark, the home of the triple-A Las Vegas Stars.

In one of the lighter moments before the game, an Elvis impersonator joked and chatted with some of the players and played to the crowd strumming a bat.

Erik Hanson got the victory in his Toronto debut, giving up three runs and four hits in seven innings with five strikeouts and four walks. Tony Castillo and Mike Timlin finished the five-hitter, with Timlin getting three outs for the save.

Carlos Reyes, making his 11th career start, was tagged for six runs and seven hits in five innings but struck out seven.

It marked the first major league game at a minor league ballpark since Sept. 3, 1957, when the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers, 3-2, in 12 innings at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, N.J.

Texas 5, Boston 3--Ken Hill outdueled Roger Clemens, and the Rangers defeated the Red Sox at Arlington, Texas.

Craig Worthington, starting because Dean Palmer has an injured hamstring, homered for the Rangers.

Hill gave up eight hits in 8 2/3 innings, struck out seven and walked none. After Tim Naehring homered in the ninth, Ed Vosberg finished for the save.

“I wanted to go out there in the ninth,” Hill said. “I told [Manager] Johnny Oates to come get me if somebody got on.”

Clemens, 3-1 in seven season openers before Monday, gave up four runs and three hits in five innings, struck out five and walked six.

“I was disappointed I got behind hitters,” Clemens said. “I expect that to get better. I had a flaw in my delivery, but I expect to iron it out. It felt like I was pitching uphill out there.”

Ivan Rodriguez put Texas ahead in the first when he walked and scored on Will Clark’s double. Worthington, who had only two homers last year, homered in the second.

Texas added two unearned runs in the fifth. Shortstop John Valentin booted a grounder by Rodriguez, Will Clark walked, Juan Gonzalez hit an RBI double, and Worthington followed with a sacrifice fly.

Minnesota 8, Detroit 6--With vision problems keeping Kirby Puckett out of the opening-day lineup for the first time since 1984, Matt Lawton took Puckett’s place and had two hits and two RBIs as the Twins won at Minneapolis.

Lawton’s two-out, two-run single in the third helped Brad Radke win the first opening-day start of his career. Radke had a career-high eight strikeouts and gave up five singles in six innings. He left with a 7-1 lead when Pat Mahomes came on to start the seventh.

“Mad Dog did a great job, and I told him to keep doing it,” Puckett said of Lawton. “We’ll have an expensive cheerleader on the bench if he does.”

Puckett arrived midway through the first inning, and he joked that he felt like Wally Pipp, the New York Yankee first baseman who never got his job back after Lou Gehrig pinch-hit for him on June 1, 1925.

“He was joking, saying, ‘Puck who? We don’t need me out there,’ ” Lawton said. “But he was the same old Puck. I just want to see him back as soon as possible.”

Loser Felipe Lira lasted only three innings, giving up six runs on eight hits as the Tigers lost the managerial debut of Buddy Bell, who replaced the retired Sparky Anderson.

Lira became the first native of Venezuela in major league history to start on opening day.

Dave Hollins had two hits, scored two runs and drove in two in his Minnesota debut.