Say Hey! Cardinals’ McGwire Homers Again

Four games, four home runs for Mark McGwire, and if comparisons to Roger Maris are a bit premature--well, more than a bit premature--those to Willie Mays are apt.

McGwire’s towering three-run homer in the sixth inning Saturday helped the Cardinals beat San Diego, 8-6, at St. Louis and brought him even with Mays for home runs to start a season.

Mays was 39 when he homered in the San Francisco Giants’ first four games in 1971. He finished that season with 18 homers.

“There’s somebody always bringing up negative stuff,” McGwire groused when informed of those tidbits. “Thanks a lot. Why would you even want to bring that up?”

Perhaps because posterity needs perspective.

McGwire has 12 runs batted in, all on home runs, and has homered in six consecutive games, dating to last season, when he fell only three short of Maris’ record of 61 homers, set in 1961.

“He’s unbelievable,” Cardinal catcher Tom Lampkin said. “He’s got a chance to hit the ball out of the park every time he walks up to the plate.”

McGwire didn’t put much stock in his fast start.

“I don’t look at it that way, and I don’t talk about it that way,” he said. “I just go up there and look for the ball and try to hit it. You’ve got to simplify things.”

The Cardinals led, 3-2, heading into the sixth inning when Royce Clayton and Delino DeShields singled off Don Wengert, who played with McGwire for two seasons in Oakland. McGwire took two inside pitches and had a swinging strike before redirecting a slider 419 feet over the center-field wall.

John Mabry added a sacrifice fly and Lampkin had an RBI double to cap a five-run inning that put the Cardinals ahead, 8-2.

Kent Mercker, making his debut for St. Louis after signing as a free agent in the off-season, gave up two runs on four hits in six innings.

Chicago 3, Montreal 1--Terry Mulholland, getting a second chance with the Cubs, gave up four hits and an unearned run in 5 2/3 innings in winning at Chicago.

Mulholland was the opening-day starter for the Cubs a year ago, when they began the season with an 0-14 record, and he was waived in August, then picked up by the Giants. He was given a minor league contract by Chicago and pitched himself back into the rotation in spring training.

Saturday’s win was his first since July 4, 1997.

Sammy Sosa, the Cubs’ home run leader the past five years, hit a solo homer to right in the bottom of the third inning off Marc Valdes to give Chicago a 2-1 lead.

The Cubs made it 3-1 in the eighth on singles by Mickey Morandini and Mark Grace and an RBI grounder by Henry Rodriguez.

After Mulholland left, Cub relievers Marc Pisciotta, Terry Adams and Rod Beck combined to give up one hit the final 3 1/3 innings. Beck, another of Chicago’s newcomers, picked up his third consecutive save with a hitless ninth.

New York 7, Pittsburgh 6--Rich Becker’s single over a drawn-in outfield in the 13th inning at New York gave the Mets their third win in their final at-bat this season.

New York, which scored once in the eighth inning and three times in the ninth to tie it, 6-6, has played four consecutive one-run games to start the season, with two going to extra innings.

The Mets tied it in the ninth inning on John Olerud’s two-run double and Butch Huskey’s RBI groundout.

Becker, who went three for five with a home run, two walks and three RBIs, also made a diving catch to save two runs in the second inning and threw out a runner at the plate in the first.

Milwaukee 6, Florida 2--Jeff Juden pitched six strong innings and the Brewers pounded out 15 hits at Miami to hand Florida its fourth consecutive loss.

Juden, who gave up six hits and two runs in his debut with the Brewers, improved to 4-0 lifetime against the Marlins with an earned-run average of 3.15. He was 0-4 with a 5.96 ERA in spring training.

The Marlins, who will receive their World Series championship rings before today’s game, remained winless since their opening-day victory against Chicago.

Colorado 5, Houston 3--Ellis Burks and Dante Bichette hit run-scoring doubles in a four-run fifth inning for the Rockies at Houston.

Colorado trailed, 2-1, going into the fifth inning. Burks and Mike Lansing doubled off Sean Bergman (0-1) to tie the score, Larry Walker was hit by a pitch and Bichette hit a go-ahead double.

Vinny Castilla’s infield bouncer was mishandled by Bergman for an error, allowing Walker to score from third base. Todd Helton’s single chased Bergman, who was making his Houston debut after coming over in a trade with San Diego.

Mark Thompson (1-0) gave up three runs and six hits in five innings. Jerry DiPoto pitched a perfect ninth for his second save.

Atlanta 5, Philadelphia 4--Dennis Martinez, 42, won for the first time since April 14, pitching two innings and giving up one run for the Braves at Atlanta. He struck out four.

Martinez moved within one victory of Juan Marichal’s record for victories by a Latin American pitcher. He is 242-187.

Philadelphia wasted a 4-1 lead in the eighth inning when the Braves scored four runs on only two hits.

Billy Brewer (0-1) walked pinch-hitter Andruw Jones, and singles by Danny Bautista and Keith Lockhart loaded the bases.

Chipper Jones walked, forcing in a run, and Mark Leiter relieved, only to hit Andres Galarraga with a pitch, pulling the Braves to 4-3. Sacrifice flies by Ryan Klesko and Javy Lopez put Atlanta ahead.