Yankees Go 50 Above .500 Mark

The Seattle Mariners have a superstar chasing Roger Maris and a sweet-swinging shortstop chasing 40-40 in home runs and stolen bases. They would give it all up to be chasing what the New York Yankees are after.

With a 5-2 victory over the Mariners on Saturday at Seattle, the Yankees moved 50 games over .500 (77-27) and tied the 1902 Pittsburgh Pirates for the best 104-game record of the 20th century.

David Wells (13-2) won his sixth consecutive decision with a complete game and the Yankees’ own sweet-swinging shortstop, Derek Jeter, provided the go-ahead home run for the Yankees, who are chasing a mark set in 1927--the team record of 66 games above .500.

“It’s a significant achievement and it’s something we’re well aware of,” said today’s starter, David Cone, who was filling in for an incommunicado Wells. “It’s our job as professionals to keep on an even keel.

“The good side is that we’ve had tremendous experiences the last few years,” Cone said. “We’ve suffered tremendous losses in the playoffs--one here in ’95 and one last year--and also won a World Series. This team has tremendous perspective.”

The Yankees are 15 games ahead of Boston in the AL East, but that comfort zone didn’t allow Manager Joe Torre to pull Wells in the eighth with runners at first and second and no outs with the heart of the order coming up.

Wells responded by striking out Alex Rodriguez, jamming Ken Griffey Jr. on a grounder to the right side and getting Edgar Martinez to pop up. He retired the side in order in the ninth to finish his third complete game of the season and the Yankees’ 13th. Griffey was hitless in four at-bats to remain at 41 home runs, while Rodriguez hit his 33rd homer but still has 30 stolen bases.

“I consider [that part of the Mariners’ order] to be a kind of litmus test for all the pitchers in this league,” Cone said. “If you can get through that part of the lineup, that’s saying something.”

The Mariners were playing their first game in the post-Randy Johnson era. Johnson was traded Friday night to Houston. With Saturday’s loss, Seattle reassumed its last-place position in the AL West, one game behind Oakland and 10 games behind the division-leading Angels and Texas Rangers.

Seattle starting pitcher Jamie Moyer (8-8) had a winning streak end at three games, giving up 11 hits and five runs in 7 1/3 innings.

Detroit 8, Tampa Bay 0--Switch-hitter Tony Clark set an AL record at St. Petersburg, Fla., by hitting home runs from both sides of the plate for the third time this year, and Brian Moehler pitched his third shutout.

Moehler (12-7) pitched a five-hitter and took over the league lead in shutouts. Clark hit a two-run homer right-handed off Wilson Alvarez during a four-run first-inning. He hit a left-handed solo shot off Rick White in the seventh.

San Diego’s Ken Caminiti set the major league mark of homering from both sides in a game four times in 1996.

Texas 8, Chicago 1--Newly acquired Todd Zeile made a key offensive contribution in his debut as the Rangers won at Arlington, Texas.

Zeile, picked up in a trade with the Florida Marlins on Friday, went three for four with a homer and three RBIs.

The Rangers, losers of six of their previous seven, moved into a first-place tie with the Angels in the AL West.

Kansas City 9, Baltimore 5--Dean Palmer had four RBIs for the second game in a row and Jose Offerman extended his hitting streak to 21 games and stole half of the Royal team-record eight bases as the Royals won at Kansas City, Mo.

Palmer had a run-scoring infield out in the first inning and hit a three-run homer off Scott Kamieniecki in the third, giving him four homers in three games and 14 RBIs in seven.

The eight steals tied the 33-year-old record against Baltimore.

Toronto 10, Minnesota 9--Pat Hentgen continued his career-long mastery over the Twins and Jose Canseco hit his seventh home run in his last 11 games as the Blue Jays won at Minneapolis.

Hentgen (10-8) improved his record against the Twins to 11-1, including 6-1 in the Metrodome. His only loss was a 2-1 defeat on May 15, 1996.

Canseco hit his 31st homer in the third, a two-run shot off LaTroy Hawkins (7-10).