Schilling Gets Off to a Strong Start

Looking as good as he said he felt, Curt Schilling struck out five and gave up two runs over seven innings to lead the Boston Red Sox over the Texas Rangers, 7-3, Monday at Arlington, Texas.

“I saw him pitching the last game he pitched in spring training and it was obvious he was right back where he likes to be,” said David Ortiz, who hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning to back Schilling. “I saw him making his pitches, doing his thing. He looked great to me.”

Schilling said he was still strong after a 117-pitch outing in which he walked one and gave up one extra-base hit, a two-run homer by Hank Blalock in the sixth inning. His velocity was in the mid-90s at times.

“All of 2004, I was getting shot in the ankle after April. So this has been almost two years since I felt anything remotely close to this,” Schilling said. “This is what I was like in 2002.”

That year, Schilling won a career-high 23 games and was the runner-up in the National League Cy Young Award voting to Arizona teammate Randy Johnson for the second consecutive year.

Schilling began last season on the disabled list after surgery to repair a tendon in his right ankle. Schilling bruised that ankle after coming back and went on the disabled list another 2 1/2 months before returning as a closer. He finished 8-8 with nine saves and a 5.69 earned-run average -- more than two runs above his career mark.

Schilling, 39, pitched a season opener for the first time since 1999, when he was with Philadelphia.

New York 15, Oakland 2 -- Alex Rodriguez hit a grand slam and drove in five runs, Johnny Damon drove in a run in his Yankee debut and Randy Johnson gave up one run and five hits in seven innings at Oakland.

Rodriguez’s 12th career grand slam highlighted New York’s seven-run second inning that staked Johnson to a big lead early.

The 15 runs were the most given up by the A’s on opening day, surpassing the 14 the Philadelphia Athletics gave up in a 14-8 loss to the Washington Senators on April 17, 1945.

Barry Zito gave up seven runs and four hits in 1 1/3 innings, the shortest outing of his career.

Detroit 3, Kansas City 1 -- Kenny Rogers combined with two relievers on a four-hitter at Kansas City, Mo., Chris Shelton homered twice and Jim Leyland won his first game as manager of the Tigers.

Carlos Guillen also homered for the Tigers, and Fernando Rodney got the save as the closer in place of injured Todd Jones.

Rogers gave up one run and three hits in six innings, struck out five and walked none in his first opening-day victory since 2000.

Shelton hit two go-ahead solo homers against Scott Elarton, his first career multi-homer game, and finished three for four.

Baltimore 9, Tampa Bay 6 -- Luis Matos and Melvin Mora hit successive homers in the fifth inning, and Miguel Tejada and Jeff Conine also connected for the host Orioles, who won their sixth consecutive opener.

Newcomer Ramon Hernandez had three hits and a walk for the Orioles, who had 14 hits in Sam Perlozzo’s managerial debut. Baltimore, which ranked last in the American League with 14 spring-training homers, tied the team mark for an opener set in 1982.

Jonny Gomes and Travis Lee homered for Tampa Bay, but it wasn’t enough offense to make a winner of Joe Maddon in his managerial debut.