WEDNESDAY'S TIDBITS Line of the Day Robin Ventura Had the biggest night in a Yankees landslide . AB R H RBI 5 2 2 4 Hero of the day Pinch-hitter Jason Michaels pinch-hit RBI single capped a three-run ninth, lifting the Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox. Goat of the day He didn't take the loss, but Mike Hampton was roughed up by the Yankees in New York's 20-10 victory over the Rockies. Injury report Atlanta 3B Vinny Castilla missed his second straight game with a strained hamstring. Orioles pitcher Sidney Ponson left the game in the bottom of the fourth inning after being hit by a line drive off the bat of Steve Finley. He has a contusion of the right wrist. X-rays were negative and his is day to day. Streak of the day Marlins second baseman Luis Castillo extended his hitting streak to 33 games, tying Rogers Hornsby's 80-year-old record for second basemen. Stat of the day The Rockies became only the second team in major league baseball history to score seven runs in a single inning (the 4th) and still lose by 10 or more runs, falling to the Yankees at Coors Field by a 20-10 score. The only other game was played exactly 112 years earlier -- June 19, 1890 -- in the Players League (a major league that lasted just one season in 1890). Cleveland scored seven runs in the fifth inning of that game, but wound up losing to Chicago by a score of 20-9. The last word "Their line looked like a zip code,'' Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said. "It wasn't pretty.'' -- Rockies manager Clint Hurdle, after the Yankees posted a week's worth of stats against Colorado in a 20-10 victory.

INTERLEAGUE
Athletics at Pirates
Oakland: The Athletics' series in Pittsburgh this week is their first in Pennsylvania since they left Philadelphia for Kansas City following the 1954 season. ... Oakland is the only team in the majors without a player on the disabled list. This is the first time since 1989 the Athletics have gone more than four consecutive days without a player on the DL. ... The Athletics needed only 16 games this month to match the 13 victories they had last June. ... Tim Hudson is 6-1 with a 2.56 ERA in 13 career interleague starts, but has never faced the Pirates. He pitches Thursday in PNC Park. Pittsburgh: After a 2001 season in which nearly all their farm clubs had poor seasons, the Pirates are encouraged by the play of their top two Class A teams. Lynchburg was 47-23 and lost a tiebreaker based on head-to-head play with Wilmington for the Carolina League's first half championship. Hickory (44-26) finished first by a game in its South Atlantic League division. ... Double-A Altoona also has a winning record. Short-season Class A Williamsport and Bradenton of the Gulf Coast Rookie League began their seasons this week. ... The Pirates showed a scoreboard tribute to the late Cardinals announcer Jack Buck before Wednesday night's game against Oakland. Buck, who broadcast hundreds of Cardinals games and NFL games in Pittsburgh during a long career, died late Tuesday night at age 77.

Indians at Marlins
Cleveland: Matt Lawton was out of the lineup Wednesday, and Milton Bradley batted leadoff for the first time this season. Lawton had soreness in his right shoulder, which he separated in April, and a sore thigh after being hit by a pitch Tuesday. ... RHP David Riske, bothered by a sore lower back, returned to Cleveland for tests and was placed on the 15-day disabled list. ... C Victor Martinez and LHP Billy Traber of Double-A Akron have been selected for the All-Star Futures Game next month. Florida: Manager Jeff Torborg credited a change in RHP Ryan Dempster's motion for his strong showing Tuesday. Dempster, who switched to a higher leg kick from the windup, pitched six shutout innings against Cleveland. ... SS Andy Fox says teammates are rooting hard for Luis Castillo, who extended his hitting streak to 33 games Wednesday in the sixth inning. "When he got a hit, it was like we won the game,'' Fox said.

Royals at Expos
Kansas City: New pitching coach John Cumberland joined the team in Montreal on Wednesday. Cumberland, who had been Triple-A Omaha's pitching coach, took over from Al Nipper, who was fired before Tuesday's 6-5 loss. Cumberland, who was replaced by Nipper as Boston's pitching coach in 1995, inherits a pitching staff with a major league-worst 5.29 ERA. ... RHP Mac Suzuki became the 11th starter used by the Royals this season as he faced Expos RHP Tomo Ohka in a matchup of Japanese starters. Kansas City used 10 starters all of last season. Suzuki, whose contract was purchased from Omaha on May 20, was 0-1 with a 9.49 ERA and 13 earned runs in 12 1-3 innings in five relief appearances this season. ... The Royals have lost five straight and are 4-12 in June. Montreal: Ohka is 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA in his last five starts. Ohka has gone at least seven innings in each of his last seven starts, and eight of his last nine. ... Players association special assistant Tony Bernazard was on the field while the Expos took batting practice prior to the game. Bernazard played for Montreal from 1979-80. ... The Expos have won 11 of their last 13 home games and are 23-11 at Olympic Stadium this season. ... Montreal is hitting .285 with 33 homers and 161 RBI at home; .236 with 27 homers and 128 RBI while going 13-22 on the road. The pitching staff has a 3.33 ERA at home, and a 5.01 ERA on the road.

White Sox at Phillies
White Sox: Kenny Lofton was back in the starting lineup Wednesday night. He didn't start three straight because of a strained hamstring, but entered in the eighth inning Tuesday and hit a two-run triple in the 12th. ... Paul Konerko was back at first base, sending DH Frank Thomas to the bench. ... Tuesday night's 12-inning victory was the first extra-inning game this season for the White Sox. ... LHP Mark Buehrle will go for his 10th win on Thursday. He was 16-8 with a 3.29 ERA in his first full year last season. Philadelphia: 3B Scott Rolen was out of the lineup for the first time this season because of a sprained left ankle. He had been the only Philadelphia player to start every game. Rolen expects to play against the Twins on Friday. ... Bobby Abreu started again in CF, Jeremy Giambi played RF and Doug Glanville was on the bench. ... The 84-minute rain delay at the start of Wednesday night's game was the longest at Veterans Stadium this season. ... Jose Mesa blew four saves all of last season when he converted 42. He blew his fourth this season Tuesday night.

Twins at Mets
Minnesota: RHP Matt Kinney started in place of ex-Met Rick Reed, who was pushed back to Saturday at Philadelphia after cutting his right thumb on a suitcase. ... The Twins went 4-7 at Shea Stadium against the New York Yankees from 1974-75, while Yankee Stadium was being renovated. ... Minnesota entered with at least one double in 61 of 70 games this season. ... RHP LaTroy Hawkins came in with a 1.38 ERA and 31 strikeouts in his last 26 appearances. Mets: LHP Shawn Estes said he has not received an official letter yet, but he knows his fine for throwing a pitch behind Yankees ace Roger Clemens is $750. Estes said he does not plan to appeal. "I want this thing to die, and the appeal process will just drag it out.'' ... Mets general manager Steve Phillips and New York Jets GM Terry Bradway took batting practice on the field before the game. "I did better than I thought I was going to, but not very well,'' said Phillips, a former minor league infielder. Mets manager Bobby Valentine also chatted with Jets coach Herman Edwards in the dugout. ... Longtime Cardinals broadcaster Jack Buck, who died late Tuesday night, was honored with a moment of silence before the game. ... LHP Al Leiter entered with a 5-0 career record against Minnesota. ... Mike Piazza came in with a .370 lifetime average in interleague games, best in the majors.

Mariners at Reds
Seattle: RHP Joel Pineiro has gotten his manager's approval. The 23-year-old pitcher has thrown his first career shutout and 6 1-3 solid innings, winning his last two starts and lowerering his ERA to 2.96. "Pineiro is pitching like he belongs in that rotation, wants to stay in that rotation, and will stay in that rotation,'' Lou Piniella said. ... CF Mike Cameron hit a solo homer in the second inning, ending an 0-for-12 slump. It was his 99th career homer and his 11th of the season. ... Like the Reds, the Mariners are waiting for their offense to start meeting expectations. The difference: Seattle is getting its hits when it counts. Seattle came into Wednesday night's game hitting .311 with runners in scoring position, second-best in the AL. The Reds were hitting only .221 with runners in scoring position, worst in the majors. ... RHP Freddy Garcia hit Ken Griffey Jr. in the upper thigh in the first inning -- only the third batter he has hit this season. Griffey retrieved the ball and tossed it to some children in the front row before jogging to first base. Cincinnati: Manager Bob Boone thinks the Reds are feeling the pressure of a pennant race. Since opening a five-game lead over St. Louis on May 18, they'd gone 12-14 and fallen a game back. "You start looking at the big picture and what happens? There's pressure and tension. You can't play the game that way,'' Boone said. "That's the toughest thing for people who haven't been through a pennant race: How do you deal with it?'' ... CF Ken Griffey Jr. was in the starting lineup for a second straight game, after being limited to pinch hitting for 10 days because of a pulled hamstring. He started Tuesday night for only the 16th time all season and had a pair of singles, including a weak grounder in front of the plate that spun for a single, his 2,000th career hit. Griffey kept the ball and will eventually add it to a trophy case his wife built in their home. "It's at the house. I haven't gotten that far,'' he said. "It took me seven years to unpack all of those Gold Gloves. They were still in their boxes. I'll have a spot for it.'' ... SS Barry Larkin doubled in his first at-bat, extending his hitting streak to 12 games, tied with Todd Walker for longest by a Red this season.

Tigers at Braves
Detroit: RHP Jeff Weaver, who shut out the Braves on Tuesday night, went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts at the plate. "When you're going good like I was, sometimes it's better to just get your hacks in and have a seat,'' he said. He also threw 131 pitches. "I knew I had to stay aggressive and get some guys out,'' he said. "If one or two guys had gotten on in the ninth, I probably would have been yanked.'' It was his third shutout of the year; he didn't have any entering this season. ... Entering Wednesday night's game, the starters had gone 4-1 with a 2.36 ERA in the previous seven games. Detroit's starters have allowed the fewest home runs in the AL (33) and struck out the fewest (212), and they also lead all major league staffs with eight complete games. Atlanta: 3B Vinny Castilla missed his second straight start with a strained hamstring. "Give it one more day,'' he said. "It's still sore, especially when I hit. I can still run but it has to be stronger.'' ... SS Mark DeRosa, placed on the disabled list May 18 with torn tissue in his right ankle, has been cleared by surgeon John Gleason to take in all team drills. DeRosa said he won't go on a rehab assignment until he feels he can play a whole game. "I don't want to go down there for one inning or three innings,'' he said. "That's not playing the game. It has to be nine innings.'' He speculated he might be ready for the assignment in about a week. He said Gleason told him the latest he'd be back with the Braves would be the first day after the All-Star break.

Rangers at Cubs
Texas: Dave Burba allowed three runs on seven hits and no walks Wednesday over six innings in one of his better outings. Manager Jerry Narron was pleased that Burba gave the bullpen a respite. Starters had averaged 4 2-3 innings over their last six outings. "It's a lot of pressure on the bullpen when you are not getting past the fifth inning,'' Narron said. "Six innings is borderline, but we definitely need more than five from somebody.'' ... Burba was 0-4 with a 6.65 ERA in his last six games (five starts). His last win came May 11 against the Tigers. ... RHP Rudy Seanez, who has been on the disabled list retroactive to June 4 with tendinitis in his right shoulder, threw 40 pitches in the bullpen Tuesday and will throw again Thursday. ... RHP Jeff Zimmerman, on the 60-day DL with right elbow tendinitis, stayed back in Texas and hopes to throw off the mound for the first time at some point this week. Cubs: RHP Mark Prior threw a lot of pitches early against the Rangers, who were patient against the 21-year-old. "That's their plan, to not swing too early in the count,'' said Prior, whose ERA rose to 4.01 after allowing three runs on six hits over five innings. "I'll look at the video to see if there's anything that needs to be changed, but I think things will start evening out.'' ... On Joe Girardi's RBI double in the second, Alex Gonzalez scored from first but didn't slide and barely beat the relay throw. He also collided with umpire Randy Marsh after he crossed the plate. ... OF Corey Patterson is featured in July's Chicago magazine as one of the city's 20 most eligible singles. "I'm not shy, just observant,'' the low-key Patterson told the publication. The 22-year-old lists his turn-ons as watching, playing or talking about football, and cooking with a grill endorsed by a former boxer.

Angels at Cardinals
Anaheim: The Angels recalled RHP Brendan Donnelly from Triple-A Salt Lake City to replace OF Julio Ramirez, who was placed on the 15-day DL Tuesday, retroactive to June 16, with a strained left calf. Ramirez ran into the center field wall during batting practice Tuesday. Donnelly was 4-0 with a 3.81 ERA in 19 relief appearances at Salt Lake. ... RHP Kevin Appier, who allowed six runs in two-plus innings Tuesday, has lost five straight starts and in his last three he's allowed 14 runs in 9 1-3 innings. "You know, I've got to search,'' Appier said. "I've got to continue searching with my coaches and stuff like that. It's a balancing act. You don't want to listen to too much because you get too much information that doesn't apply.'' ... The Angels were 1-3 on the first four games of a 14-game trip, the longest of the season. St. Louis: Closer Jason Isringhausen made his first appearance since June 4 Tuesday, allowing an unearned run in the ninth inning of a 7-2 victory over the Angels. "He got some rust off,'' manager Tony La Russa said. "The next time he comes in it may be a one-run game and it's been two weeks since he pitched.'' ... The Cardinals entered the game alone in first place for the first time since April 15, not that La Russa was overly impressed. "We're all thinking 'Let's keep cranking, let's get something going,''' La Russa said. "What have we done? A little asterisk that we got to first place in June?''

Yankees at Rockies
Yankees: RHP Orlando Hernandez (upper back) threw in the bullpen and is scheduled to make his first rehabilitation start for Class A Tampa on Saturday. ... RHP Christian Parker, who started the 2001 season as the fifth starter, has resumed throwing off a bullpen mound. Parker, who underwent right shoulder surgery last July, hasn't pitched since making his major league debut Apr. 6, 2001. ... The Yankees improved to 39-0 when leading after eight innings after Tuesday night's 10-5 win over Colorado. "They (the bullpen) all have so much confidence in themselves and their abilities,'' manager Joe Torre said. "I don't sense that any one of them are out there wishing that they could get it done. They have a great deal of resolve.'' ... Torre played Rondell White in left field Wednesday even though he's still struggling with an injured tendon in his left middle finger. "He's playing. The only thing about his type of injury is that there is no guarantee if you don't play for a week or so that you're not going to be sore,'' Torre said. "It's just a matter of how much he can absorb. He's pretty resigned to the fact that he's going to play with this one.'' ... C Jorge Posada is in a 2-for-23 slump, but Torre said he's not going to sit him because of the schedule. "He's going through a tough time right now. I'd like to sit him a game, but we had an off day Monday and we're going to have an off day Thursday.'' Colorado: Manager Clint Hurdle said the best way for the Rockies to end their recent slump is by controlling their emotions. "My goal and my job is to get them to eliminate the emotional ups and downs. It's not going to happen overnight. Nothing worthwhile in this life happens overnight. I'm confident in our front office, our coaching staff and our players that we're going to get through this. We're being tested by fire and you can never test your growth without adversity being involved with it.'' Colorado had lost 11 of 14 before Wednesday night's game. ... Jason Jennings had his worst outing of the season in Colorado's 10-5 loss to New York on Tuesday. It may have been because he was too excited about facing the Yankees. "Jason Jennings last night got over-amped for my mind,'' Hurdle said. "He just tried too hard. He's a human being. He wanted to do really, really well and help our team, and he got outside himself. His slider is usually a pretty good breaking pitch and it was more of a cement mixer.''

Orioles at Diamondbacks
Baltimore: Gary Matthews Jr., who drove in two runs and robbed Luis Gonzalez of a three-run homer when he climbed the fence near the swimming pool in right-center the previous game, was switched from RF to LF this time and dropped from third to sixth in the batting order. Matthews, a switch hitter, has one hit off Arizona starter Curt Schilling in eight career at bats. ... Starter Sidney Ponson has lasted at least six innings in 12 of his 14 starts, allowing no more than three earned runs in nine. The Orioles won nine times when he started, despite his 3-4 record. ... The Orioles are 5-5 in interleague play. ... LHP B.J. Roberts, who allowed a two-run homer to Erubiel Durazo in Arizona's 6-3 win Tuesday night, has give up runs in six of his last nine appearances. Arizona: The Diamondbacks are 6-0 when 1B Erubiel Durazo homers. Durazo has hit eight home runs in 78 at-bats since his right hand healed after being broken in spring training. ... Closer Matt Mantei, on a minor league rehabilitation assignment, allowed one hit during a scoreless inning in Triple-A Tucson's 8-7 loss to Nashville Wednesday. ... 3B Matt Williams is scheduled to start a rehab assignment with Tucson next week, his first since breaking his left leg in March. ... The Diamondbacks may use Todd Stottlemyre, who has pitched only once in relief since 1994, out of the bullpen when he returns from rehab designed to strengthen his right shoulder. "Nothing is carved in stone,'' said manager Bob Brenly, who is looking for a set-up man. "It's too early to say he's the guy who's going to come in and get three outs in the eighth inning. We could bring him in earlier, we could use him as a right-handed specialist. There are lots of possibilities.'' Stottlemyre (0-2) missed last season because of a nerve injury, and took himself out of the rotation on May 4 after deciding his work was subpar.

Blue Jays at Dodgers
Toronto: SS Chris Woodward, who left Tuesday night's game in the second inning because of tightness in his left groin, will remain sidelined at least a couple of days. The 25-year-old Woodward, who grew up in nearby Covina, said he injured himself before Tuesday's game while taking grounders. ``I wanted to play, I had all my family here, a big, exciting day,'' he said Wednesday. ``But I didn't want to hurt my team, I had to come out. I hadn't been that mad in quite a while.'' ... RHP Chris Carpenter, who has made only two starts this season _ both in April _ is scheduled to pitch Saturday at Arizona. Carpenter, 11-11 while making 34 starts last season, has made six rehab starts. ``He's ready to go,'' manager Carlos Tosca said of Carpenter, sidelined due to an injured shoulder. ... Tosca was still shaking his head over the performance of RHP Roy Halladay on Tuesday night. Halladay (8-3) pitched a four-hitter as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 2-1 to snap a five-game losing streak. ``He's the real thing,'' Tosca said of the 25-year-old pitcher. ``His work ethic, his approach, his maturity are all equal to his stuff, which is pretty good. He has a chance to have a great career.'' Los Angeles: The ceremonial first pitch Wednesday night was thrown out by Rick Fox, who just won his third consecutive NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers. The previous two years it was done by Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher. ... Manager Jim Tracy decided to bench 3B Adrian Beltre, who had started 68 of the Dodgers' first 69 games. Beltre entered with two hits in his last 24 at-bats, dropping his average to .241. ``We visited a similar situation like that a while back with Shawn Green,'' Tracy said. ``I think it's time for me to step in and give him a day where he's away from it. We've tried all the different avenues.'' Tracy indicated Beltre would be back in the starting lineup Thursday night. ... Green, benched for one game last month shortly before going on a home run binge, entered Wednesday night's game with 17 homers in 25 games. ... Tracy said LHP Omar Daal, who missed a start because of biceps tendinitis, would definitely start Saturday against Boston. ``He came out real good today,'' Tracy said. ... LHP Kazuhisa Ishii brought a 10-2 record into his start Wednesday night, but was 2-1 with a 6.46 ERA in three previous starts this month. ``This is a guy with dominating stuff who creates two or three genuine opportunities for the opposition,'' Tracy said, referring to Ishii's control problems. ``I want to cut it back to one. We haven't really seen what this guy is capable of every fifth day.'' Ishii had walked 50 and struck out 76 in 77 1-3 innings before Wednesday night.

Red Sox at Padres
Boston: Pedro Martinez will start the series finale against San Diego on Thursday night, facing the Padres for the first time since 1997, when he was with Montreal. He'll make his first start in San Diego since 1996. On June 3, 1995, Martinez became only the second pitcher in history to take a perfect game into extra innings, but he allowed a leadoff double in the 10th inning to Bip Roberts in the Expos' 1-0 victory at San Diego. ... Willie Banks' win in relief Tuesday night was his first victory since Aug. 1, 1998, at Milwaukee, while pitching for Arizona. San Diego: Brett Tomko entered Wednesday night's game trying for his first win since May 13. He's had three losses and three no-decisions since beating Montreal 7-3 on May 13. ... The Padres have lost eight of Tomko's last nine starts and have scored more than three runs in a game for him just three times this year.

Devil Rays at Giants
Tampa Bay: The Devil Rays' pitchers had just one hit in their first 11 at-bats during interleague play. Joe Kennedy got it on Tuesday night with a single. It was the first hit by a Tampa Bay pitcher since Tanyon Sturtze singled off Greg Maddux last July 17. ... CF Randy Winn, a Bay area native and graduate of Santa Clara, had plenty of friends and family in the stands for Wednesday night's game, just as he did when Tampa Bay played at Oakland last month. Winn went 2-for-5 on Tuesday night. Winn leads the majors in four interleague statistical categories: hits, doubles, total bases and extra-base hits. ... OF Greg Vaughn also hails from Northern California. In the offseason, he's a regular at Sacramento Kings games. San Francisco: NASCAR driver Dale Jarrett took batting practice Wednesday at Pacific Bell Park. He produced more popups than line drives, but Jarrett still wore a smile with his Giants jersey. In the locker room, he shook hands and chatted with several players, later meeting Giants legend Willie Mays. ``With his reflexes, I told him all he would need is a couple of weeks, and he'll be hitting it over the fence,'' Giants left-hander Kirk Rueter said. ... Giants manager Dusty Baker was saddened to hear of the passing of Cardinals announcer Jack Buck, though it wasn't Buck's baseball talents that made the biggest impression on him. ``I really enjoyed him and Hank Stram on 'Monday Night Football,''' Baker said. ``I'd turn down the TV, turn on the radio and listen to them. That was awesome.'' ... Baker declined an invitation to be on Arizona manager Bob Brenly's staff at next month's All-Star game in Milwaukee. He had already planned a family fishing trip to Montana.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Astros at Brewers
Houston: C Alan Zinter, 34, who made his major league debut as a pinch-hitter Tuesday after 14 seasons in the minors, was asked what he'd say to others toiling in the minor leagues, Zinter said, "If they love the game, and they're enjoying what they're doing, there's no need to give up because you never know. Baseball changes in the blink of an eye.'' ... 2B Craig Biggio has raised his average from .230 to .255 by going 15-for-38 (.395). ... Relievers Doug Brocail and T.J. Mathews threw simulated games Wednesday afternoon. Mathews has been on the DL since May 3 with strained right biceps and Brocail has been sidelined since March 3 with a torn MCL and partially torn flexor tendon in his right elbow. ... In 35 appearances, RHP Ricky Stone has a 1.95 ERA to lead all major league rookies. ... CF Lance Berkman, batting .421 this year and .357 lifetime against the Brewers, didn't start Wednesday's game in Milwaukee. It's only the third time this season he didn't start. Milwaukee: Manager Jerry Royster said his team needs better performances from his starting pitchers if it hopes to get out of the NL Central basement. "We can't make any move without consistent starting pitching,'' Royster said. "I'd like to see them settle into a nice groove by the All-Star break.'' ... The only pitchers with four victories through 70 games were starter Ben Sheets (4-7) and reliever Luis Vizcaino (4-1). ... Asked about his team's 25-45 record, Royster said, "How'd we get to this point? We were terrible.'' ... Former star Cecil Cooper and baseball Commissioner Bud Selig were honored prior to Wednesday's game by being inducted into the Wall of Fame outside Miller Park.