TUESDAY'S TIDBITS Line of the Day Orlando Hudson Helped Blue Jays reach 20 hits for the first time in nearly two years during a 14-12 win over Mariners. AB R H RBI HR 4 2 4 2 1 (2) Hero of the day Barry Bonds hit career HR No. 599 -- not a stat you read every day. He also added three runs and four RBI in the Giants' 11-10 thriller over the Cubs. Goat of the day Well, somebody had to lose, and it just happened to be Bobby J. Jones. The Padres' Jones, a starter by trade, was called to duty in the in the 16th inning, then gave up two hits, an error and the winning run in a 5-4 loss to the Phillies. This after pitching 5 1/3 innings on Sunday. Injury report The Reds placed RHP Elmer Dessens on the disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 2, with a strained right groin. Padres LHP Oliver Perez suffered a slight strain of his left shoulder Tuesday when he dove head-first into first base in the bottom of the seventh inning. The team says that it took Perez out for precautionary reasons. Blue Jays 1B Carlos Delgado missed Tuesday's game against the Mariners -- his third straight missed game -- with a sore back. He missed Sunday's game, ending a franchise-record streak of 432 consecutive games played. "I'm not going to jeopardize it so that he misses a long period of time," manager Carlos Tosca said. Yankees' RHP Roger Clemens will come off the DL to start Wednesday night's game. Clemens, who turned 40 on Sunday, has been out since July 13 with an injured right groin. "There certainly can be an advantage when a pitcher goes on the DL during the season," manager Joe Torre said. "He doesn't use up a lot of fuel. Hopefully that's the case here." Twins starter Eric Milton was scratched after warmups with a lateral left knee strain. Trainer Jim Kahmann said Milton will return to Minnesota on Wednesday for an examination. But Kahmann would not comment about a possible tear or the possibility of surgery. Stat of the day Mike Piazza hit his 327th career home run in the Mets' 5-1 victory over the Brewers, tying him for second place among catchers with Johnny Bench. Carlton Fisk tops the catcher career list with 351 blasts. Streak of the day Miguel Tejada went 0-for-4 in the A's 9-1 win over the Red Sox, ending his career-high hitting streak at 24 games. ''I don't play this game for myself," Tejada said. "I knew one day it was going to stop and today was the day.'' The last word "We have nothing to lose, they have everything to lose. That's the attitude we have to have. They have the best lineup, great pitching and a great ballclub. We're just the Kansas City Royals.''" -- Royals reliever Jason Grimsley, after pitching a scoreless ninth inning in K.C.'s 6-2 victory over the Yankees.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Mariners at Blue Jays
Seattle: 2B Bret Boone has gotten a hit in 23 of 25 games since the All-Star break. ... Seattle will not face a team with a winning record until Boston visits the Mariners on August 13. The Mariners play Toronto, Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago before then. ... Starter James Baldwin allowed the first three batters he faced to reach on hits. Shannon Stewart doubled, and Eric Hinske and Jose Cruz Jr. followed with singles. Toronto: Carlos Delgado missed his third straight game with a sore back. He missed Sunday's game, ending a franchise-record streak of 432 consecutive games played. "I'm not going to jeopardize it so that he misses a long period of time,'' manager Carlos Tosca said. ... Tosca said LHP Mark Hendrickson, who was brought up from the minors on Monday, won't be a situational lefty. Tosca said he'll face both left-handed and right-handed hitters. Hendrickson went 7-5 with a 3.52 ERA in 14 starts and five relief appearances at Syracuse. At 6-foot-9, he is the tallest Blue Jay ever. He played in the NBA from 1996 to 2000 with Philadelphia, Sacramento, New Jersey and Cleveland. He averaged 2.9 points and 3.3 rebounds in 29 games with Philadelphia in 1996, 3.4 points and 3 rebounds in 48 games with Sacramento in 1997 and 5.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 1998 with New Jersey.

Athletics at Red Sox
Oakland: Scott Hatteberg entered the series with 12 homers and 44 RBI, both matching career highs established with Boston. He didn't start Tuesday. ... Ray Durham started at designated hitter after missing Sunday's game with a sore back. He underwent tests for kidney stones that were negative. ... Mark Mulder had six wins in his previous seven starts on the road. ... Eric Chavez was back at 3B after starting the previous five games at designated hitter. Boston: The Red Sox scored 37 runs in their previous four games, all at Texas. ... Manny Ramirez returned to the lineup as designated hitter after being rested Sunday against the Rangers while in a 4-for-23 slump. ... Cliff Floyd got a standing ovation in his first at bat at Fenway Park since being obtained last week from Montreal. Then he struck out. ... Trot Nixon's first-inning single was his 28th hit in 20 games. Seventeen of them have been for extra bases. ... Rickey Henderson started in left field, his 3,029th game. He needs four more to tie Ty Cobb for fourth place with 3,033.

Rangers at Tigers
Texas: Texas removed Aaron Myette from the starting rotation and Rob Bell will start in his place on Saturday. Myette is 0-4 with a 11.91 ERA is six games, five of them starts. "This doesn't mean we're only thinking of him as a bullpen guy,'' Rangers' manager Jerry Narron said. "We'll get him on the mound as much as possible.'' ... The Rangers placed OF Todd Hollandsworth on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left quadriceps muscle. To take his spot on the roster, Texas recalled 1B-DH Travis Hafner from Triple-A Oklahoma City. ... LHP John Rocker, on the 15-day DL with left shoulder bursitis, threw before Tuesday's game and will began a rehab assignment at Double-A Tulsa on Thursday. He'll make four appearances of one inning each every other day. Detroit: C Brandon Inge has been struggling both behind the plate and at it. He's had a few defensive lapses and is in an 0-for-15 slump. He's getting special attention from both Detroit manager Luis Pujols, a catcher during his major league career, and batting coach Merv Rettemund. Pujols worked with Inge for about a half an hour before the game on Tuesday on the field. "We did a little work on receiving, blocking and footwork and throwing to second and third,'' Pujols said. "Just reviewing everything. Showed him a couple of tricks. I think he's going to be OK, he's just trying too hard.'' Inge wasn't in the starting lineup Tuesday night against Texas. ... 1B Dmitri Young, on the disabled list after hernia surgery, got the OK to begin riding a bike ... SS Ramon Hernandez, on the DL because of a fractured right hamate bone in his wrist, is scheduled to get his stitches out on Wednesday.

Twins at Orioles
Minnesota: Twins starter Eric Milton was scratched from his scheduled start Tuesday and replaced by Johan Santana. Milton, who sustained a lateral left knee strain during his bullpen warmups, will leave Wednesday for Minnesota to receive an extensive examination. ... Baltimore manager Mike Hargrove said he likes how hard the Twins play the game, something Gardenhire credits to former skipper Tom Kelly. "What Tom preached, and we try to preach still, is play the game the right way and play it for nine innings. We still ask them to respect the game and play the game the right way,'' Gardenhire said. ... Minnesota's team-record streak of 12 errorless games ended in Monday's loss to Kansas City. ... Torii Hunter, one of the team's player representatives, expressed optimism that a strike can be avoided. "I think something can get done,'' he said. "From what I'm hearing, they're making progress. They're still talking, and that's good.'' Baltimore: RHP Jason Johnson (shoulder tendinitis) is ready to come off the 15-day disabled list. Johnson pitched a simulated game Monday and expects to be activated for Friday's game against Detroit. ... 1B Jay Gibbons received a cortisone shot in his ailing right wrist Tuesday. Gibbons had an operation last year to remove the hamate bone in the wrist, but still feels pain because one of the stitches failed to properly dissolve and is floating in the wrist. He was omitted from the starting lineup for a third straight game Tuesday. ... 1B Jeff Conine (strained hamstring) is moving closer to a return from the disabled list. Although he was expected to first go on a rehabilitative assignment, manager Mike Hargrove said that might not be necessary.

Devil Rays at Indians
Tampa Bay: Manager Hal McRae said he plans to ease LHP Wilson Alvarez back. Alvarez was activated from the 15-day disabled list on Monday after being sidelined with elbow tendinitis. He hasn't pitched out of the bullpen since 1992, when he made 25 relief appearances with the Chicago White Sox. "When there is a situation a where he can pitch some innings, and build up arm strength, I'll use him,'' McRae said. "It will be like a starter's schedule.'' ... 1B Steve Cox broke out of a 11-for-69 slump by batting .361 (13-for-36) on Tampa's recent 11-game homestand. ... 2B Brent Abernathy entered Tuesday's game in a 3-for-31 (.096) slump since going 3-for-5 with a season-high three RBI vs. New York on July 26. ... Ben Grieve sat out for the fourth straight game. He's in an 0-for-11 slide and batting just .140 (7-for-50) with 19 strikeouts since July 15. Cleveland: OF Karim Garcia is back with the Indians. He knows he never should have left. "It was a mistake,'' Garcia said. "I was confused. I wasn't thinking straight.'' Garcia, who played in 20 games with the Indians last season, asked for his release from the team during spring training when it because apparent that there wasn't a roster spot for the outfielder. He could have reported to Triple-A Buffalo, but he decided to sign with the New York Yankees instead. Now, he wishes he had stayed with the Indians all along. "It's one of things,'' he said. "You roll the dice, and this time it was a mistake.'' ... RHP Jake Westbrook, who worked his way back to the Indians after undergoing elbow surgery this spring, will make his first start on Friday against Texas. Westbrook is taking the starting spot deserted by Jaret Wright, who was sent back to Triple-A Buffalo to get some work. ... OF Matt Lawton, who has had a rough first year in right field for Cleveland, is moving to left. Lawton has played with a separated shoulder most of the season, which is part of the reason he's going to left. Closer to third base, Lawton won't have to make long throws to third and put added strain on his shoulder. "I hope it's permanent,'' Lawton said. "I don't want to be going back and forth.''

Royals at Yankees
Kansas City: Chuck Knoblauch returned to Yankee Stadium for the first time since leaving the team as a free agent after last season. "I'm looking forward to it,'' Knoblauch said. "I'm excited to be back and see some familiar faces in the crowd.'' ... CF Carlos Beltran needs one homer to become the first Royal to post three seasons with at least 20 homers and 20 steals. ... The Royals were swept in the season series against the Yankees last season for the second time in four years. Kansas City entered the game having lost seven straight to New York since winning on Sept. 6, 2000. ... There was a moment of silence before the game to remember former Royals catcher Darrell Porter, who died Monday. New York: Jason Giambi, who left Sunday's game in Anaheim with a sore back, started as the DH. "It's good enough to give them the OK to DH,'' he said. "I'm going to stay loose and just hit today.'' ... RHP Roger Clemens will come off the DL to start Wednesday night's game. Clemens, who turned 40 on Sunday, has been out since July 13 with an injured right groin. "There certainly can be an advantage when a pitcher goes on the DL during the season,'' manager Joe Torre said. "He doesn't use up a lot of fuel. Hopefully that's the case here.'' ... Closer Mariano Rivera (mild right shoulder strain) pitched two scoreless innings in a rehabilitation start for the Yankees' Gulf Coast League team. Torre said the Yankees would decide Wednesday whether Rivera needed another rehab stint. "My command was a little off, but it feels great,'' Rivera said. "We'll see how it feels tomorrow. It will be one of the biggest days for me.''

Angels at White Sox
Anaheim: OF Garret Anderson returned to the Angels' lineup Tuesday night as a DH after not starting the past two games with a cramped right hamstring... 1B Scott Spiezio was scratched Tuesday night after fouling a ball of his right knee Monday in Detroit. X-rays were negative and Spiezio is listed as day to day. Brad Fullmer, normally Anaheim's DH, started at first. ... OF Darin Erstad, who had an AL leading 240 hits and batted .355 in 2000, entered Tuesday's game in a 9-for-63 skid. "He's not at the same confidence level he had been earlier in the year,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "He's got to get back to it, although he's doing some things to help us in other ways.''... Although the Angels faded late in each of the past two seasons, Scioscia thinks the team's depth will help prevent a swoon in 2002. "Some guys ran out of gas and some guys were asked to do too much,'' he said. "This year, we have better depth on the bench and five starters who can go out and give us chance to win. We're not relying on one or two starters to catch fire and lead us to the playoffs. That's huge.'' Chicago: White Sox manager Jerry Manuel won't try to shelter RHP Todd Ritchie from losing 20 games this season. Instead, Manuel would prefer to see Ritchie (5-15) work out his problems on the mound no matter how bad his record gets. "I'm concerned about getting him right, back to where he was earlier in the season.'' Manuel said. "Hopefully it won't take 20 losses to get there. My biggest concern is his ability to get major-league hitters out.'' ... Ritchie, however, could miss his next scheduled start Thursday due to inflammation in his right shoulder. He was supposed to throw before Tuesday's game. "We're going to see how he feels,'' Manuel said. OF Aaron Rowand remained out Tuesday with neck spasms, but was available for pinch-hitting. He was replaced in center field by recent call-up Willie Harris. Harris had played at second base since his arriving from Triple-A Charlotte on July 26, but made his White Sox outfield debut Monday at Tampa Bay after Rowand left the game.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Marlins at Astros
Florida: The Marlins placed catcher Charles Johnson on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to July 28, with a lower back strain. Johnson has missed seven straight games. RHP Blaine Neal was recalled from Triple-A Calgary. ... Florida got Class-A right-hander Donald Levinski as the player to be named in the July 11 trade with Montreal that also brought Carl Pavano, Graeme Lloyd, Mike Mordecai and Justin Wayne to the Marlins in exchange for Cliff Floyd, Wilton Guerrero and Claudio Vargas. Houston: The Astros recalled OF Jason Lane from Triple-A New Orleans and optioned OF Barry Wesson to New Orleans. ... LHP Billy Wagner has 20 saves for the fifth consecutive season, one shy of the club record set by Dave Smith (1985-90).

Mets at Brewers
New York: 2B Roberto Alomar returned to the starting lineup after missing two games with a strained left groin muscle. 3B Edgardo Alfonzo was still out with a strained left ribcage muscle. ... OF Jeromy Burnitz and RHP Jeff D'Amico returned to Miller Park for the first time since being traded by the Brewers in the offseason. Both played for the Brewers from 1996-2001, and Burnitz was Milwaukee's most productive hitter during that period, with 165 home runs. This year, he is hitting .206 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI. "It's been really, really hard,'' Burnitz said. "I've been having a hard time getting hits. It's different. It's much larger than anything I went through here.'' Milwaukee: The Brewers had a moment of silence before the game to remember Darrell Porter, their first-ever No. 1 pick in the June 1970 draft. "He was a great guy, a fun-loving guy and a hard worker,'' said pitching coach Billy Castro, Porter's teammate from 1974-76. "He was a happy-go-lucky guy, always laughing.'' Porter played with the Brewers from 1971-76 before being traded to the Kansas City Royals. He signed with the Cardinals in 1980 as a free agent, and was the MVP of the 1982 World Series when St. Louis defeated the Brewers in seven games. ... Lenny Harris made his fourth start of the season at third base. He's already set the team's single-season record with 15 pinch-hits.

Expos at Cardinals
Montreal: The Expos sent RHP Donald Levinski to the Marlins as the player to be named in the July 11 deal that sent OF Cliff Floyd and two others to the Marlins in exchange for four players. Levinski was 12-6 with a 3.02 ERA for Class-A Clinton and has been assigned to Class-A Kane County. ... The Expos came in 40-27 on artificial turf, but only 15-29 on grass. ... OF Brad Wilkerson led NL rookies with 28 multihit games. ... LHP Scott Stewart had 14 saves, tied for second among Expos left-handed relievers for a single season. He was three shy of Woody Fryman's team-best 17 saves in 1980. ... RHP Tomo Ohka, who allowed one earned run in 7 1-3 innings to beat the Cardinals on April 28 at Olympic Stadium, starts the second game of the series Wednesday. St. Louis: RHP Garrett Stephenson made his second rehab start for Triple-A Memphis on Monday and gave up five runs, four earned, in six innings. All of the damage came in one inning. Stephenson, recovering from surgery to remove scar tissue from a torn hamstring, makes his next start Saturday -- and there's a slight possibility it could be for the Cardinals. ... St. Louis played its sixth home game since July 8. The Cardinals and Rockies each played their 53rd home game Tuesday, fewest in the NL. ... Miguel Cairo has 13 pinch-hits, the most by a Cardinals player since Willie McGee had 16 in 1997. Cairo is 11 shy of the team record held by Vic Davalillo (1970) and Gerald Perry (1993).

Reds at Rockies
Cincinnati: The Reds placed RHP Elmer Dessens on the disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 2, with a strained right groin. "Elmer is doing pretty good, but we didn't want to push him for his next start,'' manager Bob Boone said. ... Dessens' roster spot and slot in the rotation was filled by activating RHP Joey Hamilton from the 15-day DL. Hamilton, who had a strained left hamstring, gets Dessens' start Wednesday. Jared Fernandez will start Thursday. Boone said he wasn't sure who will start Friday and Saturday games at San Diego. ... 1B Sean Casey will begin a two-game rehab assignment for Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday. That's the same day Casey is eligible to come off the DL, where he has been since July 23 with a left shoulder injury. ... Boone mourned the passing of former Kansas City Royals catcher Darrell Porter. "I will always remember him as one of the better catchers going,'' Boone said. "He was a big factor in Kansas City's development.'' Colorado: Rockies manager Clint Hurdle had expected to miss the game to be with his wife, Karla, for the birth of their first child. The plans changed, however, and Hurdle was at the ballpark. "They did an amniocentesis, and they felt that the lungs needed a little more time to develop,'' Hurdle said. "So we're on hold. She'll get checked again next Monday.'' The due date is Aug. 20. ... OF Jay Payton, obtained in a trade with the Mets on July 31, started his fourth game for the Rockies. Payton started in center field, and Juan Pierre was given his second straight game off. "We want to give Juan a chance to slow things down and work on his mechanics,'' Hurdle said. "He hasn't been able to go deep in at-bats with the regularity he did last year. He had a lot more two-strike hits last year. He's made more quick outs this year, and a lot more pulled groundballs.'' ... The Rockies planned to give 3B Todd Zeile two straight days off "to see if we can recharge his battery a little bit,'' Hurdle said. ... Colorado returned from a 2-10 road trip -- the worst four-city trip in franchise history. Colorado is 18-41 on the road this season. ... OF Larry Walker, the NL player of the month in July, brought a 17-game hitting streak into the game.

Braves at Diamondbacks
Atlanta: The Braves came in 15-3 since July 16 with a 1.73 ERA. ... Atlanta's 73-38 record matched the 1998 team for the best mark after 111 games since the franchise moved from Milwaukee in 1966. ... OF Chipper Jones was named NL player of the week after hitting .526 with four homers and 11 RBI. ... Entering the series opener, Atlanta had lost 10 of its last 12 against Arizona. ... Since the Diamondbacks took two of three in Atlanta in late April, the Braves are 62-26. ... Closer John Smoltz needs one save in the next five games to break Lee Smith's 1993 record for the fastest to 40 saves. Smoltz has a club-record 25 consecutive saves. His last blown save was May 29 against Montreal. Arizona: The team's only losses in the last 14 games came on a pair of game-winning home runs by Vladimir Guerrero in Montreal last week. ... Arizona's seven-game advantage in the NL West is larger than any lead the Diamondbacks had last season. ... RHP Rick Helling will be activated from the 15-day DL (sprained right ankle) to start Wednesday against Atlanta. ... In his three outings since one of his worst starts, Randy Johnson is 3-0 -- allowing one earned run in 25 innings with two complete games. He has 34 strikeouts in that span. ... Arizona has three four-game sweeps this season, at Colorado, at home against San Diego, and at the New York Mets. ... OF Luis Gonzalez has hit .396 in 25 games since the All-Star break with 25 runs, eight homers and 28 RBI.

Cubs at Giants
Chicago: Sammy Sosa greeted Barry Bonds during batting practice: "Hey there, Mr. 600!'' ... LHP Steve Smyth made his major league debut for a club that hasn't used many left-handers in the past several seasons. Since 1993, when Greg Hibbard went 15-11 with a 3.96 ERA in 31 starts, left-handers have started only 93 games for the Cubs, winning just 19 times. A left-hander hadn't started for the Cubs since 2000 prior to Smyth's arrival. ... Smyth also became the third rookie in the team's rotation, joining Mark Prior and Carlos Zambrano. Four of Chicago's five starters -- the three rookies and Kerry Wood are products of the farm system. San Francisco: There was an extra buzz in the crowd as the Giants opened a six-game homestand with Barry Bonds within striking distance of 600 homers. Every game in the homestand sold out last week, and the typically late-arriving California fans seemed to arrive earlier than usual. ... While Bonds chases 600, Robb Nen remained one save shy of 300. Nen got his 299th save on July 28 at Pac Bell, but went without a save on the six-game road trip. If the 32-year-old closer reaches the milestone this week, he'll be the youngest pitcher to 300. ... Despite inconsistent seasons from most of their starting pitchers, the Giants entered second in the NL with a 3.75 ERA, including a 3.47 ERA in their last 28 games. San Francisco has yielded a league-low 82 homers.

Pirates at Dodgers
Pittsburgh: The Pirates began a stretch of playing 20 consecutive days -- their longest scheduled stretch of the season -- and 10 straight games against teams with a realistic chance at the postseason -- Los Angeles, San Francisco and St. Louis. They opened a six-game road trip with six straight losses away from PNC Park. They are five games under .500 on the road, and have not posted a winning road record since 1992. ... Brian Giles, who entered leading the NL with 59 extra-base hits, needs one more home run to join Hall of Famers Ralph Kiner and Willie Stargell as the only players in Pirates history with four consecutive seasons of 30 or more homers. ... Abraham Nunez is hitless in his last 19 at-bats as a pinch-hitter. ... The pitching staff has issued a major league-leading 64 intentional walks, 13 more than all of last season. Los Angeles: Utility infielder Dave Hansen, who broke Manny Mota's franchise record of 106 pinch-hits during the road trip, was presented with a Tiffany crystal trophy by GM Dan Evans and an electric guitar by his teammates -- all of whom took part in the pregame ceremony at home plate. ... Batting coach Jack Clark was distressed to hear about the death of Darrell Porter, whose locker at Busch Stadium was right next to Porter's in 1985 when the St. Louis Cardinals won the NL pennant in their only season as teammates. "I enjoyed playing with him. He was a winner, a competitor and a tremendous teammate,'' Clark said. "That's a lot of guys in one year -- especially in the Cardinals family, with Jack Buck and Darryl Kile -- and the year's not over yet. It's getting a little overwhelming.'' ... The Dodgers were thrilled that closer Eric Gagne would not be suspended for his tirade against umpire Dan Iassogna, who ejected him last Thursday at Cincinnati. "It's key for us, because we can't afford to miss him right now. But I didn't actually expect them to suspend him,'' C Paul Lo Duca said. "Obviously, the umpire was at fault for the call he made, but Eric was at fault for going berserk the way he did.'' ... Flags were at half-staff and a moment of silence was observed in memory of Los Angeles Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn, who died Monday at age 85.

Phillies at Padres
Philadelphia: SS Jimmy Rollins (bruised right elbow) was held out of the starting lineup after he was hit by a pitch from Los Angeles RHP Giovanni Carrara on Monday. Phillies manager Larry Bowa said Rollins was experiencing swelling in the elbow and listed him as day to day. Rollins, in a 3-for-26 slump, stayed in the game defensively in the ninth inning, but was moved to second base by Bowa so he wouldn't have to make a long throw. ... C Todd Pratt, who was hit on his right shoulder by a pitch from Carrara to force in the go-ahead run in a 7-5 win Monday, recovered from a strained left elbow sustained earlier in the game. Pratt was available to play, but starter Mike Lieberthal was back in the starting lineup. ... The Phillies had won 19 of 26 road games coming in. San Diego: C Wiki Gonzalez (right hip flexor strain) began his rehab assignment on Monday with Class-A Lake Elsinore, walking in two plate appearances. Gonzalez, who went on the 15-day DL on July 20, could be ready to rejoin the team on its 10-game road trip that starts Friday in Cincinnati. ... The Padres entered with six straight games of 10 or more hits. Since July 17, San Diego has at least 10 hits in 14 of 18 games, and has hit 21 homers. ... LHP Kevin Walker (left elbow), who worked one inning for Triple-A Portland on Monday night, is scheduled to pitch again Tuesday for the Beavers, the first time he's pitched in back-to-back games in his rehab assignment. Walker is attempting to come back from "Tommy John'' surgery, performed last August. Depending on how his elbow reacts, Walker could join the Padres on Friday in Cincinnati.