SATURDAY'S TIDBITS Line of the Day Sammy Sosa Crushed three three-run home runs in his first three at-bats in the Cubs' 15-1 victory against the Rockies. His nine RBI tied the club mark set by Heinie Zimmerman in 1911 and he tied Johnny Mize's major-league record with his sixth career three-homer game. AB R H RBI HR 4 3 3 9 3 Hero of the day Indians outfielder Karim Garcia made a nice running catch in the top of the ninth to preserve a 3-3 tie and in the bottom of the ninth knocked in the winning run with a single in a 4-3 victory over the Rangers. Goat of the day Rockies reliever Mark Corey got drilled against the Cubs, giving up six earned runs on five hits in one inning. Corey gave up two home runs as well in that span and so his ERA climb to 7.62 in Colorado's 15-1 loss to Chicago. Injury report Yankees starter Orlando Hernandez was released from the hospital after his test results were negative. He is listed as day to day. Angels outfielder Tim Salmon left the game in the fourth inning after being hit on his left hand by a pitch. X-rays were negative and Salmon, who is day to day, has a bruised left hand. Giants outfielder Kenny Lofton won't play the rest of the weekend games to rest a strained left hamstring. Reds shortstop Barry Larkin didn't play with a stiff neck. He will have an MRI test. Stat of the day The Diamondbacks' Randy Johnson passed Tom Seaver for fifth place on the all-time strikeout list with a 14-strikeout performance in Arizona's 9-2 win over the Marlins. Johnson now has 3,652 career strikeouts. Streak of the day Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez extended his scoreless streak to 31 innings in Boston's 2-0 victory over Minnesota. Martinez threw eight scoreless innings against the Twins to earn his 16th win of the year. The last word "I have to give respect to the other team. I don't need to go out and get more. I had a pretty good day. So I decided to shut it down.'' -- Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa on why he left in the sixth inning after hitting three homers.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Angels at Blue Jays
Anaheim: The Angels left a season-high 14 runners on base in Saturday's 11-4 win over Toronto. ... C Jose Molina tied a career-high with three hits. ... Starter John Lackey is 4-1 in his last five decisions. ... DH Brad Fullmer has five home runs in his last seven starts.

Toronto: Carlos Delgado has missed six of the last seven games with a sore back. C Tom Wilson made his fourth straight start at 1B. ... OF Jose Cruz Jr. is day to day with a twisted ankle. ... Rookie 2B Orlando Hudson has hit in 11 of his last 12 games and has eight extra-base hits in his last nine games. "He's on fire,'' manager Carlos Tosca said. "He's going to be a good player.''

Twins at Red Sox
Minnesota: The Twins entered the game with a .292 average against RHPs, highest in the majors.

Boston: Pedro Martinez's last loss was June 14 at Atlanta. ... Rey Sanchez left the game in the top of the seventh with flulike symptoms. ... Butch and Derek Trucks of the Allman Brothers Band threw out the ceremonial first pitch. ... Cliff Floyd left the game in eighth with a right hip flexor. ... Martinez is 15-0 against the AL this year, and has been part of eight of Boston's major league-leading 16 shutouts.

Rangers at Indians
Texas: SS Alex Rodriguez did not feel much like talking after having a potential game-winning hit taken away by a fine catch by Indians right fielder Karim Garcia in the ninth inning. "I thought I had it,'' Rodriguez said. ... Many Rangers were still talking about the performance of LHP Kenny Rogers on Friday night. Rogers nearly became the only pitcher in history with two perfect games and was the 17th Texas pitcher to take a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan did it seven times with Texas, pitching two of his record seven no-hitters while with the Rangers. Rogers allowed two hits and two runs in the eighth.

Cleveland: DH Ellis Burks went 2-for-4 Saturday and now has 1,998 career hits. "I didn't realize I had that many,'' Burks said. "Getting 2,000 would be nice. I guess it shows I've been around a while.'' Burks began his big league career with Boston in 1987. ... RHP Jake Westbrook, who made his first start of the season Friday night, said he would prefer to stay in the rotation. "I've been a starter my whole career and I am more comfortable there,'' said Westbrook, whose first seven appearances this season were in relief after having elbow surgery during spring training. "I'll do whatever they want, but being in the set routine of starting is a little more comfortable to me,'' he said. ... Manager Joel Skinner did not want to talk about asking umpires to check Texas' Kenny Rogers for scuffing baseballs during the sixth inning Friday night. "It's over, done with,'' Skinner said. "I did what I had to do.'' Skinner and bench coach Robby Thompson did spend time showing reporters how a baseball can be scuffed. Skinner rubbed his fingernail over a ball. "There, I just did it, that's all you need,'' he said.

Orioles at Tigers
Baltimore: Baltimore manager Mike Hargrove says that starting pitcher Jason Johnson (3-9, 4.29 ERA) deserves to have a better record. "I think that Jason's year has been frustrating from the standpoint that his year has been better than three wins a year,'' said Hargrove. "It's something that he's working on and Mark (pitching coach Wiley) is working on and he'll get it straightened out. But it has not yet translated.'' ... The Orioles are third in the AL East. That's the highest they have been this late in the season since Aug. 28, 1998.

Detroit: Rookie SS Ramon Santiago, on the 15-day disabled list because of a fractured right hamate bone, began taking groundballs on Saturday. The switch-hitter is scheduled to start swinging right-handed on Monday and left-handed a week from Monday. ... Tigers manager Luis Pujols threw out the first pitch at a softball tournament in Detroit's heavily Hispanic southwest side on Saturday morning. That location, Clark Park, is where former major league shortstop Todd Cruz grew up playing. ... Reliever Oscar Henriquez hasn't allowed a run in his last 14 appearances. He has pitched 13 2/3 innings over that stretch and surrendering three hits and striking out 14.

Athetics at Yankees
Oakland: The A's have allowed just 16 runs in August for an ERA of 1.65. Oakland (68-49) moved a season-high 19 games over .500 after starting the season 20-26. ... SS Miguel Tejada hit a two-run homer and drove in another run Saturday, giving him 12 homers and 38 RBI in 29 games since the All-Star break. "I'm excited because of the way I've been playing,'' Tejada said. "I play like it's going to be my last game.'' ... The A's improved to 23-10 in their last 33 road games.

New York: When David Wells came out of the game after allowing three straight singles to start the seventh, he tossed his glove into the stands. "I usually go out there with a black glove,'' Wells said. "I went out there with the tan one and it didn't work.'' Wells, who has been fighting a sore lower back, said his back didn't bother him. "It wasn't my back at all,'' he said. "It was the left buttock. I'm not worried about it at this point or for the next start.'' ... Friday night's 3-2 loss to Oakland, which lasted exactly 6 hours, was the longest for the Yankees since an 18-inning game that took 6 hours, 1 minute on Sept. 11, 1988.

Mariners at White Sox
Seattle: Manager Lou Piniella says he's "starting to get a little concerned'' about the recent ineffectiveness of starter Freddy Garcia. Garcia (12-8) lost to Chicago on Friday and is 1/3 last six starts dating to July 4. "Maybe he's trying too hard, thinking too much. We need to get him straight,'' Piniella said. ... RHP Jeff Nelson on the AL West race with Anaheim and Oakland: "Even though it's the middle of August, you're always watching the scoreboard.''... Piniella on OF Ichiro Suzuki's renowned flexibility: '' I think he can twist himself into a pretzel.''

Chicago: Rookie Joe Crede was named the best defensive third baseman in the International League by Baseball America while playing at Triple-A Charlotte. But he made errors in games Friday and Saturday vs. Seattle. His inability to handle Ichiro Suzuki's grounder with two outs in the seventh inning Saturday led to three unearned runs that tied the game. Crede, ho, got some sympathy from Seattle manager Lou Piniella. "It was a tough play, not an easy play for that young guy at third base.'' Crede said the ball had an odd spin on it.

Devil Rays at Royals
Tampa Bay: Manager Hal McRae revamped his lineup Saturday, starting Brent Abernathy at second and Ben Grieve in right field. Abernathy, who hit .191 in July, and Grieve, who was hitless in his past 11 at-bats, had sat out the previous seven games. McRae said he plans to rest outfielder Randy Winn, who was in a 0-for-14 skid to drop his average to .310, and rookie infielder Felix Escalona, a Rule 5 draft pick who was in an 0-for-19 slump. "I want to pull Felix back,'' McRae said. "He was in A ball last year. He's a guy in the big leagues, who should be in Double-A. I don't want him to bury himself. I want give him time to relax and then put him back out there. He might be our best infielder.'' ... The Devil Rays have played a major league 15 extra-inning games. ...RHP Jorge Sosa, another Rule 5 pick, will make his ninth big league start Sunday at Kansas City. He is 1-4 with a 6.48 ERA in his first eight starts.

Kansas City: 1B Mike Sweeney went 3-for-5 with a home run, double, two runs scored and three RBI Friday night in his first injury rehabilitation game with Triple-A Omaha at Colorado Springs. Sweeney, who has a .355 average, has been out since July 13 with a lower back and hip strain. "The reports were good,'' Royals manager Tony Pena said. "He ran well. He scored from first on a double and got an infield hit. Hitting is not the issue. The issue is how he runs and how his back feels. We know he's going to hit right away.'' The plan is for Sweeney to play through at least Sunday with Omaha and rejoin the club Tuesday after an off-day Monday. ... OF prospect Brandon Berger had four hits, including a grand slam, and drove in seven runs in the Omaha 16-6 victory. ... Dan Reichert, who was sent back to the minors on July 15, did not have a good night Friday with Double-A Wichita. Reichert faced four batters and allowed four hits and three runs at Shreveport.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Padres at Reds
San Diego: LHP Bobby M. Jones will make a spot start Sunday, his first since July 4, 2000, at Florida. In that game, he gave up seven runs on six hits and three walks in a 9-8 loss. ... The first inning continues to be a major problem for the Padres. They loaded the bases Saturday against Ryan Dempster, but failed to score. The Reds then scored a run in the bottom of the inning before leaving the bases loaded. In their last 14 games, the Padres have been outscored 27-3 in the first inning. ... RHP Bobby J. Jones walked Austin Kearns with one out in the first inning, the first walk he had allowed since June 15. He had gone 38 1/3 innings without walking a batter.

Cincinnati: SS Barry Larkin was scratched from the lineup because of a stiff neck. Larkin, 38, leads NL shortstops with a .986 fielding percentage, but has missed time because of a sore calf, a stiff neck and a sore groin. He has been out of the starting lineup for 20 of the Reds' 115 games. ... RHP Jose Silva, on the DL with a sore shoulder, cut his right ankle on a door at the stadium and needed 14 stitches. ... After an off-day Monday, the Reds play their next 17 games against the Cardinals, the Astros and the Diamondbacks. The Reds haven't done well against good teams this season, going 20-38 against opponents with .500 or winning records. "We're going through a stretch that could be highly successful, catastrophic or probably somewhere in-between,'' manager Bob Boone said. ... The Reds gave away 20,000 Adam Dunn bobblehead dolls in 46 minutes before Saturday's game, their third sellout of the season. They also sold out opening day and an Eric Davis bobblehead giveaway game. Bobbleheads have been by far their biggest attraction of the season. A Johnny Bench bobblehead giveaway drew 38,777 fans -- just under capacity -- and a Chris Sabo bobblehead drew 30,820.

Braves at Astros
Atlanta: Since May 15, the Braves are 41/3 when Rafael Furcal scores at lest one run. ... Chipper Jones, who strained his right hamstring in the seventh inning Friday, was held out of the lineup for only the second time this season. Listed as day to day, he made a pinch-hitting appearance.

Houston: Ricky Stone is closing in on the club record for pitching appearances by a rookie. He pitched in his 57th game Friday, just four short of the mark set by Charley Kerfeld in 1986.

Expos at Brewers
Montreal: Vladimir Guerrero's 30th homer on Friday night allowed him to tie the franchise record with five 30-homer seasons. ... SS Orlando Cabrera returned home to Colombia on Friday to attend to personal matters. He is expected to return to the team Tuesday.

Milwaukee: Jorge Fabregas on Saturday night became the fifth player to start at catcher for Milwaukee this year. The others are Paul Bako (49 starts), Robert Machado (29), Raul Casanova (27) and Marcus Jensen (10). ... Casanova was 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI Friday during his 20-day rehabilitation stint with Triple-A Indianapolis. Casanova, on the 15-day disabled list since May 17 with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow, is 10-for-27 (.370) on the assignment.

Mets at Cardinals
New York: 3B Edgardo Alfonzo was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained muscle in his left side. INF Marco Scutaro was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk. Scutaro, who had only played the outfield six times in the minors, was inserted into left field Saturday and had a ball sail over his head for a double that led to the winning run in the Mets 5-4 loss. "I just heard that he could play out there, he said it would be no problem,'' said manager Bobby Valentine.

St. Louis: Andy Benes will make his next scheduled start Wednesday after reporting no lingering knee problems after legging out an infield hit Friday. Benes left the game after beating out a hit in the fifth inning and was favoring his left knee which has plagued him the past few years. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said Saturday that Benes would be ready to pitch against the Pirates on Wednesday. ... The Cardinals will unveil a statue of Ozzie Smith outside Busch Stadium Sunday afternoon. The statue is the 11th in a series of Cardinals greats by Missouri sculptor Harry C. Weber. Smith, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 28, is scheduled to attend the ceremony.

Cubs at Rockies
Chicago: With 80 walks Sammy Sosa continues to show patience at the plate. "If you want to be the caliber of player you want to be, you have to be smart and make it easier for yourself,'' said Sosa, who drew 116 free passes a year ago. "That means being patient, being selective and waiting for the times when pitchers have to challenge me. I know the strike zone better and have a plan every time I go to the plate.'' ... Sosa leads Barry Bonds in the NL home run, but noted that Bonds has received many more walks (127). "I admire Barry Bonds for it and I don't know how he does it,'' Sosa said. "He's a guy that rarely sees good pitches and never seems to swing at bad ones. He is amazing.'' ... OF Angel Echevarria bears no animosity toward the Rockies for waiving him midway through the 2000 season. He does, however, take exception to the way he was used in his eight-plus seasons with the organization. "I'd be in the lineup for Larry Walker when Randy Johnson pitched or for Todd Helton when another tough left-hander pitched,'' Echevarria said. "It was a tough way to get into a groove.'' ... Manager Bruce Kimm can't remember RHP Mark Prior being rattled at any time in his 14 starts since being recalled on May 22 from Triple-A Iowa. He didn't expect anything different in Prior's first start in Coors Field. "He has such confidence in himself,'' Prior said. "I don't think the ballpark is going to change that. Not with him anyway.''

Colorado: Manager Clint Hurdle batted Juan Pierre first and newly acquired Jay Payton second on Friday night and liked the combination. "I like having that speed at the top of the lineup,'' Hurdle said, "and I'm also playing with the idea of having Payton lead off and Pierre hit second. I think I'll try that down the line somewhere. That would give Pierre an opportunity to do some things with the bat. You've got (Larry) Walker hitting behind Pierre, and he might get a few more fastballs. It's kind of interesting.'' ... A more flexible roster has Hurdle planning other experiments. "It won't be to the point of it becoming a distraction,'' he said. "Every lineup we put out there, we have every intention of winning the game. But I think we have the liberty of forcing ourselves to take good inventory of the people who are here.''

Marlins at Diamondbacks
Florida: Andy Fox, who left Friday night's game in the ninth inning because of a bruised right knee, was listed as day to day. Mike Mordecai replaced him in the lineup at SS. ... With Michael Tejera giving up seven earned runs, Marlins starters have allowed more than three runs just four times in the last 15 games. ... CF Preston Wilson hit his 18th homer of the season and 99th career off Randy Johnson in the fourth inning. ... LHP Graeme Lloyd relieved in the seventh inning for his 500th big league appearance.

Arizona: LHP Randy Johnson passed Tom Seaver for fifth place all-time in strikeouts, getting his 3,641st on the fourth out of the game. Next in Johnson's sights is No. 4 Bert Blyleven at 3,701. ... RHP Todd Stottlemyre threw his second simulated game since elbow surgery on July 3 and will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Tucson. ... LF Luis Gonzalez, who is in an 0-for-21 slump over five games, did not start against Florida LHP Michael Tejera. ... Greg Colbrunn, a right-handed hitter, started at 1B and was second in the order -- his first time in four years with Arizona to bat that high. "I'm just happy to be in the lineup,'' Colbrunn said before hitting a double and homer in four at-bats. "Whatever it takes to help the team win.''

Phillies at Dodgers
Philadelphia: In five appearances since the Phillies acquired him from St. Louis in the Scott Rolen trade, RHP Mike Timlin has surrendered four home runs in 7 2/3 innings. ... The Phillies have failed to get an extra-base hit in only three of their first 116 games. Ricky Ledee led off Saturday's contest with a double. ... Dan Plesac entered Saturday needing eight more appearances to become the seventh pitcher in major league history to appear in at least 1,000 games. ... RHP Terry Adams, who spent the previous two seasons with the Dodgers, still harbors bitterness toward the front office because of the reasons they let him go. ''(Team doctor) Frank Jobe thought I needed Tommy John surgery, and that's a pretty devastating injury that cost you two years. And at 29 years old, I didn't have two years to play with. So from that diagnosis, and me being a six-year free agent, that really ruined my offseason -- as far as being a free agent, and cost me millions of dollars. Whether the Dodgers wanted me back here is another question, but that would have been easier to swallow than having to swallow the pill of some rumors and untruthful things that I wasn't healthy.'' Adams ended up signing a one-year $2.7 million contract with the Phillies in January that would extend to three years if he earned all of his performance bonuses.

Los Angeles: The Dodgers entered Saturday night's game needing one more victory for their 9,000th as a franchise. Their 8,000th win came on June 16, 1990 against Atlanta. ... Shawn Green extended his home run streak to four games Saturday night with a two-run shot in the first inning, giving him 34 for the season and six in his last 10 games. ... The training room in the Dodgers' clubhouse was busier than usual, with three casualties from the annual Hollywood Stars game. Billy Crystal was treated for a wrenched back and Casey Sandler (home improvement, Grace Under Fire) strained his left elbow sliding into home plate. Tony Danza was on the mound when he was struck above the left eye by a ball thrown by Esai Morales (NYPD Blue), but Danza recovered in time to sing the national anthem. "They kicked me out of the trainer's room,'' said Dodgers LF Brian Jordan, who missed his second game with a sore lower back. "They said, `You've got the whole game to get treatment. We've got to treat these guys.''' ... Jordan described his injury as being "locked up'' on his left side, but wasn't anything like 1997, when he missed all but 47 games with St. Louis because of a bulging disc in his lower back. He is being treated and wasn't certain whether he will accompany the team on the flight to Montreal after the homestand concludes Sunday. But manager Jim tracy remained optimistic. "His pain threshold is beyond what you see with a lot of other people,'' Tracy said. "When it comes down to winning and losing, he has very little regard for his body in those situations.'' ... LHP Jesse Orosco was unavailable to pitch Saturday because of stiffness in his back.

Pirates at Giants
Pittsburgh: RHP Mike Lincoln, who was recalled from Triple-A Nashville after Friday night's game, relieved Kris Benson in the sixth inning Saturday. Lincoln, who was sent to the minors last week, struck out the side in the sixth, but he allowed five runs in the seventh -- four on Benito Santiago's grand slam -- and took the loss. It was a tough situation for Lincoln, who began the day in Memphis and didn't get to Pacific Bell Park until 45 minutes before game time. "I would have preferred a better result, but it's nice to be back up here,'' Lincoln said. "I just made one bad pitch on a slider to (Santiago).''

San Francisco: The hottest items at Pacific Bell Park's souvenir stands on Saturday were the Barry Bonds bobblehead dolls commemorating his 600th homer. They include a home run tracker on which fans can ring up the numbers of Bonds' future homers. ... In addition to a huge wicker container filled with pot stickers, Bonds got a huge Scooby-Doo plush doll and a large jar of candy among the eclectic gifts sent by fans and members of the Giants' organization. ... OF Tsuyoshi Shinjo, out for two weeks with a hamstring injury, had a positive rehabilitation outing in Fresno on Friday night. He could be back with the Giants next week. ... Reliever Jay Witasick, who has a badly bruised foot, was scheduled to pitch the first inning of Fresno's game on Saturday, then pitch again on Sunday. He also could return next week.