FRIDAY'S TIDBITS Line of the Day Ken Griffey Jr. Returned to the starting lineup with a bang, in the form of a first-inning HR. AB R H RBI HR 4 1 4 2 1 (7, 467) Hero of the day Josh Bard had a long day that he will never forget. Called up from Triple-A Buffalo early in the day to make his big-league debut, Bard and the Indians outlasted a midgame rain delay against the Mariners, then Bard ended things with a two-run, walkoff homer in a 4-2 Cleveland win. Goat of the day The Brewers pitching staff walked nine batters and hit two more in a 6-3 loss to the Pirates. Pittsburgh added eight hits to all the free passes. Injury report Cardinals starter Matt Morris strained his left hamstring running the bases and was removed after six innings. Morris, a 15-game winner, ran full speed to first trying unsuccessfully to beat out an infield grounder as shortstop Jimmy Rollins fielded the ball up the middle and threw Morris out by a step. Rockies slugger Larry Walker was held out of his second straight game -- and third of the last four -- because of a sore back and dislocated rib. Red Sox CF Johnny Damon, who dislocated his right ring finger diving back to first on a pickoff attempt Thursday, was out. After the game, Little said he's been improving better than expected and may be ready Sunday. Indians C Einar Diaz was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a bruised right hand, bruised triceps and strained right elbow. He got hurt when Oakland's David Justice stepped on him Thursday night. Pirates SS Jack Wilson left a game against the Brewers in the fourth inning with a strained neck. He said he injured it in pre-game stretching when he bumped heads with Craig Wilson. Stat of the day The Padres' 10 hits in the fifth inning of an 18-2 win the Marlins set a club record for base hits in an inning. Streak of the day Starting pitchers have won all 10 games for Oakland during its streak. The last team to win 10 straight games, all by starting pitchers, was Baltimore from Aug. 29-Sept. 7, 1974. The Mets lost their 12th straight game, their longest skid since they dropped 13 in a row from Aug. 31-Sept. 12, 1980. Mike Bordick has 426 consecutive errorless chances at shortstop, moving past Omar Vizquel into second place in the major league record book. Cal Ripken holds the record with 428. The last word "Every guy dreams of this,'' Bard said. "I'm just so fired up. It may never be this good again.'' -- Indians catcher Josh Bard, whose walkoff homer beat the Mariners 4-2 on Friday in his major-league debut.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Angels at Red Sox
Anaheim: Jarrod Washburn was trying Friday night to rebound from his worst start of the season. In his last start against Cleveland last Saturday, Washburn allowed a season-high seven runs in a 9-4 loss. ... Eight of Anaheim's last 13 wins have been by one run. Boston: Johnny Damon, who dislocated his right ring finger diving back to first on a pickoff attempt Thursday, is expected to be out for a few days. "I can almost squeeze my hand in a fist,'' he said. "I'm going to try and hold a bat tomorrow.'' After the injury, he was told by Red Sox team physician Dr. Bill Morgan that it would be tender when he woke up Friday morning. "One way to avoid that is to not go to sleep,'' he joked. Manager Grady Little thinks that the earliest Damon would be available would be Sunday, and that would be for pinch-running duties.

Rangers at Yankees
Texas: To make room for RHP Chan Ho Park, who was activated from the DL earlier Friday, the Rangers optioned RHP Rob Bell to Triple-A Oklahoma. Bell began the year in the minors and has been with the Rangers four times this season. He is 4-3 with a 6.22 ERA in 17 games -- 15 starts -- for Texas. ... A smattering of boos greeted SS Alex Rodriguez as he stepped to the plate for his first at-bat Friday. Before the game, Rodriguez said the booing was not as severe as it was in 2001, his first with Texas after signing a $252 million, 10-year contract as a free agent. "After last season, I feel like I'm on a merry-go-round. The boos are a lot milder this year,'' he said. "I feel I built up some amount of equity with the way I played,'' Rodriguez was batting .320 with 44 homers and 111 RBI coming in to Friday's game. ... Manager Jerry Narron missed his second straight game to attend the funeral of his father in Goldsboro, N.C. He'll be back with the team Saturday. Bench coach Terry Francona was running the team in his absence. New York: Bernie Williams was back in the lineup as the designated hitter after missing the Yankees' game Thursday against Anaheim with a mild left hamstring strain. Manager Joe Torre said Williams was with Yankees trainer Gene Monahan for two hours before Torre arrived at the ballpark Friday. "Bernie's been trying to talk Geno into this thing,'' Torre said. Williams, who had a 13-game hitting streak coming in, lined out to left in his first at-bat. ... Risking admonishment from some of his players, Torre said Alex Rodriguez was his MVP. "When the numbers seem that much better than certain people, you have to look at that,'' Torre said. "I know I'll get a slap for saying this -- he's probably the best player in the game right now.'' In 1971 with a mediocre St. Louis Cardinals, Torre won the MVP, leading the NL with both a .363 batting average and 137 RBI. The World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates were led by Willie Stargell, who hit 48 homers and drove in 125 runs with a .295 average. ... Raul Mondesi is making his second start in center field for the Yankees. The last time he strayed from his usual spot in right field to play center was Sept. 4, 1998 with Los Angeles.

Athletics at Tigers
Oakland: Oakland starting pitchers have won all nine games in the current winning streak, and have allowed one run or fewer eight times in the last 19 games. ... Barry Zito, the Oakland player's rep, took part in a union conference call before Friday's game, but did not talk to the media afterward since he was the scheduled starting pitcher. ... Oakland enters the weekend series having won nine of 11 games from Detroit, dating back to the beginning of last season. Detroit: The Tigers will honor Hall of Famer Al Kaline this weekend for 50 seasons of service with the organization. Kaline, who first came up as a player in 1953, is now a special assistant to president Dave Dombrowski. The ceremonies will be highlighted by Al Kaline Bat Day on Sunday and a special pregame ceremony hosted by retiring Tigers announcer Ernie Harwell. ... Saturday will be the first time that events are held at Ford Field and Comerica Park on the same day. Ford Field will open with a Lions-Steelers game at 12:30 p.m., while the Tigers and A's play at 7:05 at Comerica Park, just 50 yards away.

Blue Jays at Orioles
Toronto: 1B Carlos Delgado remained on the 15-day disabled list with lower back tightness, though he was eligible to come off Friday. Delgado took batting practice in the cage and later from a live pitcher, an important step in his recovery, said manager Carlos Tosca. Delgado will not be activated until "he feels comfortable enough so that when we activate him we don't lose him again,'' Tosca said. ... OF Jose Cruz is eligible to be activated from the 15-day disabled list Saturday, but is still a couple of weeks away, the manager said. Cruz, out with a right ankle sprain, is walking better but still gingerly. ... Tosca said he doesn't get caught up in endorsing players for end-of-season awards, but admitted that 3B Eric Hinske is a viable Rookie of the Year candidate. Hinske's next homer will be his 20th, tying Fred McGriff's club record for rookies, set in 1987. Tosca said he would give Hinske the edge over two Baltimore pitchers, RHPs Rodrigo Lopez and Jorge Julio, because Hinske is an everyday player. ... RHP Steve Parris, Friday's starter, has complained of a dead-arm period. "You can tell right away,'' Tosca said. "His fastball either has the juice or it doesn't. Velocity has nothing to do with it.'' Baltimore: Manager Mike Hargrove delayed naming his starter for the second game of Saturday's day-night doubleheader against Toronto. "There's no sense in doing anything now,'' Hargrove said. "We've got some time, and we're going to take that time.'' ... RHP Scott Erickson was shelled for six runs and six hits in 1 2-3 innings Friday, his shortest stint of the year. He's 1-3 with an 11.41 ERA in his last six starts. ... CF Gary Matthews made a fine running catch in the first inning Friday, but he stopped his momentum with his hand and was pulled in the second inning with a strained right wrist. ... The Orioles entered Friday's game needing one more win to match their total of last year (63).

Mariners at Indians
Seattle: OF Mark McLemore said it will be business as usual, Mariners style, during this series against struggling Cleveland. "Whether the Indians are out of it or winning the (Central) division like they did in the past, we worry about one thing,'' McLemore said. "And that is the Seattle Mariners winning our division. "We prepare for every game the same, no matter the opponent. We don't change what we do because we have been successful our way.'' ... OF-DH Ruben Sierra was a gametime decision to play because of a strained left quadriceps sustained Monday. He took batting practice but sat out his fourth straight game. Cleveland: C Einar Diaz was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a bruised right hand, bruised triceps muscle and strained elbow following his home plate run-in with Oakland's David Justice on Thursday night. "Einar is real sore,'' said Indians interim manager Joel Skinner. "He needs some time.'' Diaz was injured when he reached back across home plate to tag Justice, who accidentally stepped on the catcher's right hand and bowled him over. Josh Bard was brought up from Triple-A Buffalo to replace Diaz. Bard, a switch-hitter, was acquired last season in a trade with Colorado. ... Former Indians pitcher Jack McDowell and his band Stickfigure were to perform at 2002 Tribe Jam on Saturday night, a charity concert the Indians have held the past three years. McDowell pitched for the Indians in 1996-97 but retired in 1999 to pursue a music career. He had 127 career wins, most coming with the Chicago White Sox. ... Bard is the 51st player used by the Indians this season, four short of matching the club record of 55 set in 2000. Only the San Diego Padres (54) have used more this year. Bard is also the eighth player to make his major league debut with the Indians this season, joining pitchers Ricardo Rodriguez, Carl Sadler, Dave Elder, Jason Beverlin, outfielders Ben Broussard and Coco Crisp and infielder Earl Snyder.

Twins at Royals
Minnesota: OF Dustan Moore was hit in the head by a ball during batting practice Friday. He was hit while standing behind first base, and stayed down a few minutes before getting up and walking into the dugout. He was not in the lineup. The Twins are the only major league team that has kept their daily record at or above .500 for 290 consecutive games over the past two seasons. Kansas City: Royals manager Tony Pena has been throwing batting practice each day to his son, Francisco. Like his dad, the husky 12-year-old is a catcher. "He's a pretty good hitter,'' said Tony. Paul Byrd, Saturday's scheduled starter, has a 2.67 ERA his last four starts but has only two losses and two no-decisions.

Devil Rays at White Sox
Tampa Bay: The Devil Rays are currently on their second-longest road trip of the season and are just 6-22 on the road this season since June 19. ... With the possibility of a strike Devil Rays manager Hal McRae will not try to manage in a different way to get a look at Devil Rays prospects. "We basically manage the same way we have. We just brought up Carl Crawford, but other than that, that is the only player other than (Felix) Escalona that's going to play this weekend, so will go by it the same way,'' said McRae. McRae was managing the Kansas City Royals the last time there was a work stoppage and he doesn't believe the talk of strike will effect what the players do on the field. "We need to win games and we approach each game the same way and we will go out and play as hard as we can each night, regardless of the strike talk,'' said McRae. Chicago: Frank Thomas is sitting out his second straight game Friday against the Devil Rays. Thomas is batting just .231 on the season and hitless in his 12 at-bats. White Sox manager Jerry Manuel doesn't believe that Thomas is afraid of today's pitchers. "I believe he has faced the best pitchers in his career, I don't think these are the best,'' said Manuel. "Pedro (Martinez) is a great pitcher, but we haven't seen Pedro. When Frank Thomas was an MVP he probably faced better pitchers then that he is facing now, I don't the buy the fact that he is fearful. I don't think he is just trying to find what it is he needs to do to be good again. "I believe those pitchers that he was facing when he was when winning MVP awards were better than the guys today,'' said Manuel. Manuel thinks that some of Thomas' struggles could be attributed to a diminished skills clause in his contract. If the clause is activated at the end of the season the White Sox have the right to reduce Thomas' base salary to $250,000, with about $10 million deferred each of the next four years. If the clause is activated Thomas can become a free agent if he wishes. "I think it is a possibility, it would be with any man,'' said Manuel about if he think Thomas is effected by the clause in the contract. "I can't say for sure. That's a lot of money.''

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Reds at Astros
Cincinnati: Ken Griffey Jr., who had not started since Aug. 15 when he injured a left hip flexor muscle against Arizona, was back in the starting lineup for the first time since then Friday and hit a home run in his first at bat. Griffey had appeared in three games since then, all as a pinch-hitter. ... Barry Larkin also returned to the starting lineup Friday. He left Wednesday's game at Arizona with tightness in his neck and didn't start Thursday. He did pinch hit in the game. Houston: Richard Hidalgo left Thursday's game with a right hip strain and did not start Friday. He has been platooning with Orlando Merced and starting against left-handers. He has a .286 career average against Reds lefty Shawn Estes while Merced has not had a hit against Estes in two at bats. Hidalgo is day to day. ... The last two seasons, the Astros are 138-3 when leading after eight innings, including 61-2 this season.

Pirates at Brewers
Pittsburgh: RHP Bronson Arroyo made his second start in a week against the Brewers. Arroyo was called up from the minors last Sunday and beat Glendon Rusch 3-2 at PNC Park. Arroyo gave up two runs on seven hits in five innings. ... LF Brian Giles has hit seven homers against Milwaukee, including five at Miller Park. ... 2B Pokey Reese had reached base in 16 straight games with 20 hits and eight walks. ... The Pirates were a season-low 18 games below .500 (55-73) going into Friday night. That marked the second time in a week they had sunk to 18 below. ... The Pirates' last 10 homers have been solo homers. Craig Wilson's two-run homer on Aug. 14 against the Cardinals was the last homer with men on base. Milwaukee: CF Alex Sanchez was benched Friday night after laughing in the outfield with Izzy Alcantara after misplaying a ball during Milwaukee's 7-0 loss to Philadelphia on Thursday. Alcantara was sent to Triple-A Indianapolis Friday, but manager Jerry Royster denied that move was tied Thursday's play. Sanchez and Alcantara laughed together in right field, after the latter clumsily dove for a ball off the bat of Mike Lieberthal in the first inning. The ball rolled past Alcantara and went for a two-run triple. Some veteran players criticized Sanchez and Alcantara after the game. Sanchez met with Royster and GM Dean Taylor on Friday. ... Catcher Raul Casanova was activated from the 15-day disabled list (elbow injury). ... The Brewers have four catchers on their roster with the activation of Casanova. Paul Bako and Robert Machado share the regular duties. Jorge Fabregas has seen limited duty. Manager Jerry Royster said Casanova will primarily be used as a pinch-hitter. ... 2B Eric Young went into Friday's game needing two stolen bases to reach 400 for his career.

Phillies at Cardinals
Philadelphia: The Phillies signed first-round pick Cole Hamels, an 18-year-old left-handed pitcher, to a $2 million signing bonus and a college scholarship on Friday. He'll report Sept. 15 to the team's Florida Instructional league camp in Clearwater, Fla. ... The Phillies led the NL with 255 doubles, including four in a 7-0 victory over the Brewers on Thursday. Bobby Abreu, who led the NL with 39, needed one more to become the first Phillies player with three straight 40-double seasons since Ed Delahanty from 1895-97. ... RHP Vicente Padilla, who pitches Saturday, has won one of his last four starts. ... The Phillies' bullpen entered Friday night with 12 consecutive scoreless innings. ... Placido Polanco has started 22 of 23 games at 3B since coming in the trade from St. Louis for Scott Rolen. St. Louis: RF J.D. Drew was back out of the lineup, missing his third start in four games, but said his sore right knee feels fine. Manager Tony La Russa wants to start Drew Saturday and Sunday, so he held him back on Friday. Eli Marrero, who started in RF, entered the game in a 7-for-54 slump and hasn't started at catcher since Aug. 12. ... RHP Garrett Stephenson made his second rehab start for Triple-A Memphis on Thursday and allowed no runs in 4 2-3 innings, striking out five and walking none and throwing 65 pitches. He'll make one more rehab start on Monday and then rejoin the rotation Aug. 31. ... Manager Tony La Russa held an organizational meeting to discuss possible September callups before Friday's game. Mostly likely to get the call are OF So Taguchi, 1B Ivan Cruz, SS Wilson Delgado, RHPs Jimmy Journell and Scotty Layfield.

Mets at Rockies
New York: INF John Valentin rejoined the club after being with his ailing father. "He's being watched over well and there is not much more that I can do,'' Valentin said. "I'm receiving messages and know that he is in stable condition. This is my comfort zone.'' ... The 11-game losing streak has the Mets clubhouse quiet and filled with the sound of classical piano music on a CD player. "We're going about our business without a lot of speeches,'' RHP Steve Reed said. "There isn't a lot that can be said.'' ... Manager Bobby Valentine and Jay Payton embraced behind the batting cage while the Rockies were taking batting practice. The Mets traded Payton to the Rockies on July 31. ... Pedro Astacio is Colorado's career leader in wins with 53, but is 3-6 lifetime against Colorado. ... Mike Piazza has hit 13 home runs at Coors Field and on Sept. 26, 1997, hit the longest homer ever at the park, a 496-foot blast. Colorado: The Rockies optioned RHP Shawn Chacon to Triple-A Colorado Springs and recalled LHP Brian Fuentes. Chacon was 5-11 with a 5.58 ERA and has lost his last five decisions. "Chac is a young guy that we've got a lot of hope for,'' manager Clint Hurdle said. "But he's 11-21 with an ERA closer to 6.00 than to 5.00 in two seasons in the big leagues. The numbers are the numbers, and we haven't seen the progression that we'd like to see. His command has been below average.'' Rookie Aaron Cook, one of the organization's top prospects, will move into Chacon's starting spot on Monday against San Francisco. ... OF Larry Walker was held out of his second straight game -- and third of the last four -- because of a sore back and dislocated rib. "He's not right,'' Hurdle said. "I'm not going to send him out there iffy. There's no need. A couple more days and he gets to be 100 percent, we'll run him back out there.'' ... Jay Payton, acquired from the Mets on July 31, is hitting .408 in 19 games with the Rockies. He has four homers and 15 RBI. ... Thursday's crowd of 27,231 -- the lowest in Rockies' history -- marked the eighth time this season that attendance had dipped below 30,000. Before this season, the Rockies had never drawn fewer than 30,000. ... RHP Scott Elarton, recovering from shoulder surgery, has been playing long toss and hopes to begin throwing off a mound within three weeks. Elarton has dropped 30 pounds because of his workouts and an improved diet. He's not certain of his future with the Rockies, for which he has pitched in only four games the last two seasons. "I hope to be here,'' he said. "I haven't done anything for this organization, but they have stood by me the whole time and want me to get back to 100 percent.''

Cubs at Diamondbacks
Chicago: After opening a roster spot by trading reliever Tom Gordon to Houston for a minor league pitcher and two players to be named on Thursday, the Cubs called up RHP Alan Benes from Triple-A Iowa on Friday. ... Sammy Sosa's next home run will move him out of a tie with Lou Gehrig for 18th. Sosa, who has 493 homers, started his fifth straight game since bruising his right big toe in a collision with Mark Bellhorn against Arizona last Saturday. ... Starter Kerry Wood hasn't won in August (0-1 in four starts). ... 1B Fred McGriff has 14 homers and 40 RBI in the last 43 games. Arizona: The Diamondbacks have swept three of their last four series, including the last two at home. ... Arizona starters are unbeaten in their last 11 games (7-0). ... RF Danny Bautista, who dislocated his left shoulder in May, will begin hitting off a tee in about 10 days. He said he had rebuilt his shoulder strength through exercise and has an outside chance to return this season, but manager Bob Brenly said that was unlikely. "By the time he's ready, it will be very difficult to find a place for him to get the work he needs,'' Brenly said. ... Jay Bell started at third base, with Matt Williams getting the night off. It was Bell's third start in 34 games since he got off the DL for calf tears that plagued him since spring training.

Braves at Dodgers
Atlanta: The Braves played their first game at Dodger Stadium since May 13, 2001. With Atlanta leading the majors with an 81-45 record and the Los Angeles leading the NL wild card race by 2{ games, this series could be a first-round playoff preview. "It's kind of a scouting series and a feeling-out process -- seeing what they've got and making our adjustments come October,'' 3B Chipper Jones said. "They beat us in Atlanta early in the season, but we weren't playing our best baseball.'' ... Gary Sheffield played his first game at Chavez Ravine since the Jan. 15 trade that sent him to Atlanta, and brought Odalis Perez and Brian Jordan to the Dodgers. Sheffield, who gained a reputation as a negative clubhouse influence during his final season in L.A., has been Mr. Nice Guy to his Braves teammates. "He's been nothing short of awesome for us, on and off the field,'' Tom Glavine said. "He doesn't say much. He just goes about his business and just kind of fits in. I don't know what it was like for him with the Dodgers, but I learned from talking to him that he was a little bit more of an attention-getter than he's comfortable being. And with all the guys we have on this club, a lot of the attention is taken away from him and he's not the guy who everybody looks at to do something every day -- or say something every day.'' ... CF Andruw Jones, who missed only one of Atlanta's first 127 games, did not start Friday night after straining his left shoulder and right wrist making a diving catch on Thursday at San Diego. "He said he can play, but I'm not going to play him,'' manager Bobby Cox said before batting practice. "He's a little sore, but it's something that he's going to have to play with the rest of the season, then have it evaluated at the end. He's always diving on his left shoulder and going up the wall on it, and it's been bothering him for a long time. But he can play if he had to.'' Los Angeles: Sandy Koufax, who is in town to attend ex-Dodger batterymate Johnny Roseboro's funeral on Saturday, stopped by the stadium during batting practice Friday and chatted briefly with manager Jim Tracy, Shawn Green and Kevin Brown, among others. As Koufax walked from the dugout to the field across the synthetic warning track, the 1960s World Series hero quipped, "You can't get your shoes dirty anymore.'' ... Dodgers Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully was back in the booth after a two-game bout with laryngitis. ... RHP Giovanni Carrara, who is eligible to be activated on Monday after going on the DL with a strained muscle in his forearm, pitched a simulated game Friday. Tracy said the club will hold off for a couple of days before deciding whether he is ready.

Marlins at Padres
Florida: Marlins manager Jeff Torborg will attend the funeral of former Dodgers teammate John Roseboro on Saturday morning in Los Angeles and drive back in time for Saturday night's game against San Diego. Roseboro and Torborg played together in Los Angeles from 1964-67. ... As of game time, the Marlins still had not officially placed RHP Josh Beckett on the 15-day DL. Beckett re-aggravated a blister on his right middle finger in Sunday's game at Los Angeles. The injury forced Beckett from the game in the fifth inning. Beckett has been on the DL twice this season with the same injury. ... The Marlins are winless in their last eight road series, going 0-7-1. Florida's last winning road series was June 10-12, winning two of three at Kansas City. San Diego: Rookie LHP Mike Bynum became the 20th Padres pitcher to win at least one game this season in Sunday's 9-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves. It was also Bynum's first major league win. San Diego has used a major-league record 33 pitchers season, breaking the mark of 32 pitchers used by the 2000 Cleveland Indians. ... RHP Adam Eaton made his fourth rehab start Sunday night for Triple-A Portland, going a season-high 7 1-3 innings. Eaton, who had "Tommy John'' surgery last August, is expected to be pitching in September.

Expos at Giants
Montreal: Tomo Ohka, who started Friday night against San Francisco, is the subject of a documentary currently being filmed by a production crew from a Tokyo television station. Teammate Masato Yoshii also will be featured in the documentary, which will air in October. ... The Expos drew some of their biggest crowds of the season for bobblehead doll giveaways. On Friday, the team announced that fans will have the chance to complete their set of six dolls by exchanging duplicates for the missing ones in their collection. Tim Raines, Andre Dawson, Rusty Staub and Gary Carter were among the dolls. ... Manager Frank Robinson spoke with Hank Aaron and Willie Mays before the game. Robinson and Aaron agreed that Vladimir Guerrero has the talent to be one of the game's next great home run hitters. "I think Frank could be the one to get the message to Guerrero that ... hitting is about discipline,'' Aaron said. "It's about swinging at the pitch you want to hit. Once he learns that, who knows what he could do?'' San Francisco: Manager Dusty Baker doesn't plan his rotation or his players' rest days around the possibility of a strike. "What if I play a bunch of guys several days in a row, and then they don't have a strike?'' Baker asked. That means Barry Bonds will continue to play as many games as possible, but will take an occasional day off to rest his hamstrings. Bonds' health improved during last week's road trip to Atlanta and Miami, where the warm weather kept his legs loose. ... OF Reggie Sanders was back in the starting lineup after missing three games with food poisoning. His teammates noticed that Sanders, who's already quite slim, had lost a few pounds during his illness. Baker expects to rest Sanders when the Giants play Saturday, then get him back in the lineup on Sunday for the series finale against Montreal. ... After finishing with the Expos, San Francisco plays its next 13 games against NL West rivals Colorado and Arizona.