WEDNESDAY'S TIDBITS Line of the Day Curt Schilling Schilling was perfect for five innings and contributed two hits of his own in MLB-best 10th win of the season. IP H R SO BB 8 3 3 9 0 Hero of the day Jose Vidro hit a three-run double off John Smoltz with two outs in the ninth inning, rallying the Montreal Expos to a 4-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves. Goat of the day With Mark Buehrle less than two innings from his ninth win, the White Sox gave the ball to Keith Foulke to close out the Yankees. Trouble is, Foulke had control problems and gave up five runs in the ninth inning of what became a 6-3 Chicago loss. Injury report Astros' starter Wade Miller, making his first start since April 12, had to leave after four innings because of stiffness in his upper back against the Cardinals. The Astros said this injury was not related to the pinched nerve that sidelined him since April 12 and he is expected to make his next start. Giants OF Tsuyoshi Shinjo left the game in the seventh inning after he was hit in the arm by Curt Schilling in the sixth. X-rays revealed no breaks. Diamondbacks 1B Erubiel Durazo was not in lineup for the third straight game because of soreness in his right hand. Durazo also was in the midst of an 0-for-16 slump. Padres first baseman Phil Nevin left in the seventh with a left rotator cuff contusion trying to make a diving stop. He is scheduled to have an MRI on Thursday. Padres pitcher Brian Tollberg left in the third inning with a sprained right elbow after throwing a curveball. Streak of the day The Blue Jays have lost six straight -- all at home. The streak ties the franchise record for poorest homestand, which Toronto now has endured five times. Stat of the day Yankees RHP Roger Clemens recorded the 100th double-digit strikeout game of his career, fanning 10 in the first six innings against the White Sox. Only Nolan Ryan (215) and Randy Johnson (175) have more games with 10 or more strikeouts than Clemens. The last word "Jamey gave up a home run to Alex Cora -- which has been hard to do in this league." -- Brewers manager Jerry Royster, after the Dodgers' Alex Cora hit his ninth home run (in 869 career at-bats) off Milwaukee's Jamey Wright. The Dodgers won 4-3.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Angels at Royals
Anaheim: Anaheim, which entered play Wednesday 8-4 against left-handers, faced another one in Kansas City starter Jeremy Affeldt. ... Tuesday's loss was the first of the season against Kansas City, and broke a five-game winning streak against the Royals. ... Anaheim has outscored its opponents 190-95 the last 28 games (22-6). The staff ERA is 3.00 during that span. ... The Angels have struck out a major league-low 245 times. ... No batter in Anaheim's lineup had a three-ball count in Tuesday's game. Only six of the 38 batters took two balls. Kansas City: The Royals entered Wednesday's game with a four-game winning streak, the team's longest since August 9-12, 2001. ... On Tuesday, Tony Pena became the first Kansas City manager since Bob Boone on Sept. 21, 1995, to have a record better than .500. Boone finished his Kansas City managerial career 181-206 (.468). Neither Tony Muser (317-431) nor interim manager John Mizerock (5-8) were above .500 at any point in their careers. ... Roberto Hernandez has converted 17 straight save opportunities, dating to last year. That's tied for the second longest streak in the majors behind San Diego closer Trevor Hoffman (21).

Red Sox at Blue Jays
Boston: 2B Rey Sanchez missed his third straight game with a strained right hamstring, but manager Grady Little said Sanchez will likely play Friday in New York. ... Little said it's hard not to be suspicious that some major league players use steroids. ``I think everyone knows there is a degree of steroid use, but I don't think anyone knows a number,'' Little said. SS Nomar Garciaparra said the problem should be addressed in the next labor agreement. ``I don't think it should be brushed over or just pushed aside. Eventually it has to be addressed,'' he said. Garciaparra said he's never been tempted to use them. ``My whole life is built around believing I was going to get to the big leagues. I never wanted to say 'What got me there? The needle or did I,''' he said. Toronto: Manager Buck Martinez isn't surprised that some players use steroids. ``Money makes people make decisions that aren't always the best ones,'' Martinez said. Martinez hopes it doesn't take the death of a baseball player for baseball to address the situation. ... Martinez said closer Kelvim Escobar (5.19 ERA) is learning how to be a closer. ``He's had seven-pitch saves and 30-pitch outings like Tuesday night. We have to get a happy medium,'' Martinez said. Escobar walked two batters for the go-ahead runs in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 6-4 loss to Boston.

Athletics at Orioles
Oakland: RHP Tim Hudson will make his 100th career start Thursday at Tampa Bay. Hudson (3-6, 8.42) will be seeking to snap a career-high four-game skid. ... Manager Art Howe has gotten a big contribution from LF Adam Piatt, who was called up from Triple-A Sacramento last week. Piatt, limited to 36 games with the A's last year because of viral meningitis, batted .350 in his first seven games with four HRs and eight RBI. ``He's really improved his stroke,'' Howe said. ``He has a nice, compact, short swing.'' Howe expects Piatt, who hit 39 HRs at Class A Midland in 1999, to develop into at least a 20-plus home run hitter. ... RF Jermaine Dye, who wasn't activated until April 26 because of a broken left tibia sustained in last year's ALCS, improved to .252 with an eight-game hitting streak through Tuesday. ``It was just a matter of time for him. It was like spring training for him the first month,'' Howe said. ... 3B Eric Chavez snapped a season-worst 11-game, 45 at-bat homerless streak on Tuesday. ... SS Miguel Tejada entered Wednesday as the only Oakland player to participate in every inning this season. His consecutive games streak of 321 is the second longest in A's history behind Alfredo Griffin (347). Baltimore: Manager Mike Hargrove and pitching coach Mark Wylie met Wednesday to discuss the future of RHP Calvin Maduro, who is in danger of losing his slot in the starting rotation. ``His arm is bothering him off and on, but he's well enough to pitch,'' Hargrove said. ... LHP John Parrish wants to begin throwing again, but team doctors say his damaged knee isn't ready for the test. Parrish, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during spring training, is on the 60-day disabled list. ... 2b Brian Roberts has struggled at the plate since being given the starting job ahead of Jerry Hairston, but Hargrove says there's no time frame for Roberts to break out of his slump. ... Although Gary Matthews Jr. has had difficulty breaking into the starting lineup, he's been the pinch-hitter used most frequently by Hargrove this season, accounting for eight of 15 plate appearances by Baltimore pinch-hitters.

Tigers at Indians
Detroit: RHP Jeff Weaver's 78-inning homerless streak is the longest to start a season for an AL pitcher since 1990. He last gave up a homer on Sept. 18, 2001, a span of 99 2-3 innings. It is the longest streak in the majors since Kevin Brown went 118 innings without yielding a long ball in 1996-97. ... The Red Sox aren't going to juggle their rotation to face the New York Yankees this weekend, meaning Pedro Martinez will pitch in three-year-old Comerica Park for the first time on Monday. Martinez has not faced the Tigers since 1999. ... The Tigers signed RHP Humberto Sanchez, who they drafted in the 31st round last season. Sanchez, a 6-foot-5, 225-pounder, pitched for Connors State Community College in Oklahoma this season. Baseball American ranked Sanchez as the second-best JUCO prospect. The club also signed OF Garth McKinney, a 29th-round pick last year. Cleveland: Several of the Indians were asked about the revelations by Jose Canseco and Ken Caminiti about rampant steroid use in baseball. DH Ellis Burks said players taking drugs are poisoning their bodies and the game. ``When you go out and use some kind of steroid to enhance your performance, that's pretty much cheating,'' Burks said. ``It's going on. A lot of people do it and have been for a while. I don't think half the league. But there is a certain number.'' ... Burks, 37, said he has never tried steroids. ``I'm all clean, brother,'' he said. ``I've never had any kind of motivation to do that.'' ... The Indians brought up utilityman Bill Selby from Triple-A Buffalo and designated OF Bruce Aven for assignment. Selby, 31, is beginning his second stint with the Indians. He was in Cleveland's organization from 1998-2000 before being released. He played 36 games for Cincinnati last season before signing with the Indians as a minor league free agent in December. ... The Indians have rescheduled their May 16 rainout against Baltimore for Thursday, June 13 at 1:05 p.m. EDT.

Mariners at Devil Rays
Seattle: CF Mike Cameron, 0-for-15 against Tampa Bay starter Tanyon Sturtze, was out of the starting lineup. He is in an 0-for-20 slump overall. Mark McLemore replaced Cameron and made his fourth start of the season in center field. ... RHP Paul Abbott (right shoulder) will make his first rehab start Monday for Class-A San Bernardino. He threw in a simulated game Tuesday. ... LHP John Halama threw five scoreless innings Tuesday in his first relief appearance since May 7. He made two starts in-between. Tampa Bay: Devil Rays LF Greg Vaughn was surprised that former teammate Ken Caminiti has admitted to using steroids. They played together in San Diego from 1996-98. ``A little (surprised) because he probably was my closest friend when I first signed there,'' Vaughn said. ``He's going through a tough period right now and he's just trying to clean the slate and make everything better. No matter what people say, he's a great guy.'' ... Tampa Bay picks second in next Tuesday's draft, and director of scouting Dan Jennings said the team still has four or five players under consideration. ``It's no honor to pick high,'' Jennings said. ``That means you finished bad at the major league level.'' ... Manager Hal McRae said no when asked if he has thought about covering the plate with dirt during an argument. ``I don't do that anymore,'' McRae said with a laugh. ``My days are over.'' Seattle manager Lou Piniella covered the plate with dirt Tuesday after being ejected by umpire John Shulock. ... The Devil Rays plan to activate LHP Wilson Alvarez (ribs) from the 15-day DL to pitch Friday against Oakland. ... Tampa Bay has postponed a Jason Tyner Bobblehead giveaway scheduled for Sunday after the outfielder was optioned to Triple-A Durham on Tuesday.

Twins at Rangers
Minnesota: The Twins will to make a roster move to activate RHP Brad Radke from the DL so he can start Thursday's game against Anaheim. Manager Ron Gardenhire wouldn't be specific Wednesday about what that move would be, but said it would likely be someone out of the bullpen. The likely candidates are RHP Jack Cressend (0-1, 5.96 ERA in 20 appearances) or RHP Mike Trombley (0-1, 15.75 ERA in five appearances). Radke has been on the DL since May 14 with a pulled right groin. ... 2B Luis Rivas, on the DL with a wrist fracture sustained in the second game of the season, has started a rehab assignment with Class A Fort Myers of the Florida State League. If all goes well, Rivas is expected to rejoin the Twins next Tuesday. Texas: C Ivan Rodriguez, out since April 15 with a herniated disc in his back, left for Florida on Wednesday to begin a weeklong period of playing games. He will serve as a DH in extended spring games Thursday and Friday and catch batting practice, and then will catch 2-to-4 innings Saturday. He is scheduled to be assigned to Port Charlotte of the Class A Florida State League on Sunday and begin a rehab assignment. The 10-time All-Star hasn't played in a minor league game since 1991. ... Frank Catalanotto could return to Texas as early as Friday. ``Hopefully, if everything goes well,'' Rangers manager Jerry Narron said. Catalanotto has been out since May 11 with a strained right groin and back spasms.

Yankees at White Sox
New York: RHP Orlando Hernandez, on the DL since May 16 with a strained upper back, played catch on flat ground Wednesday. ``Seven or eight minutes on flat ground and was fine,'' Yankees manager Joe Torre said. ``I assume Duque will probably play catch again tomorrow.'' ... Though the Yankees are a game behind Boston in the AL East, Torre feels good about where his club is right now. ``We can only control the Red Sox when we play them,'' he said. ``But looking at the standings, as you do on a daily basis, we have the second-best record in baseball. That's pretty darn good right now.'' ... One of the more pleasant surprises for the Yankees has been LHP Ted Lilly, who lowered his ERA to 2.88 with his victory Tuesday night. ``Pitching-wise, in order to win, you have to have some pleasant surprises and Ted Lilly takes a backseat to nobody,'' Torre said. ``He's been something. A savior for us.'' ... The Yankees victory Tuesday night was their ninth come-from-behind win of the season. Chicago: Though LHP Mark Buehrle is just 23, he's been one of the AL's best and most consistent pitchers the past two seasons. He's 24-11 since the start of 2001, with a victory total second only to Roger Clemens in the AL. ``I always have a philosophy that the left-hander either has it or doesn't. When I saw Mark Buehrle, I thought he had it,'' White Sox manager Jerry Manuel said. ``He's been a better pitcher, and probably a better-poised pitcher, than I ever thought he would be at this level, this quickly.'' ... But Buehrle's success doesn't mean he's a household name. Yet. ``I know I know him and I like him and I'm glad he's starting tonight. But other than that, I don't know what the New Yorkers think, the Californians, the Floridians, the Texans -- I wouldn't know what they think about Mark Buehrle,'' Manuel said. ... 3B Jose Valentin, who left Monday night's game with a sprained ankle, was back in the lineup Wednesday. ... Chicago and Minnesota haven't been separated by more than two games since April 19.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Reds at Marlins
Cincinnati: The Reds are undecided on Saturday's starter. It's Jose Rijo's turn, but he has gotten tired in some of his early starts and came out of the bullpen Tuesday and threw one pitch, retiring Mike Lowell on a fly ball. The alternative for Saturday is Jim Brower, who worked 5 1-3 innings in relief last Friday, allowing one run. ... The Reds are using the infield shift against Marlins star Preston Wilson. 2B Todd Walker moves to the shortstop side of the bag, anticipating that the right-handed hitting Wilson will pull the ball. The Reds employed the strategy in last week's series in Cincinnati. ... Reliever Danny Graves has walked only five batters in 32 innings, and four of the walks were intentional. Florida: C Charles Johnson remains in a slump six weeks after coming off the DL with a thumb injury. He is batting .189 with two home runs and 11 RBI, not exactly the power the Marlins were looking for. Johnson is aware that some fans are calling for backup catcher Mike Redmond (.312) to play more. ``I can't seem to find a groove,'' Johnson said. ``I'm not getting solid contact. But I do feel confident that things are going to turn around. Hopefully, it will turn around soon.'' ... Ex-Marlins pitcher Alex Fernandez, who grew up in Miami, has made overtures about working for the club. Fernandez, who retired two years ago after recurrent shoulder problems, has spoken to manager Jeff Torborg about being brought back into the organization. ``This community should be excited about this team,'' Fernandez said.

Cubs at Pirates
Chicago: Kerry Wood, who starts Thursday afternoon in Pittsburgh, is 0-3 with a 5.53 ERA in seven career starts against the Pirates. ... Manager Don Baylor plans to let Joe Girardi to keep catching rookie Mark Prior, saying the two have quickly developed a good rapport. That could mean fewer at-bats for Todd Hundley, bothered all season by a thumb injury. Hundley was activated Wednesday following a rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Iowa. ... Matt Clement threw his first complete game in 108 career starts by shutting out the Pirates on two hits Tuesday. Baylor was especially impressed that Clement was still throwing his slider for strikes in the late innings. Pittsburgh: The Pirates are trying to work out an injury settlement with their insurer on INF Pat Meares' contract. Meares has been out all season with the left hand injury that has substantially affected his play since 1999. The Pirates claim he is too injured to play, but Meares is expected to file a grievance in an effort to gain his release. Last month, the Pirates gave Meares permission to return to his home in Kansas, where he is working out. ... It has rained in Pittsburgh on 18 of the 27 dates the Pirates have been scheduled at home. Only one game has been rained out, but they have had nearly 13 hours or rain delays at PNC Park. ... Pirates pitching prospect Chris Young, the 6-foot-10 former Princeton basketball player, left Class A Hickory's 9-3 loss to Delmarva on Tuesday night with tightness in his right biceps. He was lifted for precautionary reasons. Young is 6-3, but took the loss after allowing two hits and two ones in one inning.

Phillies at Mets
Philadelphia: Starter Randy Wolf held the Mets scoreless in the first inning. He entered the game having allowed 11 earned runs in nine first innings. ... RHP Robert Person (tendinitis right elbow) has rejoined the team after two rehab starts and will pitch Sunday against Montreal. ... 1B Travis Lee returned to the starting lineup after sitting three days in favor of Jeremy Giambi. Lee started because of his success against Mets starter Shawn Estes. Lee is 4-for-12 with five RBI off Estes, compared to Giambi's 1-for-8. New York: Manager Bobby Valentine wasn't bothered by reports that slumping 1B Mo Vaughn brought his former hitting coach, Mike Easler, to New York to giving batting lessons in his hotel. ``I don't have any problem with that,'' Valentine said. ``The hotel might.'' ... INF John Valentin (right rotator cuff) will report to extended spring training in Florida on Thursday. If all goes well, Valentin will join the team Friday for the game against the Marlins. ``I feel a lot better,'' Valentin said. ... RHP Kane Davis will have his elbow checked out by Dr. Lewis Yocum on Thursday to determine if he needs surgery.

Expos at Braves
Montreal: 2B Jose Vidro wasn't too broken up after his career-high 21-game hitting streak ended. Vidro went 0-for-4 on Tuesday night, including two strikeouts, but was still hitting .347 with five homers and 47 RBI entering Wednesday's game against the Braves. ``It was a good run,'' he said. ``I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.'' Atlanta's Damian Moss, who started the streak-breaking game for the Braves, said he actually was focused on shutting down Vidro. ``That was my main goal, to end his hitting streak,'' Moss said. ``The guy's a good hitter. He's going to have another streak like that.'' ... The Expos had surrendered at least four runs in an inning 15 times this season. Not surprisingly, they were just 5-10 in those games, including eight straight losses. Atlanta: Matt Franco has another chance to prove that he's a quality player off the bench. The 32-year-old Franco was called up by the Braves for Wednesday's game after 2B Marcus Giles went on the disabled list with a severely sprained ankle. Franco nearly made the team in spring training as a non-roster player, then had to wait nearly two months to get the call from Atlanta. ``I think they know I've had some success in the major leagues,'' he said. ``I had a good spring training and I've been swinging the bat well at Richmond.'' Franco was one of the game's better pinch-hitters from 1997-99 with the Mets, but he wound up spending the entire 2001 season in the minors. Now, he's got another chance with the injury-plagued Braves, who certainly can use a guy capable of playing first, third, the outfield or even catcher. ``The more chances I get, the better, but I'm just here to do whatever they ask me to do,'' Franco said. ... 2B Marcus Giles requested an MRI exam after injuring his right ankle in Tuesday night's game trying to avoid a tag at first base. The procedure confirmed the team's original diagnosis: a serious sprain that will keep him on the bench for two or three weeks. ... OF Chipper Jones was walking better Wednesday, one day after fouling a ball off his right calf. He will probably miss the final two games of the series against Montreal, but could return for Friday's game at Cincinnati.

Cardinals at Astros
St. Louis: Reliever Mike Timlin allowed left-handers to hit .319 against him last season in 91 at-bats. So far this season, he's turned that around, allowing lefties only a .231 average He stretched his scoreless streak to 10 2-3 innings Tuesday against the Astros, although he gave up a leadoff single to lefty Daryle Ward to start the seventh. ``I guess in the past, I've made some mistakes against left-handed hitter and I probably will make those mistakes sometime in the future,'' Timlin said. ``But at this point, I've minimized my mistakes against them and that's important against a team like Houston.'' Houston: Hitting is contagious and so is not hitting. Jeff Bagwell and the Astros know. ``The only problem is that you talk about it and you talk about it,'' Bagwell said. ``It happens every night and then it becomes something that is thought about before you get in the batter's box. `Oh my God, I have to get a big hit now.' You don't want that. In those situations you just have to have your focus going. It's not going to happen all the time but we do need to definitely be better situational hitters.''

Brewers at Dodgers
Milwaukee: Eric Young struck out with the potential tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position Wednesday as the hard-luck Brewers slipped to a major league-worst 2-16 in one-run decisions. ``If we could have won half of those losses, we'd be all right -- especially in this division, because nobody's running away with it,'' Tyler Houston said. ``We believe we're a better team than this. But, for whatever reason, we're not getting it done.'' ... Jose Hernandez has struck out a major league-leading 67 times in 168 at-bats. His 185 strikeouts last season was one shy of Rob Deer's franchise record. Hernandez is on pace to break the major league mark is 189, by Bobby Bonds in 1970 with San Francisco. ``That's just going to come with the territory,'' Young said. ``He takes a big cut, and he's going to strike out some times -- but he's also going to get you some bombs. So I guess you've got to take the good with the bad.'' ... The Brewers are 0-31 in games they've trailed after eight innings. Los Angeles: RHP Dennis Springer, who has played for six teams in eight big league seasons, was designated for assignment by the Dodgers on Wednesday when LHP Jesse Orosco came off the DL. ``You never like to go down, but you know that's part of the game,'' said Springer, who surrendered a 10th-inning RBI double to Arizona's David Dellucci on Sunday in his only appearance after the Dodgers purchased his contract from their Triple-A Las Vegas club the day before. ``I feel like I can go out and do a good job for somebody, but you don't know if somebody's going to take a chance on you because a lot of teams don't like to take chances on knuckleballers. I'd like to think that somebody would pick me up on waivers. But if they don't, I'll just go back to Las Vegas and hopefully step right back into the rotation.''

Diamondbacks at Giants
Arizona: 1B Erubiel Durazo was not in the lineup for the third game because of soreness in his right hand. Durazo also was in the midst of an 0-for-16 slump. ... May 29 marked the one-year anniversary of the Diamondbacks' 18-inning game against the Giants at Pacific Bell Park. Durazo's double in the 18th scored Steve Finley to give the Diamondbacks a 1-0 victory after five hours and 53 minutes. ``That was one of the more interesting games I've ever been involved in,'' Arizona manager Bob Brenly said at the time. ``I've never seen that many zeros on a scoreboard in my life.'' On Tuesday night, the Giants beat the Diamondbacks 1-0 in 10 innings, although Brenly feared the strength of the pitching on both sides would make it last a whole lot longer. ``It didn't go 18, but it looked like it would.'' San Francisco: Giants reliever Jason Christiansen, who has been on the DL since April 20 with left elbow tendinitis, was scheduled to undergo ``Tommy John surgery'' on Thursday. Christiansen flew to Alabama on Tuesday to consult with Dr. James Andrews, who will perform the surgery. The 32-year-old left-hander was expected to miss 11-to-14 months, according to team trainer Stan Conte. Christiansen made six outings in relief this year, going 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA. The eight-year veteran is 17-22 in 354 career relief appearances for the Pirates, Cardinals and Giants. ... C Benito Santiago, who had three doubles and four RBI on Monday against the Diamondbacks, then hit a run-scoring single to win Tuesday night's game in 10 innings, was back in the No. 5 spot in the batting order Wednesday.

Rockies at Padres
Colorado: The Rockies continue to respond to the early-season managerial change from Buddy Bell to Clint Hurdle. After 30 games of the Hurdle era, Colorado is an NL-best 21-9 since April 26. Only the Angels (21-6) have a better mark in the majors during the span. ... RHP Rick White was placed on the 15-day DL, retroactive to Monday, with right shoulder inflammation. LHP Brian Fuentes was recalled from Triple-A Colorado Springs. San Diego: All signs still point toward the Padres sending rookie 3B Sean Burroughs down to Triple-A Portland on Thursday. Burroughs, replaced in the starting lineup by Phil Nevin, is struggling with a .221 average. ... 2B D'Angelo Jimenez became the last Padres player to sit out a game this season after not playing Tuesday night. In the club's 34-year history, only three players _ Dave Winfield, Steve Garvey and Joe Carter _ have played in 162 games.