AMERICAN LEAGUE
White Sox vs. Devil Rays
Chicago: 3B Herbert Perry, who has been slowed by tendinitis in his Achillies' tendon, was given the day off and replaced by Tony Graffanino. "He should be back tomorrow, unless Graffanino hits three home runs," manager Jerry Manuel said. Both Perry and Graffanino played for Tampa Bay earlier this season. ... RHP Rocky Biddle, who became the fifth rookie pitcher to start a game for the White Sox this season on Thursday, will remain in the rotation. ... RHP Cal Eldred (right elbow) reported no problems one day after a long toss session. "If he comes back (this season), it will be a great bonus," Manuel said. ... RHP Sean Lowe (right shoulder) threw in the bullpen. Tampa Bay: A mild case of shingles will keep Hall of Famer Ted Williams from participating in Saturday's salute to the 100th anniversary of the American League. Williams' teammate, Dom DiMaggio, and Frank Robinson are among the former players taking part. ... 2B Bobby Smith (right knee) could be ready for a rehab stint next week. ... LF Greg Vaughn (right shoulder) will be the DH into next week at least. ... LHP Tony Saunders (broken left arm) will likely pitch in the fall Instructional League after the 2000 season is completed. Saunders is scheduled to throw four innings in his third rehab start Saturday night for Class-A St. Petersburg at Dunedin.

Orioles vs. Royals
Baltimore: Going into Friday's games, Baltimore starter Mike Mussina led the AL with 174 innings. ... Royals OF Mark Quinn leads AL rookies with 15 homers, six outfield assists, 52 RBIs and a .503 slugging percentage. ... Going into Friday, Albert Belle was in a 1-for-16 slump. Kansas City: The Royals acquired INF Wilson Delgado from the New York Yankees for minor league shortstop Nick Ortiz. Delgado hit .244 with one homer and four RBIs in 31 games for the Yankees this season. ... To make room on the 25-man-roster, the Royals optioned OF Scott Pose to Triple-A Omaha.

Blue Jays vs. Twins
Toronto: This is Toronto's only trip this year to the Metrodome. The Blue Jays lost two of three to Minnesota at the SkyDome, May 30-June 1. Toronto has won the season series from the Twins in 10 of the last 11 seasons. ... Tony Batista, who entered Friday tied with Chicago's Frank Thomas for the league lead in home runs with 34, appeared in his 500th major league game Friday. Minnesota: As part of the team's 40th anniversary weekend, the club picked 18-year old Nicholas Walsh of Osakis as its all-time fan. As part of his prize, Walsh threw out the first pitch, helped present the lineup cards to the umpires, received a custom leather jacket and had his picture with the Twins' all-time team.

Red Sox vs. Rangers
Boston: The Red Sox entered Friday night with a 27-35 record against teams with records of better than .500 and a 29-18 mark against sub.-500 opponents. ... Prior to Friday, Boston was 11-18 in one-run games and 22-40 when opponents scored first. Texas: The Rangers began Friday 13{ games behind the first-place Mariners, their largest deficit since Sept. 27, 1997, when they were 14{ games out. ... LHP Darren Oliver was sent to Triple-A Oklahoma on rehab assignment, effective on Saturday. Oliver has been on the DL since July 31 due to weakness in his left shoulder. ... Starting Friday, the Rangers are scheduled to play on each of the next 31 days until a day off on Sept. 11.

Tigers vs. Athletics
Detroit: RHP Hideo Nomo, who has been on the 15-day disabled list since July 30 with inflammation in his right hand, threw on flat ground before the game on Friday night to test his injured finger. "There was no pain when he threw his breaking ball or on any of his pitches up," manager Phil Garner said. "There was some pain when he tried to get his pitches down." Nomo is expected to throw again Saturday. He is eligible to come of the disabled list Monday, and Garner said he would like to start him Monday or Tuesday. ... Now that INF Dean Palmer's wife delivered twins (Bryce Dean and Casey Dean), Palmer can help ease the crisis at first base for the Tigers. Detroit has used six players there in recent weeks, mainly because Tony Clark, Robert Fick and Gregg Jefferies are on the 15-day disabled list. Palmer was at first on Friday. ... Fick, on the disabled list since July 7, is expected to start a rehab assignment this weekend at Triple-A Toledo. ... OF Rich Becker was back in center field and led off for the second straight day. Oakland: RHP Omar Olivares is to make what probably will be his final rehab start on Saturday with Single-A Modesto. With rookie LHP Mark Mulder struggling -- he's won one of his last eight starts -- there's some speculation Olivares would replace Mulder in the rotation as early as next Tuesday. Olivares, though, is scheduled to throw 100 pitches on Saturday. "We'll be ready to make a decision after the start one way or the other," said A's manager Art Howe. "We'll see how he comes out of the rehab start." Olivares threw 79 pitches and allowed an unearned run in his last start. ... INF Olmedo Saenz is in the early stages of his rehab from a strained left hamstring. Saenz, who has been on the 15-day disabled list since Aug. 1, is missed. "We just need his bat, period," Howe said. ... The A's have seven players with at least 10 home runs, one short of the Oakland record.

Indians vs. Mariners
Cleveland: The Indians are averaging 5.6 runs this season compared to last season's 6.2 average, when they became the seventh team in major league baseball to crack the 1,000-run mark. They're on a pace to score 900 runs this season. ... During the Indians' 7-1 spurt since Aug. 2, they have gained four games on AL Central-leading Chicago. During that stretch, Cleveland pitchers have posted an ERA of 3.88. The bullpen is 5-0 with a 3.14 ERA in that span. ... Since acquiring Wil Cordero and David Segui on July 28, the team's strikeouts have gone from 7.1 per game to 5.4. Seattle: The Mariners returned Friday night from a 6-2 road trip in which they took three of four from the league's two other first-place teams, the New York Yankees and the Chicago White Sox. On the trip, the Mariners hit .332 and had double figures in hits in five of the eight games. ... Alex Rodriguez homered five times on the trip, giving him 178 in his career, the fourth most by a shortstop in major league history. On the trip, Rodriguez was 12-for-30 (.400) with 10 runs scored and 10 RBIs.

Yankees vs. Angels
New York: Roger Clemens, who needs 44 victories to reach the 300 mark, spent one year as a teammate of 311-game winner Tom Seaver. It was 1986 in Boston, when Clemens became one of only five starting pitchers to win the MVP and Cy Young award in the same season. "Seaver told me a handful of things that I still remember to this day," said Clemens, who agreed to a $30.9 million, three-year contract extension on Friday. "He told me about velocity, movement and location, and that you had to have two of those three to win. He told me about getting momentum in the first inning and getting the crowd into it. I had 2 1-2 years in the majors at the time, so this was all valuable to me." ... Reliever Allen Watson was placed on the 15-day disabled list for the third time this season, this time because of pain in his left shoulder. He is scheduled for an MRI on Monday. Anaheim: Kent Mercker's scheduled start on Saturday has the entire Angels clubhouse abuzz. It is his first appearance for the team since his cerebral hemorrhage on May 11. "It's a big deal. For him to pitch, let alone start a big league game after what happened, is miraculous," manager Mike Scioscia said. "Our first concern was his health. The last thing we were worried about was if he was going to pitch this season, next season -- any season. If he's pitch efficient, he should give us a solid six innings." ... Tim Salmon, who carried a career-best 17-game hitting streak into Friday night's game, has eight homers and 20 RBIs in his last 19 games and needed one homer to break Brian Downing's club record of 222.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Reds vs. Cubs
Cincinnati: Reliever Mark Wohlers, who has struggled with his control since getting hurt in 1998, got his first win in almost three years Friday. Wohlers, who struck out two and walked one in one inning, was the pitcher of record when the Reds rallied for six runs in the eighth. "It's not like I pitched eight scoreless innings," he said. "I didn't ask for the game ball or anything like that." ... The Reds have 31 comeback wins, and manager Jack McKeon isn't quite sure how to explain that. "We're a club that's tough for the sixth inning on," McKeon said. "Guys come back to the clubhouse and get into their Wheaties. I don't know what it is." ... With Cincinnati only about five hours away, there were plenty of Reds fans at Friday's game. They were plenty loud, too. "I didn't believe how loud it was," Dmitri Young said. "I thought I was in Cincinnati." Chicago: RHP Kerry Wood, still bothered by a strained rib cage muscle on his left side, will miss his scheduled start Tuesday. Wood went on the disabled list Sunday, retroactive to July 30, and hasn't thrown in four days. "He's just not ready," Cubs trainer Dave Tumbas said. "When he sneezed the other night, it bothered him. And Woody doesn't sneeze once. He sneezes four times." There's no estimate on when Wood will return. Tumbas said he's seen some strains take two weeks to heal, others as long as six. "We're not going to throw him for a couple of days and see how it goes," Tumbas said. ... Rondell White, acquired from Montreal on July 31, made his Wrigley Field debut and got a hit in his first at-bat. ... 3B Shane Andrews, who had surgery for a herniated disc in his lower back, has played three games for Triple-A Iowa and hasn't had any problems. "Other than not getting a hit," Tumbas said. Andrews is 0-for-6. ... Eric Young stole his 39th and 40th bases Friday, the first Cub with 40 or more steals since 1985.

Rockies vs. Expos
Colorado: 1B Todd Helton was hitting .514 (18-for-35) with five doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs in August going into Friday night. ... The Rockies were just 19-38 on the road. ... RHP Mike DeJean pitched a scoreless inning in his first rehab start for Triple-A Colorado Springs Thursday night. DeJean, who has been on the 15-day DL since July 25 with a strained left oblique muscle, allowed two hits. ... RHP Kevin Jarvis will begin his rehab assignment with Colorado Springs on Saturday. Montreal: Michael Barrett made his first start at catcher since last Oct. 2. ... Tim Raines, who will be inducted into the team's hall of fame along with Jim Fanning prior to Saturday night's game, was in uniform prior to the game and took batting practice.

Padres vs. Marlins
San Diego: OF Eric Owens and 1B Ryan Klesko returned to the starting lineup after sitting out Thursday's game at Philadelphia. Owens missed the game with a sore right elbow, while Klesko sat out with a bruised right calf, which he injured Wednesday when he fouled a pitch off his leg. ... Phil Nevin's sixth-inning home run Thursday was his 24th of the season, matching his career high set in 1999. Florida: RHP Brad Penny, on the DL since July 20 with a right shoulder strain, will join Triple-A Calgary of the PCL on Monday for four rehabilitation starts before rejoining the Marlins. Penny (5-7, 5.32 ERA) will return Sept. 1, when rosters expand to 40 players, and manager John Boles said he might use a six-man rotation during September. "They're all doing well," Boles said of his current starting five. "There's not a guy you could bump in my opinion. It wouldn't be fair."

Diamondbacks vs. Pirates
Arizona: OF Steve Finley was out of the lineup again Friday with soreness in his lower back, a problem that began after he slammed into an Enron Field wall on July 6 to make a game-saving catch. Finley received an injection Wednesday, a day after aggravating the injury sliding into home plate. ... OF Jason Conti, who grew up in suburban Pittsburgh and played at Pitt, left 43 tickets Friday night. Conti could be headed back to the minors soon to make room on the roster for OF David Dellucci. ... RHP Byung-Hyun Kim and 1B Erubiel Durazo officially returned to the Diamondbacks on Friday after short stays at Triple-A Tucson to work out mechanical problems. Kim had 13 strikeouts in 8 1-3 innings and Durazo hit .429 in 10 games. ... The Pirates can't be disappointed that Randy Johnson isn't opposing them in the weekend series in Three Rivers Stadium. Johnson is 6-2 with a 2.25 ERA against them, including a 5-0 record since returning to the NL on Aug. 1, 1998, with Houston. Pittsburgh: RHP Francisco Cordova went on the DL with a sore right elbow Friday for the third time this season and his season could be over. He will be examined Tuesday by orthopedist James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala., and may have elbow surgery the next day. Andrews also will operate Thursday on opening day starter Jason Schmidt's right shoulder. Preliminary indications are that Schmidt, who hasn't pitched since early June, will be ready for spring training. ... LHP Chris Peters (elbow) also went on the DL, while RHP Todd Ritchie was activated off the DL to start Saturday against Arizona. LHP Jeff Wallace was recalled from Triple-A Nashville. ... The Pirates had won 53 consecutive games when leading after eight innings before losing 4-3 Wednesday in Colorado when RF Alex Ramirez dropped an apparent game-ending fly ball, scoring two runs. ... The Pirates are 3-13 in one-run road games. ... The three-game weekend series is the Pirates' only homestand from Aug. 3-24, a span that finds them playing 16 of 19 on the road. ... Penguins owner Mario Lemieux attended Friday's game as a guest of Pirates owner Kevin McClatchy. The two sat in field-level boxes immediately behind home plate.

Giants vs. Mets
San Francisco: 2B Jeff Kent, who spent five sometimes-tumultuous seasons with the Mets from 1992-96, has put together an MVP-type season for the NL West-leading Giants. He's hitting .338 with 27 homers, and his 102 RBIs are second to Chicago's Sammy Sosa for the NL lead. "When he was here in New York, Jeff was just a young man," Giants manager Dusty Baker said. "Now he's a man. No one knew at that time that he would do this. He's also become one of our quiet leaders." ... The Giants went into Friday night's game a season-high 16 games above .500 at 64-48. The last time they were as high as 17 games above .500 was last Sept. 17, when they were 82-65. ... San Francisco leads the NL in road offense. The Giants are hitting .285 away from Pacific Bell Park. ... The Giants swept a four-game series against the Mets at home in May, and outscored them 32-11. New York: CF Jay Payton is making a strong case for NL Rookie of the Year. He leads NL rookies in batting average (.295), hits (97), total bases (148), on-base percentage (.337), slugging percentage (.450), and multihit games (28). ... Friday night marked the beginning of an eight-game homestand for the Mets, with four games each against San Francisco and Colorado. ... The Mets are 37-18 at Shea Stadium, tying them with Seattle for third-most in the majors. Arizona and San Francisco each have 39 home victories. ... LHP Glendon Rusch, Friday night's scheduled starter, has walked just 11 in his last nine starts, a span of 56 2-3 innings. ... C Mike Piazza hit .529 with a homer and 10 RBIs during the Mets' eight-game road trip. The home run Wednesday night at Houston was his 30th, giving him six straight seasons with 30 or more. ... LHP Mike Hampton, Saturday night's starter, is 8-0 with a 3.37 ERA in 14 appearances against the Giants.

Astros vs. Phillies
Houston: When RHP Tony McKnight made his major league debut for Houston on Thursday, he became the fifth Astros first-round pick to play for the team this season. The others are: 2B Craig Biggio (1987), reliever Billy Wagner (1993), RHP Scott Elarton (1994) and OF Lance Berkman (1997). ... Houston's three-game series in Philadelphia comes in the middle of a stretch in which the Astros play 16 of 199 at home. ... Berkman made a nice running catch in left field on a liner by Doug Glanville in the first as the ball popped out of his glove and into his bare hand. Philadelphia: Phillies 3B Scott Rolen didn't start his second straight game because of a sprained left hand. ... The Phillies will miss Curt Schilling when Arizona visits Veterans Stadium for a three-game series starting Monday. Schilling is 3-0 since the Phillies sent him to the Diamondbacks on July 26.

Dodgers vs. Braves
Los Angeles: The Dodgers and Braves are the only teams in the NL to have a winning record both at home and on the road. Los Angeles is 28-27 at Dodger Stadium and 31-27 on the road prior to Friday night. The Braves are 35-17 at home and 34-28 away from Turner Field. ... Dave Hansen's pinch-hit home run Wednesday night was his fifth of the season and 10th of his LA career, most in franchise history. Atlanta: Andruw Jones is the only major leaguer to play in every inning of every game this year. ... Chipper Jones snapped an 0-for-23 slump -- the longest of his career -- with a triple in his last at-bat on Wednesday night in a 10-6 loss to Cincinnati.

Cardinals vs. Brewers
St. Louis: Fernando Vina leads all major league second basemen with a .996 fielding percentage. ... The Cardinals' 62-52 start was their best since 1987, when they won the NL pennant. ... The Cardinals are on a pace to hit 259 home runs, which would surpass the club record of 229, set in 1998. ... The Cardinals went into Friday 12-18 since McGwire last played July 6. Milwaukee: INF Jose Hernandez, hitting .247, was a late scratch with a strained back. He is day to day. ... Saturday is Bob Uecker Day at County Stadium as the Brewers honor the Milwaukee native for his 30 years as a club broadcaster. Among those paying tribute will be former teammates Bob Gibson and Frank Torre, and commissioner Bud Selig. ... The Brewers are 22-37-1 on the road this season after being swept in a three-game series at San Francisco earlier this week. ... The Brewers have only 25 more games in County Stadium. They'll play next season in Miller Park.