AMERICAN LEAGUE
Athletics vs. Tigers
Oakland: OF Ben Grieve has hit into an Oakland record and AL-hh 26 double plays. "Sometimes he rolls over the ball, and when he does hit it sharply, it's often at somebody," manager Art Howe said. "He hits the ball hard, and on our club, there's not a lot of team speed, so we don't move runners that much. We don't have good foot speed, and that makes for more opportunities for double plays." ... The A's entered Friday with a 30-27 road record, third-best in the AL. But they had lost 15 of 21, including their last five. Detroit: RHP Doug Brocail, the Tigers' eighth-inning setup man for closer Todd Jones, went on the 15-day disabled list Friday with inflammation of his right elbow. "It's a big blow," manager Phil Garner said, "because our bullpen is so good at turning a nine-inning game into a six-inning game." Garner said RHPs Nelson Cruz and Danny Patterson, and LHP C.J. Nitkowski would fill Brocail's role. ... The Tigers entered Friday with a 4.78 team ERA, the AL's fifth-best. Detroit hasn't ranked in the top five since 1988. ... RHP Brian Moehler will seek a career-best fourth straight win when he starts Saturday against Oakland. Moehler has won three straight three times.

Rangers vs. Red Sox
Texas: RHP Ryan Glynn, who passed out last Friday after leaving his start against the Red Sox and spent two days in a Texas hospital undergoing tests, was cleared Friday to resume baseball activity. Glynn, on the 15-day DL, was diagnosed with a fainting condition that is treatable by medication and a high-salt diet. He is expected to make a rehab start with Oklahoma City next week. ... The Rangers matched their worst record of the year with Thursday's heartbreaking 8-7 loss to the Red Sox, dropping them nine games under .500. ... Texas has not won consecutive games since July 27-28. Boston: SS Nomar Garciaparra was still somewhat upset before Friday's game for what he perceived were "negative" comments by a team's TV broadcaster. After Thursday's comeback win, Garciaparra told the Boston Herald, "What I was most fired up about was hearing our negative commentator say how much we sucked, and then have it shoved down his throat. That's what fired me up." Garciaparra, who was given most of Thursday's game off before entering in the late innings, was back in Friday's starting lineup. ... Carl Everett's next homer will be his 30th, making him the first Red Sox OF since Tony Armas in 1984 to reach that plateau. ... LHP Pete Schourek, on the DL with shoulder soreness, threw three innings in a simulated game.

White Sox vs. Devil Rays
Chicago: RHP Ken Hill was signed to a minor league contract and will start Saturday for Triple-A Charlotte. If all goes well, Hill, who was released by Anaheim on Aug. 7, could make one more minor league start before joining the White Sox. Manager Jerry Manuel said he would consider a six-man rotation, which would give the starters an extra day as they head into the stretch run. ... RHP Cal Eldred, who has an irritated nerve in his elbow, will throw from the mound for the first time Saturday. He has not done so since July 14, his last start. ... RHP James Baldwin has been shut down because of a tired arm. Because of off days, he might just be pushed back a few days before making another start. Tampa Bay: Friday marked the Devil Rays' first trip to Comiskey Park since June 16, 1999. Only nine current Devil Rays were on that trip. ... Former White Sox SS Ozzie Guillen returned to Comiskey Park for the first time since April 29, 1998, when he was with the Orioles. ... INF Bobby Smith, who has been on the disabled list since July 6 because of a sprained right knee, will make another rehab start Friday and could rejoin the big league team this weekend.

Twins vs. Blue Jays
Minnesota: RHP Matt Kinney made his major league debut Friday. Kinney, one of the Twins' top prospects, went 5-2 with a 4.25 ERA at Triple-A Salt Lake City. Kenney was acquired from Boston along with OF John Barnes and RHP Joe Thomas for LHP Greg Swindell in 1998. ... Kinney wears glasses when he pitches. ... 1B Denny Hocking has a career-high 10-game hitting streak. Toronto: The Blue Jays, who had Thursday off, entered the game 1-11 after an off day. ... RHP Joey Hamilton, who had shoulder surgery last September, will make his first start of the season Saturday.

Angels vs. Yankees
Anaheim: C Matt Walbeck was placed on the 15-day DL with tendinitis in his right knee. C Shawn Wooten was called up from Triple-A Edmonton to take Walbeck's place. ... RHP Brian Cooper will be recalled from Edmonton on Saturday to start against New York. ... A few of the Angels were playing catch in the rain two hours before the game. Others stayed dry and watched Tiger Woods in the PGA Championship. ... The Angels, the only team to beat the Yankees in the season series the past two years, have lost four of the first seven matchups in 2000. New York: 2B Chuck Knoblauch is throwing from 50 feet as he tries to recover from a strained right forearm. Despite reports saying the Yankees might consider moving Knoblauch to the outfield, manager Joe Torre said there are no plans for Knoblauch to take fly balls. ... Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre could rejoin the team for one day this weekend as he continues his recovery from cancer treatment. ... Glenallen Hill, with nine homers in 43 at-bats with the Yankees, started at DH and homered in two of his first three at-bats Friday. "He's hot right now. That's why he's playing," Torre said. ... LHP Allen Watson underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left shoulder.

Mariners vs. Indians
Seattle: The Mariners entered Friday night's game clinging to a three-game lead over Oakland in the AL West. Seattle's five-game losing streak is its longest since dropping five in a row Aug. 4-8, 1999. During the skid, Mariners pitchers have a 7.80 ERA. ... It's been tough for Seattle to get started on the road. In their first eight road trips this season, the Mariners are 0-8 in the first game of a series and 7-1 in Game 2. ... DH Edgar Martinez played in his 1,500th game Friday night with Seattle. He is second on the team's list, behind Ken Griffey Jr., who played in 1,535. ... Kazuhiro Sasaki's 28 saves are second-most for an AL rookie. Toronto's Billy Koch set the record with 31 saves in 1999. Cleveland: RHP Jaret Wright had successful surgery on his right shoulder Thursday in Los Angeles and will not be able to pick up a baseball until Dec. 1. Angels team physician Dr. Lewis Yocum repaired a tear in Wright's labrum and cleaned up some fraying on his rotator cuff. Indians manager Charlie Manuel said Wright should be back for the start of training camp. "He shouldn't miss much time if he misses any at all," Manuel said. ... LHP Ricardo Rincon, who had elbow surgery in May, pitched a simulated game Friday and will be sent to Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday to begin a rehab assignment. Rincon is expected to pitch three times for the Bisons and could be back with the Indians by the end of next week. ... With 45 games left entering Friday night, Manuel knows now is the time the Indians have to make a move if they want to make the postseason for the sixth straight year. "Time's running out," Manuel said. "It's time for us to kick it."

Royals vs. Orioles
Kansas City: The Royals placed LHP Paul Spoljaric on the 15-day disabled list and recalled RHP Jose Santiago from Triple-A Omaha. Spoljaric was called up from Omaha a week ago, but was unable to pitch because of a back strain. ... The four-game series that began Friday was Kansas City's only visit to Baltimore this season. ... OF Johnny Damon is on pace to break the club record of 133 runs, set by Willie Wilson in 1980. ... KC batters have the fewest walks and strikeouts in the AL. Baltimore: RHP Beau Hale, the Orioles' top draft pick in the June draft, signed a one-year contract, the team announced Friday. ... Pat Rapp, the Orioles' starter Friday, made his first appearance since Aug. 8. He missed his last start to be with his critically ill father in Louisiana. ... SS Melvin Mora had seven errors in his first 20 games with Baltimore, including four in his last four games.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pirates vs. Reds
Pittsburgh: A cameraman fell into the stairwell at the end of the Pirates' dugout a half-hour before the game. The cameraman walked to a cart on the field and was given a ride to a medical station. ... Jimmy Anderson, who will start Saturday against Cincinnati, has given up only one homer in his last seven starts and a total of six this season. The Pirates' staff gave up that many Wednesday night in Houston. ... Seven of Brian Giles' last eight hits went for extra bases. He was in an 8-for-15 spurt with a double, three triples and three homers in the last four games. ... At 49-70, the Pirates were 21 games under .500 for the first time this season. Cincinnati: 2B Pokey Reese, in a 9-for-59 slump, was back at leadoff Friday when the lineup was posted. A few minutes before the first pitch, he was scratched because of a tight left hamstring. ... OF Dmitri Young was out of the lineup with a bruised right shoulder, injured Wednesday night. ... SS Barry Larkin was two hits shy of 2,000. He would become the first major league shortstop with 2,000 hits, 170 homers and 350 steals. ... Umpire Terry Craft was ill, leaving three umps to work the game.

Brewers vs. Astros
Milwaukee: INF Mark Loretta came off the disabled list for the Brewers after completing a 20-day rehab assignment in Indianapolis. Loretta hit .240 with five RBIs in 10 games at Indy. ... To make room for him, the Brewers optioned INF Santiago Perez to Indianapolis. Perez hit .191 with two RBIs in 20 games with Milwaukee. Houston: Roger Cedeno, who has missed 75 games with a broken left hand, returned to the lineup Friday, batting leadoff and playing LF, which he didn't do in any of his first 39 games. Cedeno takes the place of Lance Berkman, hitting .304 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs. "With his speed," manager Larry Dierker said of the .258 hitting Cedeno, "he may end up being better in left field than anybody we've had out there." ... C Mitch Meluskey, who has missed 17 games with right biceps tendinitis, also came off the DL. He started in place of Tony Eusebio, who is on a career high and club season- best 18-game hitting streak during which he is batting .385.

Marlins vs. Rockies
Florida: SS Alex Gonzalez (sprained MCL) and LF Cliff Floyd (sprained knee) are on the DL, but accompanied the team to Denver. The left knee continues to bother Gonzalez enough to keep him sidelined. Floyd took batting practice Friday. ... The Marlins (60-60) have a .500 record after the All-Star break for just the second time in their history. ... 1B Derrek Lee increased his batting average from .250 to .289 over the past 66 games. ... 2B Luis Castillo is 38 hits shy of matching the franchise high of 175, set by Jeff Conine in 1996. ... Florida will play 27 of its final 42 games on the road. Colorado: RHP Kevin Jarvis threw a simulated game Friday at Triple-A Colorado Springs and without pain in his lower back that required him to go on the DL. ... RHP Giovanni Cararra was reported to still have stiffness in his right elbow. Manager Buddy Bell said he didn't expect to activate either before the Sept. 1 callup date. ... Bell said the Rockies are being cautious about the progress of RHP Jerry Dipoto, who threw a simulated game Friday at Coors Field. "We don't want to get too carried away with his progress. We want to make sure he is all right before we go any farther." ... 1B Todd Helton finished the nine-game road trip 19-for-29 with three homers and 10 RBIs. ... When asked about the pressures of his run at .400, Helton, hitting .396 said, "There isn't any more pressure on me than usual. I've felt pressure on every at-bat since I was 12."

Phillies vs. Cardinals
Philadelphia: RHP Robert Person, who started Friday, did not allow a run in nine innings his first two games at Busch Stadium. Person is from suburban University City. ... LHP Omar Daal, who opposes RHP Pat Hentgen on Saturday, is coming off his worst outing since joining the Phillies in a July 26 trade from Arizona. He lasted four innings in a loss to Houston on Aug. 13, allowing nine runs on eight hits. ... The Phillies and Rockies were tied for the NL lead in doubles with 233. ... OF Pat Burrell, who didn't join the team until May 24, led NL rookies with 13 homers, 54 RBIs and 32 extra-base hits. He was second with 18 doubles and third with 125 total bases. St. Louis: The Cardinals did not consider giving RHP Matt Morris, in the bullpen after missing all of last season due to elbow surgery, a shot as the replacement for injured RHP Andy Benes in the rotation. "We feel right now for Matt, the best place is the bullpen," general manager Walt Jocketty said. But Jocketty didn't rule out Morris starting at some point this season. ... OF Eric Davis is holding the LifeRace, a 5K run-walk, Saturday morning as part of his continuing effort to promote colon cancer awareness. ... Jocketty said the Cardinals won't call up a lot of players from Triple-A Memphis on Sept. 1 when rosters can be expanded. "We want to leave that team pretty much intact," Jocketty said. "We've already destroyed it taking (Gene) Stechshulte and (Eduardo) Perez out of there." Memphis was 75-52 and closing in on the Eastern Division title in the Pacific Coast League.

Cubs vs. Diamondbacks
Chicago: Manager Don Baylor said RHP Kerry Wood will not start Sunday against Arizona. Baylor put off Wood's start until Tuesday night in Houston. Wood has been sidelined since July 30 with a left oblique strain. LHP Daniel Garibay will start Sunday, with Randy Johnson going for Arizona. ... In their just-completed six-game homestand, the Cubs scored just 14 runs. ... With 41 stolen bases, Eric Young has topped the 40-mark in steals for the sixth time in his major league career. He has been successful in his last 15 attempts, a career high. Arizona: Manager Buck Showalter went against his usual tendency Friday and started right-handed hitters Greg Colbrunn at first base and Danny Bautista in right field against RHP Ruben Quevedo. Showalter usually starts lefties Erubiel Durazo at first and Jason Conti in right against right-handers, but Colbrunn has hit .452 in his last 10 starts. Bautista hit .412 on the just-completed six-game road trip. ... The series against Chicago is always a big draw at Bank One Ballpark because of the popularity of the Cubs, who have held spring training in Arizona since the 1950s.

Mets vs. Dodgers
New York: Mets pitchers Turk Wendell and Rick Reed probably won't ever complain about New York cab drivers again after Friday's 1½-hour odyssey between their hotel and Dodger Stadium. Their taxi had a flat on the freeway and the driver pulled over to change tires, but he then had to make a detour to a service station because there wasn't enough air in the spare tire. Wendell had to sit with his feet and knees together the entire time because the cab driver was driving with the front seat as far back as it could go. ... Mike Hampton had treatment on the stress fracture in his right rib cage, which forced him out of Thursday's game and could keep him from starting on Tuesday at San Diego. "If he misses any time, it won't be very long," manager Bobby Valentine said. "The doctors say you can't make the situation worse, but if you waited (the proper time) for the stress fracture to heal, they said he couldn't do anything for three months." ... The Mets are staying in the same hotel the New York delegation was headquartered for this week's Democratic National Convention. Among the crowd at Friday night's game was Dan Malloy, the mayor of Valentine's hometown of Stamford, Conn. Los Angeles: With 11 victories and about nine starts remaining, Chan Ho Park is the only Dodger with a mathematical chance of winning 20 games. If he doesn't, it would be the first time in the franchise's 111-year history that the Dodgers will go 10 consecutive seasons without a 20-game winner (Ramon Martinez, 20-6 in 1990). ... Switch-hitter Devon White, who has started only six times in CF since Tom Goodwin arrived in a trade from Colorado on July 31, was penciled in Friday night's starting lineup. But manager Davey Johnson scratched him after White told him he wasn't able to swing left-handed. "It's just a little soreness. It's not from the (rotator) cuff, it's the back of the (left) shoulder," said White, who missed more than 11 weeks because of a partial tear in his left rotator cuff.

Braves vs. Giants
Atlanta: Catcher Javy Lopez did not start for the third straight game Friday because of a sore right elbow. He is day to day. ... Until winning his previous start, Greg Maddux had lost four straight starts, though he posted a 2.80 ERA in those games. The Braves were shut out in two of the games and lost another 3-2 in 10 innings. ... Maddux leads all active pitchers with at least 10 wins per year in 13 straight seasons. Atlanta's Tom Glavine has 12 straight seasons of 10 or more wins, and Baltimore's Mike Mussina has eight. San Francisco: RHP Joe Nathan, who went on the disabled list July 14 with right shoulder inflammation, is expected to be activated Saturday. Manager Dusty Baker said there are no plans to put Nathan in the rotation. "Everybody's going good," Baker said. "There's no need to change.". ... RF Ellis Burks was a late scratch from the lineup Friday. He had flu-like symptoms and Armando Rios replaced him. ... Kent is only the seventh Giant to with four straight 100-RBI seasons, joining George Kelly, Irish Meusel, Bill Terry, Mel Ott, Willie Mays and Barry Bonds. Ott and Mays each did it for eight straight seasons.

Expos vs. Padres
Montreal: C Lenny Webster was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sore right elbow. The move on Webster, hitting .205 with no homers and five RBI, was retroactive to Monday. Brian Schneider was recalled from Triple-A Ottawa to replace Webster. ... LF Peter Bergeron is still nursing a bruised left thumb and was held out of the starting lineup. Bergeron came out of Thursday's game in the fourth inning. ... Schneider collected his first major league hit off Friday night's starter, Matt Clement, in San Diego on May 27. San Diego: Tony Gwynn took batting practice for the first time in more than seven weeks since surgery on his left knee. Gwynn, who last appeared in a game on June 23 as a pinch hitter at Cincinnati, has been hitting off a tee and is scheduled to begin running next week. Although he said he'd like to return to play in September, the odds favor the eight-time NL batting champ missing the remainder of the season. ... With a 10-6 record in August, the Padres need only five wins in their next 13 games to register their first winning month since June 1999.