AMERICAN LEAGUE

Rangers-Yankees
Texas: The Rangers went 12 straight games without scoring in the first inning before getting four Tuesday and two Wednesday. ... Closer John Wetteland earned his first save in four weeks on Tuesday night. His six appearances between saves were the most since going seven straight at the start of the 1994 season. "I am so happy for that man," manager Johnny Oates said. ... Rafael Palmeiro homered in the first two games of the series, giving him 393 for his career. "He's starting to get into one of those grooves," Oates said. "He's an important part of our offense." New York: Jose Canseco let manager Joe Torre know he is able to play outfield for the short-handed Yankees. "I'm definitely willing to do it. But it is a scary thought. I don't want to embarrass myself or the organization out there so I'm working on getting in the best condition I can." ... OFs Bernie Williams (sore right rib cage) and David Justice (neck) did not start again. Williams has missed five straight games and won't be back until at least the weekend. Justice, who was available to pinch hit, missed his third straight game. ... INF Mike Coolbaugh, who is playing at Triple-A Columbus, was the only Yankee picked for the U.S. Olympic team.

Angels vs. Red Sox
Anaheim: RHP Ramon Ortiz hasn't had it easy. Since being recalled Aug. 8, he's faced only the top two teams in the AL East. He was 0-1 in two starts against the New York Yankees since beating Boston's Pedro Martinez 2-1 with a two-hit complete game on the day of his recall. ... Even backups hit plenty of homers for the Angels, who have set a club record for homers in a season. Four of Ron Gant's seven hits for Anaheim before Wednesday were homers. ... Mo Vaughn started the day with 95 RBI and seems likely to become the second Angels player to have consecutive 100 RBI seasons. Wally Joyner did it in 1986 and 1987. Boston: Nomar Garciaparra is hurting -- at bat and in the body. He wasn't in the starting lineup Wednesday as he nursed a minor hamstring injury incurred Tuesday night. His hitting problems have lasted longer. Garciaparra was mired in a 4-for-26 slump. His .369 batting average was his lowest since June 1 when he was hitting .361. ... Entering Wednesday, Boston played 11 games since Carl Everett hit his last homer, his 29th. The last time a Red Sox outfielder hit 30 homers was 1984 when Tony Armas had 43 and Dwight Evans had 32.

Mariners vs. Tigers
Seattle: OF Rickey Henderson's two walks in Tuesday's 8-4 victory at Detroit left him 18 shy of Babe Ruth's record 2,062. ... SS Alex Rodriguez had an AL-leading 21 road homers (out of 31 total) after his three-run blast Tuesday. Sammy Sosa led the majors with 25. Rodriguez's .379 road average also topped the AL and ranked second to Mike Piazza's .399. ... RHP Kazuhiro Sasaki's 29th save Monday left him two shy of Billy Koch's AL rookie record set last year. Todd Worrell set the major league record with 36 in 1986. Detroit: RHP Brian Moehler (10-7, 4.16 ERA) will seek a career-best and Tigers season-high fifth straight win Thursday afternoon when he starts the finale of a three-game series with Seattle. Moehler is 7-2 at Comerica Park, and his 3.36 home ERA is the sixth-best in the AL. ... The Tigers topped 2 million in home attendance Wednesday night. They're on pace to draw 2,592,409 to Comerica Park, second-best in club history. Only the 1994 World Series champion Tigers drew more (2,704,794).

Devil Rays vs. Twins
Tampa Bay: The Devil Rays clinched their first winning season against the Twins with Tuesday's 3-2 win. ... Fred McGriff needs three more home runs to become the second player to hit 200 home runs in both leagues. McGriff has 214 National League homers and 197 in the American League. Frank Robinson is the only other player to do it, although Mark McGwire needs 11 homers for the Cardinals to accomplish the feat. It would be the fourth major milestone reached this season for McGriff. He already had his 2,000th hit, 400th home run and played in his 2,000th game. Minnesota: Although the Twins were impressed with J.C. Romero's start Tuesday -- he gave up four hits in 7 1/3 innings in a 3-2 loss to the Devil Rays -- the rookie won't take his next turn in the rotation. Instead, another rookie, Matt Kinney, will start Sunday against Detroit. Manager Tom Kelly said Romero isn't being demoted; the Twins just want to see more of Kinney, as players audition for roles in 2001. Romero is 2-3 with a 4.33 ERA in five starts. Kinney is 0-1 with a 2.84 ERA in one start. ... Bill Robertson, the former Twins vice president in charge of stadium operations and brother of former owner Calvin Griffith, died Sunday. He was 79.

Royals vs. Blue Jays
Kansas City: LHP Chris George was chosen for the U.S. Olympic team. George is 2-2 with a 5.82 ERA at Double-A Wichita. He went 8-5 with a 3.14 ERA at Triple-A Omaha. ... This series marks the end of a stretch of 25 of 35 games on the road for Kansas City. Toronto: Former Blue Jays catcher Pat Borders was selected to the U.S. Olympic team. ... The Blue Jays claimed RHP Pat Daneker off waivers from the Chicago White Sox. Danekar, 8-11 with a 5.80 ERA at Triple-A Charlotte, will report to Triple-A Syracuse ... OF Dave Martinez, filling in for the injured Raul Mondesi, singled in the first, giving him at least one hit in each of his 14 games with the Blue Jays. Martinez was acquired from Texas on Aug. 5.

Athletics vs. Indians
Oakland: The A's were upset with Indians reliever Steve Reed, who hit Oakland rookie Eric Byrnes -- making his big-league debut -- in the seventh inning of Monday night's game. "You could tell by his demeanor that he took it upon himself to hit the guy," Oakland manager Art Howe said. "You do that and we're going to stand up for our players." The A's retaliated in the eighth as reliever Jeff Tam twice threw behind Indians catcher Sandy Alomar. "A message had to be sent," said Howe, who noticed a different team after Byrnes got hit. "The guys got pumped," he said. Reed denied throwing at Byrnes. The bad blood continued Wednesday night as the benches emptied after a pair of brushback pitches. ... Jason Giambi (strained shoulder) didn't start for the fifth straight game and Howe didn't know if he would be available to pinch-hit. Randy Velarde (strained neck) missed his sixth game in a row. ... Despite being 13th in the AL with a .267 team batting average entering Wednesday's game, the A's were second in walks with 561 walks. Cleveland: LHP C.C. Sabathia, the Indians' top pitching prospect, was selected as a starting pitcher for the U.S. Olympic team. "It's a great honor for me and I'm excited about it," the 6-foot-7 left-hander said. "It will be a great experience for me to go over there and pitch in pressure situations." After starting the year in Class A, Sabathia is 3-7 with a 3.81 ERA at Double-A Akron. Indians GM John Hart said the club spent six weeks wavering on whether to send Sabathia to Australia. The Indians considered bringing up the 20-year-old for the pennant race before deciding to let him pitch for the United States. ... RHP Charles Nagy, out since May after undergoing elbow surgery, pitched a simulated game Wednesday and could be back next month. "I liked the way he looked," manager Charlie Manuel said. ... With GM John Hart's knack for adding a player by the Aug. 31 deadline, Manuel was asked what he would like to add to the roster. "I need McGwire," Manuel joked. "He's been hurt but I could make a DH out of him."

Orioles vs. White Sox
Baltimore: Cal Ripken, on the DL since June 28 with a sore back, made the trip with the team to Chicago to work out. No date has been set for his return. ... The Orioles moved RHP Jose Mercedes up to start Thursday's game against the White Sox. Pat Rapp, who's father died Monday, was pushed back and will start Friday's game against Tampa Bay. ... In every month from April to July, the Orioles' team ERA increased, reaching 6.21 last month. ... Before Wednesday night's game against his former team, the White Sox, C Brook Fordyce had thrown out only 1 of 15 basestealers for the Orioles. ... Former Sox OF Albert Belle was greeted with the usual chorus of boos when he came to bat in the first. Chicago: RHP Jon Garland went on the DL Wednesday but is happy he'll be ready to rejoin the White Sox before the season ends. Garland was hit with a Fred McGriff line drive just below his right elbow last Friday. It was still swollen Wednesday but could have been worse for the rookie. "I was lucky. If It had gotten me higher, I probably would be out the rest of the year," Garland said. ... RHP Cal Eldred, on the DL with neuritis in his right elbow, will throw batting practice Saturday in Seattle. "It will give us an opportunity to see where he is," manager Jerry Manuel said. If he's ready, Eldred will probably make two rehab starts before rejoining a starting rotation that sorely misses him. ... Veteran Ken Hill will start Thursday's game against the Orioles. He says his arthritic elbow has not been a major problem before he was released earlier this month by the Angels, but something that flares up from time to time. ... James Baldwin, forced to skip one start because of a tired arm, will start Sunday's game in Seattle.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Phillies vs. Reds
Philadelphia: The Phillies turned a double play in the first inning Wednesday and have had at least one double play in 12 of their last 13 games. They turned three in the series opener Monday and a season-high four Tuesday night in a 5-4 victory. Until then, they'd been tied with the Mets for fewest double plays in the NL. ... Reliever Jeff Brantley said it was special to save Tuesday night's game against his former team. "I feel comfortable pitching in this park," he said. "A lot of good things happened to me in this park." ... Doug Glanville took a nine-game hitting streak into the game. Bobby Abreu had hit in seven straight. Cincinnati: The bat that Alex Ochoa used for his first career grand slam is headed to the baseball Hall of Fame. Ochoa's slam Tuesday night was the 142nd in the majors this season, a record. Ochoa autographed the pine-tar covered Louisville Slugger model C271 bat before it was sent off. ... Reliever Mark Wohlers had more tests Wednesday that came back normal, like the others. Wohlers has been bothered by pain in his lower right side that evidently is the result of a pulled muscle. He said it felt better Wednesday and he was available to pitch. ... SS Barry Larkin got the day off. Larkin has been bothered by a sore left knee, sprained Aug. 4. He's 9-for-48 since Aug. 2.

Cubs vs. Astros
Chicago: The Cubs entered Wednesday's game having allowed 180 home runs. At their current pace they would give up 235. The Cubs set the club record last year by allowing 221 homers. ... In five games at Enron Field, former Astro Ricky Gutierrez is 9-for-18 with three homers and 10 RBI. Houston: Rookie SS Julio Lugo has played only 81 games, but he leads the team with 15 errors, including missing a pop-up on the infield during Tuesday night's game that he lost in the ceiling. "Nobody is used to this stadium, but there have been balls thrown off the Washington Monument and balls thrown out of airplanes that people have caught," Astros manager Larry Dierker said. "That was a catchable ball. I'm not going to cast a lot of blame, it was a tough catch, but there's a lot of tough catches and major league players are supposed to make those."... C Tony Eusebio, who has the majors' longest active hitting streak (20 games) was not in the starting lineup Wednesday night. Rookie Mitch Meluskey started instead of Eusebio.

Braves vs. Rockies
Atlanta: RHP Greg Maddux was not expected to miss his next start despite being bothered by a stiff neck Wednesday. He was unsure what caused the problem, but said he didn't think it was the team's hotel. "I bring my own pillow anyway." ... Rookie SS Rafael Furcal ended the six-game road trip 2-for-30. ... Maddux has allowed seven earned runs in his last five starts for a 1.87 ERA. He also improved to 4-0 in five career starts at Coors Field. ... Maddux's 10 victories over the Rockies are the most by an opposing pitcher against Colorado. ... OF Andruw Jones went 7-for-15 with two homers and five RBI in the series. Colorado: Manager Buddy Bell did not speak to reporters after Wednesday's game. A team spokesman said Bell was not feeling well. The manager had surgery on his right knee earlier in the day but was in the Rockies dugout for the first pitch. ... Rookie OF Juan Pierre extended his hitting streak to 16 games. ... OF Jeffrey Hammonds was scratched from the starting lineup because of a stiff neck. ... RHP Brian Rose dropped to 1-5 in his last 10 starts.

Pirates vs. Cardinals
Pittsburgh: Tuesday's game was the last in a 19-game stretch in which the Pirates played 16 times on the road. They entered the game 6-12 in that span. ... Jason Kendall and Brian Giles scored 27 of the Pirates' last 55 runs. ... With 105 RBI in 124 games, Giles was on pace to break the team record of 131 by Paul Waner in 1927. ... 2B Warren Morris hadn't committed an error in 45 games after committing 11 in his first 64 games. ... Alex Ramirez has two home runs in his last three pinch-hit at-bats. The Pirates went 41 games without an RBI from a pinch-hitter from June 30-July 16. St. Louis: The Cardinals want Andy Benes, on the disabled list with a knee injury, to make perhaps three starts in preparation for the postseason. Benes could pitch sooner, but has had his right knee drained of fluid six times. They want to minimize his work down the stretch unless the NL Central race gets close.

Marlins vs. Giants
Florida: OF Cliff Floyd has been participating in pregame activities at full speed and is expected to come off the 15-day DL on Friday when the Marlins return to play host to Cincinnati. He is showing no signs of the limp he had before July 29 arthroscopic left-knee surgery for torn cartilage, his second such surgery in 15 months. Floyd won't play every day once he's back, but he should get the majority of playing time in left field. "You would never know," Florida manager John Boles said of Floyd. "He didn't have a limp. He was running smoothly. He was flying." When RHP Dan Miceli gave up a two-run homer to Barry Bonds and RHP Antonio Alfonseca allowed a homer to Ellis Burks on Tuesday, the Marlins' bullpen has allowed 35 earned runs in 22 2/3 innings (13.90 ERA) over the past 10 games. ... RHP Josh Beckett's chance to be named to the Olympic team was probably hurt by the fact he's just coming off the 15-day DL for the Marlins' Class-A affiliate in Kane County. San Francisco: RHP John Johnstone will miss his second rehab appearance Wednesday night with Single-A San Jose in Modesto because of a flare up in his back. There's still no timetable for Johnstone's eventual return to the Giants, though he might be added to the roster before Aug. 31 -- ready or not -- to be eligible for postseason play. Johnstone has been on the 15-day DL since July 20. ... The Giants extended their agreements with their minor league affiliates in San Jose and Salem-Keizer through the 2002 season. Because of a new ruling that prohibits a team from having two affiliates in the same league, the Giants will not renew with Bakersfield and will seek a replacement in either the Midwest League or South Atlantic League. ... RHP Kurt Ainsworth, a possible September callup for the Giants, will pitch for the U.S. Olympic baseball team instead. Ainsworth, who turns 22 on Sept. 9, was named to the squad Wednesday. He's 8-9 in 26 starts with a 3.53 ERA at Double-A Shreveport this season. He has 113 strikeouts and 60 walks in 145 innings pitched.

Expos vs. Dodgers
Montreal: The Expos decided Wednesday not to renew the option on the piece of land where the proposed Labbatt's Stadium was due to be built. "It is our feeling that until the ownership situation gets resolved, and the other stadium-related economic issues get resolved, it wasn't prudent to re-up the option right now because we could not present a certain date when we could start construction," executive vice president David Samson said. "By no means does this mean that the stadium is not going to be built," he added. ... OF Brad Wilkerson, playing for Montreal's Triple-A Ottawa team, was the only member of the Expos organization selected Wednesday to play for the U.S. Olympic team. Los Angeles: LF Gary Sheffield, scheduled to meet with commissioner Bud Selig next Monday in order to appeal the five-game suspension he received for the Dodgers' brawl with Wrigley Field fans on May 16, withdrew the appeal and began serving the suspension Wednesday night. With a doubleheader at Chicago on Friday, Sheffield will be eligible Sunday. ... Former Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he has no regrets about selling the team to Fox Corp. in 1998, but declined comment regarding the way the current management is running a team with a $98 million payroll that's barely over .500. "I think it would be unfair of me to say," O'Malley remarked. "Unless you sit in the chair of the CEO's office at his desk and know all the facts, no one can put a finger on it from a distance and say, 'Well, they should do this,' or 'That's the problem.' They're going through a tough time and they don't have it together today, but they will soon." ... The Dodgers signed their first pick in the June draft, 6-foot-7 Arizona RHP Ben Diggins, and assigned him to Class-A San Bernardino.

Mets vs. Padres
New York: LHP Mike Hampton, who missed Tuesday's start because of a fractured rib, will throw on the side Friday, and the Mets will then decide when he'll return. Manager Bobby Valentine told radio station WFAN that he hopes Hampton can return to the rotation Sunday. ... C Mike Piazza was back after sitting out Tuesday's game with a swollen shin, but SS Edgardo Alfonzo sat out his second straight game, with a stiff neck. San Diego: Padres farmhand Sean Burroughs was named to the Olympic baseball team. The 19-year-old third baseman, the son of Jeff Burroughs, the 1974 AL MVP, is the organization's top prospect. "I've always dreamed about making the Olympic team and playing for my country," Burroughs said. Burroughs, who plays for Double-A Mobile, was the MVP at last month's Futures Game, which was played at Atlanta two days before the All-Star Game. Burroughs led Long Beach to consecutive Little League World Series titles in 1992-93.

Brewers vs. Diamondbacks
Milwaukee: The Brewers optioned LHP Rafael Roque to Triple-A Indianapolis and activated RHP David Weathers, who had been on the 15-day DL with a left strained oblique muscle since Aug. 1. ... Milwaukee's No. 1 draft pick last year, Ben Sheets, was named to the U.S. Olympic team. He was 8-8 with a 2.43 ERA this season with Double-A Huntsville and Triple-A Indianapolis. ... Milwaukee had won three in a row going into Tuesday night's series finale against Arizona, matching its longest win streak of the season. Arizona: RHP Todd Stottlemyre, on the DL since June 26 with tendinitis in his right elbow, made his first rehab appearance for Arizona's Rookie League team in Tucson. He threw 60 pitches without pain Wednesday. He has one more appearance scheduled next Monday and plans to make his return to the Diamondbacks rotation Sept. 2 or 3. ... Luis Gonzalez's season-high 14-game hitting streak ended when he went 0-for-4 in the Diamondbacks' 4-3 loss Tuesday night. ... After Wednesday's game, Arizona heads to New York. The Diamondbacks are just 1-5 against the Mets this season, 0-3 at Shea Stadium.