AMERICAN LEAGUE
Red Sox vs. Tigers
Boston: RHP Steve Ontiveros is believed to be the first pitcher to ever return to the majors after undergoing "Tommy John surgery" twice. He'll make his first big league appearance since 1995 when he starts the second game of Boston's day-night doubleheader Saturday at Detroit. "The opportunity to prove myself again is huge," said Ontiveros, who played college ball at Michigan. "I'm ready for the task and the excitement of trying to help somebody further themselves in the race for the playoffs." ... RHP Hipolito Pichardo (forearm strain) went through a pregame throwing session Friday, but both he and RHP Rich Garces (groin strain) remained unavailable out of the Red Sox bullpen. Detroit: 1B Tony Clark was a late scratch from Friday's lineup due to stiffness in his back. Clark was on the DL from July 15-Sept. 1 with back problems. ... RHP Doug Brocail can still pitch, but not in his familiar eighth-inning setup role. Manager Phil Garner said Brocail, on the DL from Aug. 14-Sept. 1 with right elbow inflammation, can pitch to one or two batters at a time and hopefully throw no more than 15 pitches. Brocail's elbow will probably require surgery after the season. ... Seven losses in eight games entering Friday all but mathematically eliminated the Tigers from the AL wild card chase, but Garner hasn't completely given up hope. "Something great's got top happen _ a 10-game winning streak now," Garner said. "It's not impossible. It's improbable, but not impossible." ... When Boston last visited Detroit in April, the Tigers lost 7-0 and 10-0 games and were scheduled to face Pedro Martinez in the series finale. That game was rained out, however, necessitating Saturday's day-night doubleheader.

Mariners vs. Orioles
Seattle: Rickey Henderson scored his 2,174th career run in the first inning Friday, tying Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron for second place behind Ty Cobb (2,246). ... The Mariners have won three straight series. ... Seattle has been in first place since June 28. ... The Mariners have clinched their first winning season against the AL East since 1997. Baltimore: Cal Ripken, playing his first home game since returning from the disabled list, batted cleanup and started at third base. ... The Orioles have won only series on the road in the second half. ... Baltimore has used 49 players this season, second-highest in team history behind the 54 players used in 1955. ... Albert Belle missed an 11th straight game with inflammation in his right hip. Manager Mike Hargrove said, "Until we gather all medical information and can make an informed decision, Albert isn't going to play."

Indians vs. Yankees
Cleveland: The Indians will give Charles Nagy an extra day of rest and start him in the second game of Wednesday's day-night doubleheader at Boston. Nagy, coming off surgery to remove elbow chips, lost Thursday night to Boston's Pedro Martinez, Nagy's first start since May 16. "I'm sore, but it's a good sore," Indians manager Charlie Manuel said Nagy told him Friday. Dave Burba, who started against the Yankees on Friday, probably will start Wednesday's opener. Jason Bere, Jim Brower and C.C. Sabathia, recalled this week from the U.S. Olympic team in Australia, are among the possibilities for Tuesday. ... Jim Thome played first base because David Segui had a sore chest. New York: The Yankees' starting lineup was missing 2B Chuck Knoblauch (twinge in elbow), 1B Tino Martinez (soreness), CF Bernie Williams (calf strain) and C Jorge Posada (scheduled day off). ... With David Cone returning to action, the Yankees once again have all five regular starting pitchers healthy. Cone, who pitched poorly for most of the season, says he knows he probably won't get to start in the playoffs. "I think David takes into consideration that there's a human element, too," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "It isn't easy to make these decisions and he's not going to make it any tougher." ... Yankees pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, who has multiple myeloma, had his stem-cell transplant. Stottlemyre left the team Monday to be hospitalized for the treatment, isn't expected back during the season.

Athletics vs. Devil Rays
Oakland: LHP Mark Mulder will likely miss the rest of the regular season with a herniated disc in his lower back. He was hurt while working out Wednesday. Head trainer Larry Davis said Mulder, who will be re-evaluated Monday, might be ready should the Athletics make the playoffs. "You're very careful with this," Davis said. ... The Athletics are starting an 11-game, 10-day road trip. The trip concludes with four games against AL West-leading Seattle. Still, manager Art Howe is not looking past the next seven games against Tampa Bay and Baltimore. "If we don't play well, it may not mean anything when we get there," Howe said. "We need to get our share of wins on his road trip." Tampa Bay: RHP Ryan Rupe, who is sidelined after a blood clot was discovered in right shoulder earlier this month, could resume a throwing program in the next 1-2 weeks. ... LHP Wilson Alvarez, who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery earlier this year, will resume throwing Saturday. ... RHP Dave Eiland (hyper-extended right knee) should be available to pitch in the next couple days. ... The Devil Rays have not ruled out RHP Tanyon Sturtze (left oblique strain) returning before the season ends. ... 1B Fred McGriff is the club's nominee for the 2000 Roberto Clemente Award, which recognizes the player who best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and individual contribution to his team. ... Minor league RHP Matt White has returned from the U.S. Olympic Team after reporting tightness behind his right shoulder.

Royals vs. Rangers
Kansas City: OF Mark Quinn missed his fifth straight start with a cramp in his right hamstring, but Quinn is still the favorite to join Carlos Beltran as consecutive Rookie of the Year winners for the Royals. Quinn leads all AL rookies in homers (20), RBIs (70), slugging percentage (.500) and on-base percentage (.345). ... Lou Piniella (1969) and Bob Hamelin (1994) join Beltran as the franchise's Rookie of the Year winners. Texas: Club officials say September call-up Ruben Sierra has a legitimate chance to make the roster next spring as a DH and pinch-hitter. Sierra, seeing his first action for the Rangers in eight years, drove in his first run for Texas since 1992 with a seventh-inning single against the Royals on Thursday night. "He's worked hard and been a model citizen," said manager Johnny Oates. "He's enjoying every day and is trying to show us something to have him in the mix in the spring.". ... Newly appointed director of amateur scouting Tim Hallgren has been a Rangers' scout, national cross checker and West Coast supervisor for 13 years. Among the players Hallgren has been involved with or supervised their selection in the draft are two current Rangers -- third baseman Mike Lamb and pitcher Doug Davis.

Angels vs. Twins
Anaheim: The Angels will move its Class A team from Lake Elsinore to Rancho Cucamonga next year. Rancho Cucamonga has been a San Diego affiliate since 1993. ... Tim Salmon needs to score three times to reach 100 runs scored. Darin Erstad and Troy Glaus have already surpassed the 100-run mark. The Angels have had three players scored more than 100 runs three times in franchise history, 1979 (Don Baylor 120, Carney Lansford 114 and Dan Ford 100); 1987 (Brian Downing 110, Devon White 103 and Wally Joyner 100); and 1995 (Jim Edmonds 120, Tony Phillips 119 and Tim Salmon 111). Minnesota: The Twins enter their final homestand of the season as the only American League team with a total attendance of fewer than 1 million. They need to draw just over 32,000 in their last ten home games to reach the mark. ... The Twins still haven't heard if Triple-A Salt Lake City will renew its affiliation with the team in 2001. A decision is expected early next week.

Blue Jays vs. White Sox
Toronto: The plane scheduled to take the Blue Jays from New York to Chicago on Thursday night had mechanical problems, so the team had to spend the night at a hotel near the airport in New Jersey. When those problems still weren't fixed by Friday morning, the team had to charter another plane, resulting in a 2½-hour delay. The Blue Jays didn't arrive in Chicago until 1:30 p.m. ... The Blue Jays have made 13 trips to the DL this season for a total of 446 games missed, their biggest loss Raul Mondesi who had elbow surgery Aug. 14. ... Asked who should be the MVP, his own Carlos Delgado or the White Sox's Frank Thomas, Toronto manager Jim Fregosi was diplomatic, although it's obvious he thinks his own guy should win. " I watch Carlos play every day. It's hard to judge, they've both had great seasons." Chicago: Mike Sirotka would start the first game of the playoffs, if the White Sox make the postseason. The 14-game winner has been Chicago's most reliable pitcher down the stretch and was given the nod Friday by manager Jerry Manuel. ... Another 14-game winner, James Baldwin, is still sore after having an injection last Saturday for shoulder tendinitis and still hasn't resumed throwing. Baldwin did go over a schedule with trainer Herm Schneider as if he would pitch the second game of the postseason. But that would mean he'd need at least one more regular-season start. ... The White Sox will have to go back to Cleveland as part of a bizarre doubleheader with the Indians on Sept. 25. As a makeup of their game rained out last Sunday, the White Sox would meet the Indians in the afternoon and Cleveland would then play its regularly scheduled game that night against the Twins. "We'll put the best team out there and have fun and try to win," said Baldwin, the team's player representative. There was speculation that the White Sox might have to return to Jacobs Field the day after the season ended for the makeup if it had a bearing on the postseason.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Mets vs. Expos
New York: Mets starters entered Friday night's game with the lowest combined ERA in the National League at 4.12, ahead of St. Louis and Atlanta, whose starters had each combined for a 4.17 ERA. ... CF Jay Payton leads all NL rookies with 126 hits, 35 multi-hit games and 193 total bases. He is tied with Philadelphia rookie Pat Burrell with 15 homers. Montreal: A total of nine players consulted with team physician Dr. Larry Coughlin on Thursday. 2B Jose Vidro (left elbow) and C Lenny Webster (right elbow) were both cleared to play. C Michael Barrett is day-to-day with an inflamed right triceps. 1B Lee Stevens (left big toe), INF Mike Mordecai (right knee) and CF Milton Bradley (back muscle) are all out of action for at least another week. LHP Trey Moore (left shoulder), RHP Anthony Telford (right shoulder) and LHP Scott Downs (left elbow) will all be re-evaluated in 10 days.

Marlins vs. Phillies
Florida: The Marlins are in the midst of a four-city, 13-game road trip, the longest in club history. ... Mike Lowell loves playing day baseball. Going into Friday night's game, he was hitting .274 overall. However, during day games this season, Lowell is batting .303 (37-for-122). His overall career average during the day is .307 (66-for-215). Philadelphia: Bobby Abreu, who had missed the last two games due to soreness in his right elbow, was originally in Friday night's starting lineup but was scratched after arriving at Veterans Stadium late for a medical checkup prior to the game. ... Saturday's starter, Omar Daal (3-18), has not been the beneficiary of run support in his starts since coming to the Phillies from Arizona in July. In his one win, the Phillies scored 10 runs. In the other eight, Philadelphia scored 16 runs combined. ... Former Phillies coach George Myatt (1964-1972) died on Thursday at age 86. Myatt played 16 professional seasons, including four major league years with the Washington Senators (1943-1947).

Brewers vs. Reds
Milwaukee: Reliever Ray King has not allowed an earned run in 18 appearances spanning 16 1-3 innings. During that time he lowered his earned run average from 4.32 to 1.46. He had a stretch of 13 scoreless innings. ... The Brewers were 6-1 against the Reds in their first seven games, he best record of any team against Cincinnati this year. Cincinnati: Ken Griffey Jr. ran at half speed Friday, and the Reds reaffirmed the prognosis that Griffey would be out 5-7 days with a partial tear of his left hamstring suffered Monday. ... RHP Scott Williamson tossed on the artificial turf for 10-15 minutes to gauge his progress in returning from two broken toes in his right foot. The Reds will check his progress from the bullpen mound on Sunday.

Pirates vs. Astros
Pittsburgh: During their recent eight-game winning streak, the Pirates scored the first run in every game. In the last four games, they failed to score first and lost each game. ... The Pirates are 8-6 this month entering Friday's game but have not had a winning September since 1992 when they were 21-8. Houston: According to Elias Sports Bureau, Jeff Bagwell's run totals over the last two years rank second in the modern era (since 1900). Bagwell has 283 runs scored the last two years, one short of the record set by Philadelphia's Chuck Klein (1929-30).

Cubs vs. Cardinals
Chicago: 2B Eric Young, who injured his quadriceps and left in the fourth inning Thursday, was not in the lineup Friday. Young has been successful on his last 26 steal attempts. ... The Cubs lost their first four games at Busch Stadium this season and entered Friday's game with a five-game losing streak there. ... Mark Grace, who needs two RBIs for 1,000 in his career, got the night off as Julio Zuleta got the start at first base and batted cleanup. St. Louis: The Cardinals will begin selling playoff tickets Saturday, Sept. 23. The team anticipates there will be fewer than 8,000 tickets available for each game. ... The Cardinals have three 15-game winners in Darryl Kile (18), Garrett Stephenson (16) and Pat Hentgen (15) for the first time since 1985. That year, John Tudor and Joaquin Andujar each won 21 and Danny Cox won 18. ... 2B Fernando Vina sat out his 12th straight game with a broken rib, but played catch and hit off a tee for the first time Friday. ... Cardinals outfielder Eric Davis is one of six finalists for players choice man of the year, to be decided Tuesday.

Braves vs. Diamondbacks
Atlanta: OF B.J. Surhoff ran hard during a workout Thursday, the first sprinting he has done since pulling his right quadriceps on Sept. 7. "He's pushing it right now, and it's got me a little concerned," manager Bobby Cox said. "He's eager." Cox said he had no timetable on Surhoff's return. ... The series opener against the Diamondbacks was the sixth straight game Surhoff has missed. ... Starter Tom Glavine (19-7) went in seeking his fifth 20-victory season, something only 32 other pitchers have done since 1900. ... The Braves were averaging 5.9 runs per game for Glavine. ... Chipper Jones has five homers in 15 career at-bats against Randy Johnson. Arizona: The Diamondbacks have decided to switch their Class A California League affiliation from High Desert, near Victorville, Calif., to Lancaster, north of the Los Angeles Basin. They also will drop a short-season Arizona Rookie League team in Tucson in favor of a short-season Class A team in Yakima, Wash. Both new teams are controlled by the partnership that owns the Missoula Osprey, Arizona's rookie team in the Pioneer League. ... SS Tony Womack sat out the game to seek medical attention for a cyst on the back of his knee. He was replaced at short by Hanley Frias and in the leadoff spot by RF Danny Bautista. ... The start was the first for Johnson since he passed 300 strikeouts this year and 3,000 for his career during a 4-3, 12-inning loss at Florida on Sunday. ... Glavine is 2-1 against Johnson in four previous matchups this year.

Rockies vs. Dodgers
Colorado: Jeffrey Hammonds needs to score six more runs to join teammates Todd Helton and Jeff Cirillo with 100 runs and 100 RBIs this season. ... Dave Garcia, senior advisor to Rockies manager Buddy Bell, celebrated his 80th birthday on Friday. The only two men to remain involved in an on-field capacity at older ages were the Philadelphia Athletics manager, Connie Mack, who retired at 88; and former Angels conditioning coach Jimmie Reese, who was still coaching when he died at 92. Los Angeles: The Dodgers and Mandalay Sports Entertainment announced the signing of a player development contract which will make the Triple-A Las Vegas Stars the Dodgers' top minor league affiliate. The Stars, a member of the Pacific Coast League, will open next season as the Dodgers' farm club. Los Angeles earlier announced it would end its agreement with Triple-A Albuquerque this year. ... Catcher Jim Leyritz will leave the club Tuesday and go home to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., to undergo surgery on a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. He will be limited to pinch-hitting duty until then. The operation is scheduled for next Thursday and performed by the Florida Marlins' team doctor, John Uribe, and Dr. George Caldwell.

Giants vs. Padres
San Francisco: RF Ellis Burks was back in the starting lineup after missing the last three games due to a strained right knee. Manager Dusty Baker said he was going to take Burks' return slowly, but added, "If a guy wants to play, it's hard not to play him." ... LF Barry Bonds is hitting .462 with eight home runs and 18 RBIs since Sept. 1. ... The Giants have won 13 of 15 games with their only two losses coming last weekend when they split a four-game series against the Padres. ... Former 49ers offensive lineman Kevin Gogan, now a starter with the San Diego Chargers, was a pregame guest in the Giants' dugout. San Diego: After the 11-0 loss to Colorado on Wednesday, Padres manager Bruce Bochy said a couple of players came to him after the game and told him they were embarrassed. "I don't think that as a whole they're not focused," Bochy said. "A couple of players I've talked to. I didn't want to include everybody and blame the way things are going on the whole club. I do think a couple of guys have been drifting mentally." ... RHP Buddy Carlyle will become part of National League history if he appears any of the Padres' final 14 games. Carlyle, recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas, will become the 55th player the Padres have used this season, setting the NL record they currently hold with the New York Mets (1986) and Philadelphia (1996). The Padres have already used an NL-record 28 pitchers this season.