Baseball Guru
04-13-2002, 05:37 AM
By DAVE CAMPBELL
AP Sports Writer
April 12, 2002, 10:57 PM EDT
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Twins returned to the Metrodome to play again and Brad Radke helped them send Detroit to yet another loss.
Before the Twins' first home-opening sellout in a decade, Radke pitched into the seventh inning and sent the winless Tigers to their ninth straight defeat, 4-2 Friday night.
Detroit is off to its worst start since going 0-13 in 1920 and the worst start in the majors since the Chicago Cubs' 0-14 in 1997, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Tigers' skid is their longest at any point since losing nine straight in 1999.
Minnesota used a four-run second inning to end a four-game losing streak -- all against Cleveland.
Fans in the crowd of 48,244, happy to see in person that the Twins survived baseball's contraction plan, gave players a rousing ovation as they gathered behind the mound before the game. Utility man Denny Hocking thanked the crowd for their attendance.
Radke (2-0), who has rebounded from a rocky outing on opening day in Kansas City with two straight quality starts, gave up two runs and eight hits in 6 2-3 innings. Eddie Guardado struck out the side in the ninth to remain perfect in five save chances.
Detroit starter Mark Redman (0-2) gave up four runs and eight hits in seven innings.
Radke's outing was a much-needed lift for the rotation, which surprisingly struggled in the first 10 games. Minnesota's starters -- four have been All-Stars -- gave up 48 runs in 45 2-3 innings before Radke stopped the slide in his seventh straight start in a Twins home opener.
After watching Matt Lawton lead the Indians to a four-game sweep of them this week by going 6-for-15 with a pair of homers and five RBIs, the Twins made sure they weren't shown up by another ex-teammate and jumped on Redman early.
Torii Hunter struck out leading off the second before seven straight Twins reached base -- leading to four runs. A.J. Pierzynski and Jay Canizaro drove in runs with singles, and Jacque Jones walked to load the bases.
Cristian Guzman and Doug Mientkiewicz followed with run-scoring singles to make it 4-0, and Hunter ended the inning with a fielder's choice grounder to second.
Redman (0-2), who was traded to the Tigers last July for reliever Todd Jones and spent most of 2001 on the disabled list, settled down after the second and retired 15 of his last 16 batters.
Shane Halter's run-scoring groundout in the fourth made it 4-1.
Leadoff hitter Andres Torres, a rookie who bumped Bobby Higginson back to third in the Detroit lineup, drove in Mitch Meluskey with a sacrifice fly that cut the lead to 4-2 and chased Radke.
J.C. Romero relieved with runners at first and third and struck out pinch-hitter Wendell Magee to end the inning. Mike Jackson pitched a perfect eighth for Minnesota.
Notes:@ Felipe Alou joined the Tigers Friday as their new bench coach. ... Detroit 3B Craig Paquette was a late scratch from the lineup. Paquette, who had a stomach ailment, was replaced by Oscar Salazar. Salazar made his major league debut and singled in the seventh. ... Jack Morris, who led both the Twins and Tigers to World Series titles, was in attendance. ... Jones has a hit in each of Minnesota's 11 games and is batting .409. ... Guzman committed his fourth error in the fifth inning. ... The crowd was shown a video before the game including highlights from last season and messages from local sports celebrities, including Vikings coach Mike Tice and Timberwolves vice president Kevin McHale.
AP Sports Writer
April 12, 2002, 10:57 PM EDT
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Twins returned to the Metrodome to play again and Brad Radke helped them send Detroit to yet another loss.
Before the Twins' first home-opening sellout in a decade, Radke pitched into the seventh inning and sent the winless Tigers to their ninth straight defeat, 4-2 Friday night.
Detroit is off to its worst start since going 0-13 in 1920 and the worst start in the majors since the Chicago Cubs' 0-14 in 1997, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Tigers' skid is their longest at any point since losing nine straight in 1999.
Minnesota used a four-run second inning to end a four-game losing streak -- all against Cleveland.
Fans in the crowd of 48,244, happy to see in person that the Twins survived baseball's contraction plan, gave players a rousing ovation as they gathered behind the mound before the game. Utility man Denny Hocking thanked the crowd for their attendance.
Radke (2-0), who has rebounded from a rocky outing on opening day in Kansas City with two straight quality starts, gave up two runs and eight hits in 6 2-3 innings. Eddie Guardado struck out the side in the ninth to remain perfect in five save chances.
Detroit starter Mark Redman (0-2) gave up four runs and eight hits in seven innings.
Radke's outing was a much-needed lift for the rotation, which surprisingly struggled in the first 10 games. Minnesota's starters -- four have been All-Stars -- gave up 48 runs in 45 2-3 innings before Radke stopped the slide in his seventh straight start in a Twins home opener.
After watching Matt Lawton lead the Indians to a four-game sweep of them this week by going 6-for-15 with a pair of homers and five RBIs, the Twins made sure they weren't shown up by another ex-teammate and jumped on Redman early.
Torii Hunter struck out leading off the second before seven straight Twins reached base -- leading to four runs. A.J. Pierzynski and Jay Canizaro drove in runs with singles, and Jacque Jones walked to load the bases.
Cristian Guzman and Doug Mientkiewicz followed with run-scoring singles to make it 4-0, and Hunter ended the inning with a fielder's choice grounder to second.
Redman (0-2), who was traded to the Tigers last July for reliever Todd Jones and spent most of 2001 on the disabled list, settled down after the second and retired 15 of his last 16 batters.
Shane Halter's run-scoring groundout in the fourth made it 4-1.
Leadoff hitter Andres Torres, a rookie who bumped Bobby Higginson back to third in the Detroit lineup, drove in Mitch Meluskey with a sacrifice fly that cut the lead to 4-2 and chased Radke.
J.C. Romero relieved with runners at first and third and struck out pinch-hitter Wendell Magee to end the inning. Mike Jackson pitched a perfect eighth for Minnesota.
Notes:@ Felipe Alou joined the Tigers Friday as their new bench coach. ... Detroit 3B Craig Paquette was a late scratch from the lineup. Paquette, who had a stomach ailment, was replaced by Oscar Salazar. Salazar made his major league debut and singled in the seventh. ... Jack Morris, who led both the Twins and Tigers to World Series titles, was in attendance. ... Jones has a hit in each of Minnesota's 11 games and is batting .409. ... Guzman committed his fourth error in the fifth inning. ... The crowd was shown a video before the game including highlights from last season and messages from local sports celebrities, including Vikings coach Mike Tice and Timberwolves vice president Kevin McHale.