Game 17: Apr 23, 1999 (W: 4-2)[ Previous Game | Next Game ]
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Game 17: Apr 23, 1999 (W: 4-2)
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Game Commentary
Game Recap
Game Photos
Box/Line Score
Game Log
Commentary (by me)
Great pitched game from every Ranger involved, especially starter Mark Clark..
John Wetteland got his MLB leading 6th save.. Juan Gonzalez finally got his
first home run - a three run blast, and Pudge didn't seem to be bothered by the collision
last night, also popping a home run. Also, if you were watching the Rangers on TV,
the home run by Juan was one of those ones that you knew was a monster blast the second it
hit the bat - it was really awesome!
A great game for the Rangers! Surprisingly the Twins are playing really good baseball these last two games. I expected to come in here and crush them, and they're sticking up for themselves, which is nice to see.
Commentary (by Jim Meeks)
The Rangers road Mark Clark's first good outing and a Juan Gonzalez 3-run homer
Friday to beat Minnesota 4-2.
Clark, who has horribly in every start prior to Fridays', pitched pretty well Friday.
Despite giving up 3 doubles the first 5 innings, he held the Twins scoreless. This was by
far his best outing and it's at least a sign of hope.
Call me a dreamer but I say Clark winds up with at least 15 victories this year.
It was nice to see Gonzalez homer for the first time this year. His home runs come in
bunches usually, so the rest of this weekend might be fun. Ivan Rodriguez, who was at first
diagnosed with a concussion on Thursday after a collision at the plate - then upgraded to
a bone bruise to his cheek, was back in the lineup on Friday and drove himself in with an
insurance run as he homered in the 9th inning.
Flawless John Wetteland, who was somewhat of a question mark coming into the season
because of his ankle, picked up his 6th save already and is on a record pace for
saves.
Game Recap
MINNEAPOLIS (TICKER) -- Juan Gonzalez hit his first homer and Mark Clark pitched 6
2/3 effective innings for his first victory as the Texas Rangers defeated the Minnesota
Twins, 4-2.
Gonzalez had gone 64 at-bats without a homer, his longest drought to start a season,
before connecting for a three-run shot off rookie Mike Lincoln in the sixth inning that
provided Texas with a 3-0 lead. Last season, Gonzalez hit 45 homers and led the American
League with 157 RBI.
Clark (1-2), who lasted past the fifth inning for the first time in four starts, gave up
two runs and four hits with a pair of walks and six strikeouts. The righthander, signed as
a free agent over the winter, improved to 7-0 lifetime against Minnesota.
"I don't like pitching in domes," Clark said. "But for some reason, this
one has been good to me. It seems like you're close to home plate here. Today, I kept the
ball down and got some strikeouts when I needed them."
John Wetteland retired the final four batters for his sixth save in as many chances.
Rookie Torii Hunter and Ron Coomer delivered run-scoring singles for the Twins, who
suffered their third straight loss.
Lincoln surrendered three runs and 10 hits in six innings. He did not walk a batter and
struck out one. The 26-year-old rookie scattered six hits over the first five innings
before running into trouble in the sixth.
Mark McLemore an Rusty Greer opened the inning with singles, setting the stage for
Gonzalez, who belted a 1-2 pitch over the left-field wall to give the Rangers a 3-0
advantage.
"Finally, I think it was a curveball," Gonzalez said. "Two men on base and
nobody out, I was looking for a pitch to hit out of the yard. I hit it hard and it went
out of the yard."
Meanwhile, Clark did not look anything like a pitcher that was hammered for 17 runs and 23
hits over 14 1/3 innings in his first three starts. He allowed just three hits over the
first six innings.
But in the seventh, Clark ran into some trouble when rookie Doug Mientkiewicz led off with
a walk and went to second on a wild pitch. Clark struck out the next two batters before
Hunter came through with an RBI single. Hunter went to second on Greer's throw home.
Eric Gunderson relieved and promptly surrendered Coomer's run-scoring hit that brought
Minnesota within 3-2. Tim Crabtree came on and walked Denny Hocking but was able to get
Brent Gates to ground out to end the inning.
"We came back and had a chance to win the game," Minnesota manager Tom Kelly
said. "We just didn't put together enough hits to score runs when we needed to."
Rodriguez provided the Rangers with an insurance run in the ninth with his fourth homer
off Mike Trombley. The run snapped a scoreless streak of 19 1/3 innings for Trombley that
dated to September 22.
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| Lee Stevens grounds into a double play | Todd Zeile waiting for the throw to third | Juan's all smiles after his first home run of the year | Mark McLemore turns the game ending double play |
Line Score
AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
TEXAS 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 4 12 0
MINNESOTA 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 6 0 (FINAL)
BATTERIES: TEX - MARK CLARK, ERIC GUNDERSON (7TH), TIM CRABTREE
(7TH), MIKE MUNOZ (8TH), JOHN WETTELAND (8TH)
AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ
MIN - MIKE LINCOLN, JOE MAYS (7TH), EDDIE GUARDADO
(8TH), MIKE TROMBLEY (9TH) AND TERRY STEINBACH
WP - MARK CLARK (1-2)
LP - MIKE LINCOLN (0-3)
SAVE - JOHN WETTELAND (6)
HOME RUNS: TEX - JUAN GONZALEZ (1) OFF LINCOLN IN THE 6TH, 2 ON
IVAN RODRIGUEZ (4) OFF TROMBLEY IN THE 9TH, 0
ON
MIN - NONE
TIME: 2:38 ATT: 15,321
PROBABLES: TEX - MIKE MORGAN (3-0, 3.72)
MIN - LATROY HAWKINS (1-2, 9.82)
Box Score
TEXAS (4) AT MINNESOTA (2) - FINAL
TEXAS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
T Goodwin cf 4 0 1 0 0 0 2 .226
Mclemore 2b 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .304
Greer lf 4 1 3 0 0 0 0 .333
J Gonzalez rf 4 1 1 3 0 1 2 .258
R Palmeiro dh 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 .296
I Rodriguez c 4 1 2 1 0 0 1 .288
Zeile 3b 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .230
L Stevens 1b 4 0 2 0 0 1 0 .328
Clayton ss 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .119
Totals 36 4 12 4 0 4 10
BATTING: 2B - Greer 2 (9, Lincoln, Mays). HR - J Gonzalez (1,
6th inning off Lincoln 2 on, 0 out); I Rodriguez (4, 9th inning
off Trombley 0 on, 0 out). RBI - J Gonzalez 3 (10), I Rodriguez
(13). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - J Gonzalez 1,
T Goodwin 1, R Palmeiro 1. GIDP - Zeile 2, Clayton. Team LOB - 5.
FIELDING: DP: 1 (Zeile-Mclemore-L Stevens).
MINNESOTA ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
Hocking ss 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 .282
Gates 2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 .259
Lawton rf-lf 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .323
M Cordova dh 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 .327
Mientkiewicz 1b 3 1 0 0 1 1 2 .273
Steinbach c 4 0 1 0 0 2 3 .263
Koskie 3b 4 0 2 0 0 1 2 .333
T Hunter cf 4 1 1 1 0 2 1 .230
Latham lf 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 .071
a-T Walker ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222
b-Coomer ph-rf 2 0 1 1 0 0 1 .268
Totals 32 2 6 2 4 9 14
a-pinch-hit for Latham in the 7th; b-singled for T Walker in the
7th.
BATTING: 2B - Steinbach (1, M Clark); M Cordova (5, M Clark);
Koskie (3, M Clark). RBI - T Hunter (7), Coomer (3). 2-out RBI -
T Hunter, Coomer. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out -
Koskie 1, Steinbach 1, Hocking 1, Gates 1. GIDP - Coomer. Team LOB - 7.
FIELDING: DP: 3 (Koskie-Gates-Mientkiewicz 2, Gates-Hocking-Mientkiewicz).
TEXAS ip h r er bb so hr era
M Clark (W, 1-2) 6 2/3 4 2 2 2 6 0 8.14
Gunderson (H, 2) 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 8.00
Crabtree (H, 3) 1/3 0 0 0 1 0 0 7.94
M Munoz (H, 3) 2/3 0 0 0 1 1 0 5.63
Wetteland (S, 6) 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 2 0 2.45
MINNESOTA ip h r er bb so hr era
Lincoln (L, 0-3) 6 10 3 3 0 1 1 3.98
Mays 1 2/3 1 0 0 0 1 0 4.42
Guardado 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.89
Trombley 1 1 1 1 0 2 1 0.60
Gunderson pitched to 1 batter in the 7th.
WP - M Clark. Pitches-strikes: Lincoln 87-52; Mays 24-14;
Guardado 2-2; Trombley 11-9; M Clark 84-53; Gunderson 2-1;
Crabtree 7-2; M Munoz 10-6; Wetteland 22-13. Ground balls-fly
balls: Lincoln 13-4; Mays 1-3; Guardado 0-1; Trombley 1-0; M Clark 8-6;
Gunderson 0-0; Crabtree 1-0; M Munoz 1-0; Wetteland 2-0. Batters
faced: Lincoln 25; Mays 6; Guardado 1; Trombley 4; M Clark 26;
Gunderson 1; Crabtree 2; M Munoz 3; Wetteland 4.
UMPIRES: HP--John Hirschbeck. 1B--Dave Phillips. 2B--Rocky Roe.
3B--Durwood Merrill.
T--2:38. Att--15,321. Indoors.
Game Log
Texas Starting Lineups -- Tom Goodwin CF, Mark Mclemore 2B, Rusty Greer LF, Juan
Gonzalez RF, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Ivan Rodriguez C, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Royce
Clayton SS, Mark Clark RHP.
Minnesota Starting Lineups -- Denny Hocking SS, Brent Gates 2B, Matt Lawton RF, Marty
Cordova DH, Doug Mientkiewicz 1B, Terry Steinbach C, Corey Koskie 3B, Torii Hunter CF,
Chris Latham LF, Mike Lincoln RHP.
Umpires -- J Hirschbeck (HP), Phillips (1B), Roe (2B), D Merrill (3B).
Gametime Weather: Indoors
TEXAS 1ST: T Goodwin grounded out to second. Mclemore grounded out to shortstop. Greer
doubled to left center. J Gonzalez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0,
MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 1ST: Hocking grounded out to third. Gates struck out swinging. Lawton fouled out
to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 2ND: R Palmeiro singled to right. I Rodriguez grounded into fielder's choice to
third, R Palmeiro out at second. Zeile grounded into double play, third to second to
first, I Rodriguez out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 2ND: M Cordova grounded out to third. Mientkiewicz flied out to center.
Steinbach doubled to left center. Koskie grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 3RD: L Stevens singled to center. Clayton grounded into double play, second to
shortstop to first, L Stevens out at second. T Goodwin singled to center. Mclemore
grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 3RD: T Hunter struck out swinging. Latham grounded out to first. Hocking walked.
Gates flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 4TH: Greer flied out to left center. J Gonzalez flied out to deep center. R Palmeiro
flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 4TH: Lawton struck out swinging. M Cordova doubled to right center. Mientkiewicz
flied out to right center. Steinbach grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 5TH: I Rodriguez fouled out to right. Zeile grounded out to first. L Stevens singled
to left center. Clayton reached on infield single, L Stevens to second. T Goodwin grounded
out to second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 5TH: Koskie doubled to left. T Hunter flied out to center, Koskie to third.
Latham struck out looking. Hocking grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS
0, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 6TH: Mclemore singled to left center. Greer singled to left, Mclemore to second. J
Gonzalez homered to left, Mclemore and Greer scored. R Palmeiro grounded out to pitcher. I
Rodriguez singled to center. Zeile grounded into double play, third to second to first, I
Rodriguez out at second. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 6TH: Gates grounded out to second. Lawton grounded out to first. M Cordova flied
out to left center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 0.
TEXAS 7TH: Joe Mays relieved Mike Lincoln. L Stevens flied out to deep left center.
Clayton struck out looking. T Goodwin grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 0.
MINNESOTA 7TH: Mientkiewicz walked. Mientkiewicz to second on M Clark wild pitch.
Steinbach struck out swinging. Koskie struck out swinging. T Hunter singled to left,
Mientkiewicz scored. T Hunter to second advancing on throw. T Walker hit for Latham. Eric
Gunderson relieved Mark Clark. Coomer hit for T Walker. Coomer singled to center, T Hunter
scored. Tim Crabtree relieved Eric Gunderson. Hocking walked, Coomer to second. Gates
grounded out to first. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 2.
TEXAS 8TH: Lawton in left. Coomer in right. Mclemore flied out to left. Greer doubled to
left center. J Gonzalez flied out to center. Eddie Guardado relieved Joe Mays. R Palmeiro
flied out to right center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 2.
MINNESOTA 8TH: Mike Munoz relieved Tim Crabtree. Lawton grounded out to third. M Cordova
walked. Mientkiewicz struck out swinging. John Wetteland relieved Mike Munoz. Steinbach
struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, MINNESOTA 2.
TEXAS 9TH: Mike Trombley relieved Eddie Guardado. I Rodriguez homered to left. Zeile
struck out swinging. L Stevens struck out swinging. Clayton grounded out to second. (1
Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 4, MINNESOTA 2.
MINNESOTA 9TH: Koskie singled to right. T Hunter struck out swinging. Coomer grounded into
double play, third to second to first, Koskie out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 4, MINNESOTA 2.