Game 29: May 7, 1999 (L: 9-6)
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Commentary (by me)

At the start of the season, I remembered thinking that Mark Clark would be really good for us, and win over 15 games or something like that.  He may yet still do that, but I start to wonder when he's gonna turn it around.  It's sad, but I think we'd be better off with Bobby Witt (3-0, 4.11, 35 IP), Darren Oliver (2-1, 2.72, 39.2 IP), & Julio Santana (1-3, 9.00, 26 IP) based on what they've done this year so far!  Well, maybe not Santana, but he's still better than some of what we have (Burkett - 0-2, 12.00, 9 IP & Clark 2-3, 7.85, 36.2 IP).

Six Ranger pitchers, and not a whole lot good out of any of 'em tonight.  That's really all I have to say about the pitching in tonight's game.

This game's offense started rather interestingly.  I was running an errand after work, and heard the first inning or two on my car radio.   Wow!  What a start.  Two home runs to start the game by two guys who hardly ever hit any home runs - the HR by Goody was only his tenth career home run!   However, after that Rusty Greer had a single, and Pat Hentgen shut down the Rangers for a good number of innings.  The Rangers next broke through when Juan hit a solo home run in the sixth.  Matter of fact, *ALL* of the Rangers runs in this game were due to the longball, as Juan hit a 3 run HR his next time up, which means he personally was responsible for 4 of the 6 runs the Rangers got, and all 6 were long ball RBI's - a very American League way of doing things.  :)

Commentary (by Jim Meeks)

The Rangers lost 9-6 to Toronto Friday.

The game began with Tom Goodwin and Mark McLemore doing something they never have done and will probably never do again; they homered back-to-back. Two batters 2-0 Rangers.

Mark Clark, who has been almost as bad as John Burkett, continued to struggle and surrendered 4 runs in the bottom of the first after Goodwin and McLemore staked him to a magical 2-0 lead. Old nemesis Carlos Delgado hit a 2-run blast for the Jays in helping destroy the Ranger lead.

It got worse. The Jays scored 5 runs off Clark in less than 4 innings. He walked 4 hitters, gave up 7 hits and even uncorked a wild pitch. For each out he recorded in the game, he gave up a baserunner. Simply put, he stunk.

Juan Gonzalez hit a couple more home runs, giving him 7. His 4 RBIs give hime 27, which puts him 2nd in the American League. The reigning AL MVP has been red hot the last two weeks.

There is good news. Anaheim, Seattle and Oakland all lost and none of these teams has any shown any consistancy this year.

Game Recap

TORONTO (TICKER) -- Carlos Delgado's two-run homer highlighted a four-run first inning as the Toronto Blue Jays held off Juan Gonzalez and the Texas Rangers, 9-6.

Blue Jays starter Pat Hentgen (2-1) surrendered home runs to Tom Goodwin and Mark McLemore three pitches apart to start the game. But Delgado and the offense bailed him out by scoring four in the bottom of the inning.

Shannon Stewart singled off Mark Clark and took third on a double by Alex Gonzalez. Shawn Green's RBI groundout plated Stewart before Delgado belted a 1-0 pitch over the right-field fence to give the Blue Jays a 3-2 lead.

Tony Fernandez, who had the first five-hit game of his 16-year career spanning 1,968 games, doubled. After a strikeout and walk, Mike Matheny laced a double that plated Fernandez to make it 4-2.

"I didn't realize that," saud Fernandez about the five-hit game. "I guess it's one of those rare things in the game. I wouldn't mind another one, that's for sure. I'm getting better, that's all I can say."

The Blue Jays added single runs in the third and fifth before Gonzalez got hot. He had a solo homer in the sixth to make it 6-3. Fernandez restored the four-run lead with an RBI single in the bottom half of the inning, but Gonzalez slammed a three-run homer in the seventh to make it 7-6.

A run-scoring double by Fernandez and RBI single by Matheny in the eighth gave the Blue Jays some breathing room. Toronto, which snapped a three-game losing streak, rapped out 17 hits, with Alex Gonzalez, Delgado and Matheny getting three apiece.

"Today, I had a good day. Before that, I struggled a little bit," said Delgado. "Tonight I was just trying to make contact. I wasn't trying to push or anything."

Hentgen labored to the win, allowing three runs and five hits with four walks in five-plus innings. Tom Davey and Dan Pleasac allowed two runs in a combined two innings of work before rookie Billy Koch struck out two of the six batters he faced for his first major league save.

Koch has not allowed a hit in 4 2/3 innings since being called up from Syracuse earlier this week. With the trade of Robert Person, the 24-year-old Koch has a chance to be the Blue Jays closer.

"I don't even know yet how he throws on back-to-back days," said Blue Jays manager Jim Fregosi. "These are the things we are going to need to find out. He's got a hell of an arm and he's a hell of a kid. I'm not trying to throw too much on him too fast."

"It felt great to get the call in that kind of situation," said Koch, the fourth overall pick in the 1996 draft. "I just tried to keep the ball in the strike zone and make them put it in play for the defense. The runs in the bottom of the eighth helped put me at ease. My arm feels great, it's going to take some time to get adjusted to throwing more often, but I'll be OK."

Clark (2-3) was hit for five runs and seven hits over 3 2/3 innings for the Rangers, continuing his miserable start. He has allowed four or more runs in six of his seven starts this season and has given up 13 runs and 20 hits in 15 2/3 innings over his last three.

It was Gonzalez's second multi-homer game of the season and 35th of his career.

"I had a good game tonight, driving in four runs for my team, but we lost the game," said Gonzalez. "Tomorrow, we'll try again."

Clark nearly escaped a jam in the third as Delgado led off with a walk and took third on a double by Fernandez. But Rangers catcher Ivan Rodriguez picked Delgado off third and Willie Greene grounded out, advancing Fernandez to third. Jose Cruz Jr. was intentionally walked but Clark uncorked a wild pitch to Matheny on a 1-2 count, allowing Fernandez to score.

In the fifth, Delgado blooped a double and came around to score on singles by Fernandez and Greene. Juan Gonzalez homered on the second pitch of the sixth inning, but Fernandez's two-out single plated Alex Gonzalez.

"This guy is a marvel," said Fregosi about Fernandez. "When I was 37, I was done. The strenuous exercise he does every day, what he does between innings when he's playing would tire most people out."

Goodwin had a one-out single in the seventh and McLemore drew a walk before Gonzalez ripped a full-count offering from Pleasac over the left-center field fence to make it 7-6.

Koch struck out Todd Zeile and Lee Stevens to end the eighth before the Blue Jays put away the game in the bottom half of the inning. Alex Gonzalez singled off Mike Venafro and Green walked. Fernandez had a one-out double to score Alex Gonzalez and chase Venafro. Matheny had a two-out infield single off Tim Crabtree to score Fernandez with the final run.

Fernandez, who entered the game hitting .353, raised his average 30 points.

Texas' five thru nine hitters -- Rafael Palmeiro, Rodriguez, Zeile, Stevens, Kelly Dransfeldt and pinch-hitter Luis Alicea -- combined to go 0-for-17.

Photos
(Click on any of them for a larger image

Johnny sends Mark Clark to the showers	Esteban Loaiza pitches in relief

Box Score

Line Score
AL  FINAL
                    1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9     R  H  E
                    -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -     -  -  -
TEXAS               2  0  0   0  0  1   3  0  0     6  7  0
TORONTO             4  0  1   0  1  1   0  2  x     9 17  1   (FINAL)

BATTERIES:  TEX - MARK CLARK, ESTEBAN LOAIZA (4TH), ERIC
                  GUNDERSON (6TH), DANNY PATTERSON (7TH), MIKE
                  VENAFRO (8TH), TIM CRABTREE (8TH) AND IVAN
                  RODRIGUEZ
            TOR - PAT HENTGEN, TOM DAVEY (6TH), DAN PLESAC
                  (7TH), BILLY KOCH (8TH) AND MIKE MATHENY

             WP - PAT HENTGEN (2-1)
             LP - MARK CLARK (2-3)
           SAVE - BILLY KOCH (1)

HOME RUNS:  TEX - TOM GOODWIN (1) OFF HENTGEN IN THE 1ST, 0 ON
                  MARK MCLEMORE (1) OFF HENTGEN IN THE 1ST, 0 ON
                  JUAN GONZALEZ (6) OFF HENTGEN IN THE 6TH, 0 ON
                  JUAN GONZALEZ (7) OFF PLESAC IN THE 7TH, 2 ON
            TOR - CARLOS DELGADO (9) OFF M CLARK IN THE 1ST, 1 ON

     TIME:  3:06     ATT:  22,110

PROBABLES:  TEX - MIKE MORGAN (4-2, 4.05)
            TOR - DAVID WELLS (4-1, 6.39)



Box Score
TEXAS (6) AT TORONTO (9) - FINAL

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
T Goodwin cf            5  2  2  1   0  0   1  .229
Mclemore 2b             3  2  2  1   2  0   0  .289
Greer lf                4  0  1  0   0  1   5  .315
J Gonzalez rf           4  2  2  4   0  0   1  .298
R Palmeiro dh           3  0  0  0   1  0   1  .337
I Rodriguez c           3  0  0  0   1  0   2  .283
Zeile 3b                4  0  0  0   0  2   4  .243
L Stevens 1b            4  0  0  0   0  2   2  .320
Dransfeldt ss           2  0  0  0   1  0   0  .158
 a-Alicea ph            1  0  0  0   0  0   0  .184

Totals                 33  6  7  6   5  5  16

a-popped to shortstop for Dransfeldt in the 9th.

BATTING: HR - T Goodwin (1, 1st inning off Hentgen 0 on, 0 out);
Mclemore (1, 1st inning off Hentgen 0 on, 0 out); J Gonzalez 2
(7, 6th inning off Hentgen 0 on, 0 out, 7th inning off Plesac 2 on,
2 out). RBI - T Goodwin (7), Mclemore (7), J Gonzalez 4 (27).
2-out RBI - J Gonzalez 3. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - Zeile 1, Greer 1. GIDP - Greer, L Stevens. Team LOB - 5.

TORONTO                ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Stewart lf              4  1  2  0   1  0   1  .347
A Gonzalez ss           5  3  3  0   0  0   1  .306
Sh Green rf             4  0  0  1   1  1   2  .311
C Delgado 1b            4  2  3  2   1  1   2  .274
T Fernandez 3b          5  3  5  2   0  0   0  .383
W Greene dh             4  0  1  1   0  1   3  .182
 a-Dalesandro ph-dh     0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .000
 b-K Witt ph            1  0  0  0   0  0   0  .217
J Cruz cf               2  0  0  0   3  1   2  .226
Matheny c               5  0  3  2   0  2   3  .244
Kelly 2b                5  0  0  0   0  0   8  .318

Totals                 39  9 17  8   6  6  22

a-pinch-hit for W Greene in the 8th; b-hit into fielder's choice
for Dalesandro in the 8th.

BATTING: 2B - A Gonzalez 2 (12, M Clark 2); T Fernandez 3 (14, M Clark 2,
Venafro); Matheny 2 (2, M Clark, D Patterson); C Delgado (8, Loaiza).
HR - C Delgado (9, 1st inning off M Clark 1 on, 1 out). RBI -
Sh Green (28), C Delgado 2 (29), Matheny 2 (6), W Greene (10),
T Fernandez 2 (23). 2-out RBI - Matheny 2, T Fernandez. Runners
left in scoring position, 2 out - Kelly 5, Matheny 1, Sh Green 1,
W Greene 1, Stewart 1. Team LOB - 12.

BASERUNNING: CS - Stewart (3, 2nd base by M Clark/I Rodriguez).
Picked off - C Delgado (3rd base, I Rodriguez).

FIELDING: E - A Gonzalez (4, bobble). DP: 2 (C Delgado-A Gonzalez-Hentgen,
Kelly-A Gonzalez-C Delgado).

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
M Clark (L, 2-3)              3 2/3   7   5   5   4   2   1   7.85
Loaiza                        1 2/3   4   2   2   0   2   0   7.17
Gunderson                       2/3   2   0   0   0   1   0   7.20
D Patterson                   1       1   0   0   0   0   0   5.56
Venafro                         1/3   2   2   2   1   1   0   3.52
Crabtree                        2/3   1   0   0   1   0   0   5.00

TORONTO                      ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Hentgen (W, 2-1)              5       5   3   3   4   1   3   4.54
Davey (H, 3)                  1 1/3   1   2   2   1   1   0   4.64
Plesac (H, 6)                   2/3   1   1   1   0   1   1   8.53
Koch (S, 1)                   2       0   0   0   0   2   0   0.00

Hentgen pitched to 2 batters in the 6th.

WP - M Clark. IBB - J Cruz 2 (by M Clark, by Crabtree).
Pitches-strikes: Hentgen 96-59; Davey 15-9; Plesac 13-9; Koch
18-14; M Clark 70-38; Loaiza 37-22; Gunderson 16-11; D Patterson
9-7; Venafro 13-8; Crabtree 19-12.  Ground balls-fly balls:
Hentgen 8-6; Davey 3-0; Plesac 0-1; Koch 2-2; M Clark 5-2;
Loaiza 2-1; Gunderson 0-1; D Patterson 2-1; Venafro 0-0;
Crabtree 1-1.  Batters faced: Hentgen 23; Davey 6; Plesac 3;
Koch 6; M Clark 20; Loaiza 9; Gunderson 4; D Patterson 4;
Venafro 4; Crabtree 4.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Mcclelland. 1B--Marty Foster. 2B--Drew Coble.
3B--Brian Onora.
T--3:06.  Att--22,110.   Weather: 67 degrees, sunny.   Wind: 13 mph,
left to right.


AL       TEXAS AT TORONTO
         NOTE:  THE HOME RUN BY TEXAS' TOM GOODWIN LED OFF THE GAME.

AL       TEXAS AT TORONTO
         NOTE:  THE HOME RUNS BY TEXAS' TOM GOODWIN AND MARK MCLEMORE IN
                THE TOP OF THE FIRST INNING WERE HIT BACK-TO-BACK.

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, Kelly Dransfeldt SS, Mark Clark RHP.

Toronto Starting Lineups -- Shannon Stewart LF, Alex Gonzalez SS, Shawn Green RF, Carlos Delgado 1B, Tony Fernandez 3B, Willie Greene DH, Jose Cruz Jr CF, Mike Matheny C, Pat Kelly 2B, Pat Hentgen RHP.

Umpires -- T Mcclelland (HP), Foster (1B), Coble (2B), Onora (3B).

Gametime Weather: 67 degrees, Sunny, wind left to right at 13 mph.

TEXAS 1ST: T Goodwin homered to right. Mclemore homered to right center. Greer singled to center. J Gonzalez flied out to center. R Palmeiro grounded into fielder's choice to first, Greer out at second. I Rodriguez walked, R Palmeiro to second. Zeile popped out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 0.

TORONTO 1ST: Stewart singled to left. A Gonzalez doubled to deep left, Stewart to third. Sh Green grounded out to second, Stewart scored, A Gonzalez to third. C Delgado homered to right, A Gonzalez scored. T Fernandez doubled to deep left center. W Greene struck out swinging. J Cruz walked. Matheny doubled to left, T Fernandez scored, J Cruz to third. Kelly grounded out to shortstop. (4 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 4.

TEXAS 2ND: L Stevens grounded out to first. Dransfeldt grounded out to third. T Goodwin popped out to shallow left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 4.

TORONTO 2ND: Stewart grounded out to third. A Gonzalez flied out to right. Sh Green grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 4.

TEXAS 3RD: Mclemore walked. Greer grounded into double play, first to shortstop to pitcher, Mclemore out at second. J Gonzalez flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 4.

TORONTO 3RD: C Delgado walked. T Fernandez doubled to right, C Delgado to third. C Delgado picked off at third, catcher to third. W Greene grounded out to first, T Fernandez to third. J Cruz intentionally walked. T Fernandez scored, J Cruz to second on M Clark wild pitch. Matheny struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 5.

TEXAS 4TH: R Palmeiro grounded out to third. I Rodriguez grounded out to second. Zeile flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 5.

TORONTO 4TH: Kelly flied out to deep right. Stewart walked. Stewart caught stealing, catcher to shortstop. A Gonzalez doubled to deep center. Esteban Loaiza relieved Mark Clark. Sh Green grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 5.

TEXAS 5TH: L Stevens struck out looking. Dransfeldt walked. T Goodwin flied out to left. Mclemore singled to right center, Dransfeldt to third. Greer grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 5.

TORONTO 5TH: C Delgado doubled to shallow left center. T Fernandez reached on infield single, C Delgado to third. W Greene singled to shallow center, C Delgado scored, T Fernandez to third. J Cruz struck out swinging. Matheny struck out swinging. Kelly lined out to left. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, TORONTO 6.

TEXAS 6TH: J Gonzalez homered to left. R Palmeiro walked. Tom Davey relieved Pat Hentgen. I Rodriguez safe at first on shortstop A Gonzalez's fielding error, R Palmeiro to second. Zeile struck out swinging. L Stevens grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first, I Rodriguez out at second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Error) TEXAS 3, TORONTO 6.

TORONTO 6TH: Stewart singled to left. A Gonzalez grounded into fielder's choice to second, Stewart out at second. Eric Gunderson relieved Esteban Loaiza. Sh Green struck out swinging. C Delgado singled to right center, A Gonzalez to third. T Fernandez singled to left, A Gonzalez scored, C Delgado to second. W Greene popped out to shortstop. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 3, TORONTO 7.

TEXAS 7TH: Dransfeldt grounded out to shortstop. T Goodwin singled to right. Mclemore walked, T Goodwin to second. Dan Plesac relieved Tom Davey. Greer struck out swinging. J Gonzalez homered to left center, T Goodwin and Mclemore scored. R Palmeiro lined out to right. (3 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 6, TORONTO 7.

TORONTO 7TH: Danny Patterson relieved Eric Gunderson. J Cruz grounded out to first. Matheny doubled to left. Kelly fouled out to catcher. Stewart grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 6, TORONTO 7.

TEXAS 8TH: Billy Koch relieved Dan Plesac. I Rodriguez grounded out to first. Zeile struck out looking. L Stevens struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 6, TORONTO 7.

TORONTO 8TH: Mike Venafro relieved Danny Patterson. A Gonzalez singled to left center. Sh Green walked, A Gonzalez to second. C Delgado struck out swinging. T Fernandez doubled to right, A Gonzalez scored, Sh Green to third. Dalesandro hit for W Greene. Tim Crabtree relieved Mike Venafro. K Witt hit for Dalesandro. K Witt grounded into fielder's choice to third, T Fernandez to third, Sh Green out at home. J Cruz intentionally walked, K Witt to second. Matheny reached on infield single, T Fernandez scored, K Witt to third, J Cruz to second. Kelly flied out to deep left center. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 6, TORONTO 9.

TEXAS 9TH: Alicea hit for Dransfeldt. Alicea popped out to shallow left. T Goodwin grounded out to second. Mclemore flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 6, TORONTO 9.