Game 36: May 15, 1999 (W: 8-1)
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Commentary (by me)

I was kind of not really paying attention to this one.  Earlier in the day, I had attended my first baseball card convention in about 20 years, and I had purchased several things (including three complete sets of cards), so I had a ton of new toys to play with.   Boy, did I ever feel like I was 12 again playing with baseball cards while baseball was on! 

Anyway, the story of this game was Rick Helling.  After the first three starts of the season for Rick, he appears to have bounced back to 1998's form.  Which is good, as the Rangers need this.  BADLY!!    He went a full eight innings, and Oates said after the game that he would have let Rick go 9, but this was uncharted territory for any Ranger pitcher this year, and that if he had done this before during this season, he would have let Rick go for a complete game.   Rick looked really good out there, not completely dominating, but still very good.

Actually, it looked like a pitcher's duel was brewing, as we didn't do much off of Orioles started Juan Guzman, either.  However, he had to leave the game after the fourth inning and shortly after that, the current Ranger offense (aka Rafael Palmiero) took over.  He cracked a three run home run into Home Run porch for the game-winning hit.  We then picked up four more in the seventh to end the day's scoring.

Crabby came in for the ninth and pitched a scoreless inning in something odd this season for the Rangers - a really well pitched game!

Commentary (by Jim Meeks)

No commentary for Saturday's game. I hurt my back and had to go to bed early, I didn't hear any of the game. Sorry.

Game Recap

ARLINGTON, TEXAS (TICKER) -- As if things were not going bad enough for the Baltimore Orioles, they watched former teammate Rafael Palmeiro belt a tie-breaking three-run homer in their sixth straight loss.

Rick Helling pitched eight strong innings in his best start of the season and Rusty Greer had a pair of RBI as the Texas Rangers tied a season high with their fourth straight victory, 8-1.

The teams played to a 1-1 tie through five innings before the Rangers took the lead for good in the sixth against reliever Doug Johns (0-1). Mark McLemore, another former Oriole, led off with a single but was erased at second on Greer's forceout. Ivan Rodriguez's single put runners on the corners before Palmeiro deposited a 2-0 pitch over the right-field wall for his eighth home run.

Palmeiro is batting .444 (12-for-27) with 10 RBI during a seven-game hitting streak. He is 6-for-10 with five runs and six RBI in three games against the Orioles.

"The home run felt good because it came at a crucial time and gave us the lead, not because it was against them," Palmeiro said. "It doesn't matter who I hit it against. I was just doing my job tonight. I'm still not driving it like I want to but I just need to keep doing what I've been doing and keep producing."

Helling (4-4) won for the fourth time in five starts, allowing six hits with two walks and a strikeout.

"I was just trying to keep my focus on keeping the ball down," Helling said. "Tonight was the best that I've been down in the zone all year. I felt pretty good all night. I didn't want to get beat on long fly balls tonight. I was just trying not to get beat on one pitch."

"Rick had good results, he threw a lot of quality pitches," Rangers manager Johnny Oates said. "We neeed a game like this. We were able to give a couple of guys in the bullpen the rest they needed."

Albert Belle had three hits for Baltimore, which has surrendered 53 runs during its six-game slide, matching a season high. The Orioles have allowed at least five runs in 25 of 36 games this season.

"There is effort. B.J (Surhoff) has played all but one inning. I think Albert (Belle) has played all but two innings," Orioles manager Ray Miller said. "(Mike) Bordick is driving the ball all over the place. We were down by seven and Bordick almost killed himself diving for one. Guzman pitched well and then he can't go anymore. Things just aren't going well."

Orioles starter Juan Guzman limited Texas to one run and two hits over four innings before leaving with back spasms.

"I feel sore. My knee has been sore from the last start in Cleveland," Guzman said. "In the first inning, my back started to hurt. I told the coaches my back was getting sore and that I was going to try and push it, but it kept getting worse. The more I threw, the worse it got."

The Rangers extended to an 8-1 lead in the seventh. McLemore stroked a one-out double and scored on Greer's first triple of the season. Rodriguez singled home Greer and Jesse Orosco relieved Mike Fetters. Palmeiro's base hit moved Rodriguez to third and ex-Oriole Todd Zeile delivered an RBI single for a 7-1 cushion.

Lee Stevens walked to load the bases and rookie Gabe Molina was summoned from the bullpen. Roberto Kelly also walked to force home pinch-runner Jon Shave.

McLemore is batting .515 (17-for-33) during a nine-game hitting streak.

Tom Goodwin opened the bottom of the first with an infield single, stole second, moved to third on a groundout and scored on Greer's double.

Cal Ripken doubled home Jeff Conine in the second to account for Baltimore's offense.

Surhoff went 1-for-4 and is hitting .388 (21-for-54) over his last 12 games.

Photos
(Click on any of them for a larger image

Ranger starter Rick Helling	Rafael Palmiero	Juan Guzman having a chat with his catcher	Juan Guzman going after a popup

Box Score

Line Score
AL  FINAL
                    1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9     R  H  E
                    -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -     -  -  -
BALTIMORE           0  1  0   0  0  0   0  0  0     1  7  0
TEXAS               1  0  0   0  0  3   4  0  x     8 14  0   (FINAL)

BATTERIES:  BAL - JUAN GUZMAN, DOUG JOHNS (5TH), MIKE FETTERS
                  (6TH), JESSE OROSCO (7TH), GABE MOLINA (7TH),
                  MIKE TIMLIN (8TH) AND CHARLES JOHNSON, TOMMY
                  DAVIS (8TH)
            TEX - RICK HELLING, TIM CRABTREE (9TH) AND IVAN
                  RODRIGUEZ

             WP - RICK HELLING (4-4)
             LP - DOUG JOHNS (0-1)
           SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS:  BAL - NONE
            TEX - RAFAEL PALMEIRO (8) OFF D JOHNS IN THE 6TH, 2 ON

     TIME:  3:07     ATT:  46,118

PROBABLES:  BAL - SIDNEY PONSON (2-3, 5.40)
            TEX - AARON SELE (3-3, 4.54)



Box Score
BALTIMORE (1) AT TEXAS (8) - FINAL

BALTIMORE              ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
B Anderson cf           4  0  0  0   0  0   1  .280
Bordick ss              4  0  1  0   0  1   0  .257
Surhoff lf              4  0  1  0   0  0   1  .349
 Amaral lf              0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .161
Belle rf                4  0  3  0   0  0   1  .258
 Otanez pr              0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .218
Baines dh               4  0  0  0   0  0   3  .283
Conine 1b               3  1  1  0   1  1   1  .255
C Ripken 3b             4  0  1  1   0  1   2  .220
Deshields 2b            3  0  0  0   0  0   2  .198
C Johnson c             2  0  0  0   1  0   1  .236
 Davis pr-c             0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .000

Totals                 32  1  7  1   2  3  12

BATTING: 2B - Surhoff (10, Helling); C Ripken (4, Helling).
RBI - C Ripken (6). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out -
Belle 1, C Johnson 1, Deshields 1. GIDP - B Anderson.
Team LOB - 6.

BASERUNNING: CS - Belle (2, 2nd base by Helling).

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
T Goodwin cf            5  1  1  0   0  0   5  .225
Mclemore 2b             4  1  2  0   1  0   0  .333
Greer lf                4  2  2  2   1  1   1  .307
I Rodriguez c           5  2  2  1   0  1   2  .310
R Palmeiro dh           4  1  2  3   0  0   1  .369
 Shave pr               1  1  1  0   0  0   0  .333
Zeile 3b                4  0  2  1   1  2   2  .250
L Stevens 1b            3  0  0  0   1  2   2  .320
R Kelly rf              3  0  1  1   1  1   1  .385
Dransfeldt ss           4  0  1  0   0  1   5  .171

Totals                 37  8 14  8   5  8  19

BATTING: 2B - Greer (14, Ju Guzman); R Kelly (5, Fetters);
Mclemore (6, Fetters). 3B - Greer (1, Fetters). HR - R Palmeiro (8,
6th inning off D Johns 2 on, 1 out). RBI - Greer 2 (34),
R Palmeiro 3 (29), I Rodriguez (24), Zeile (22), R Kelly (12).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - R Palmeiro 1, T Goodwin 3,
Dransfeldt 2, Zeile 1.  Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - T Goodwin (18, 2nd base off Ju Guzman/C Johnson).
CS - Mclemore (1, 2nd base by Ju Guzman/C Johnson).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (L Stevens-Dransfeldt-L Stevens).

BALTIMORE                    ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Ju Guzman                     4       2   1   1   1   4   0   5.88
D Johns (L, 0-1)              1 1/3   4   3   3   1   1   1   7.36
Fetters                       1       5   3   3   0   1   0   4.76
Orosco                        0       2   1   1   1   0   0   9.31
G Molina                        2/3   0   0   0   1   1   0   4.15
Timlin                        1       1   0   0   1   1   0   3.38

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Helling (W, 4-4)              8       6   1   1   2   1   0   5.54
Crabtree                      1       1   0   0   0   2   0   3.65

Orosco pitched to 3 batters in the 7th.

Pitches-strikes: Helling 121-75; Crabtree 18-12; Ju Guzman 51-32;
D Johns 36-20; Fetters 30-17; Orosco 8-3; G Molina 17-9; Timlin 22-11.
Ground balls-fly balls: Helling 7-15; Crabtree 0-1; Ju Guzman 3-4;
D Johns 3-0; Fetters 2-0; Orosco 0-0; G Molina 0-1; Timlin 2-0.
Batters faced: Helling 30; Crabtree 4; Ju Guzman 14; D Johns 9;
Fetters 8; Orosco 3; G Molina 3; Timlin 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Dave Phillips. 1B--Rocky Roe. 2B--Durwood Merrill.
3B--John Hirschbeck.
T--3:07.  Att--46,118.   Weather: 89 degrees, partly cloudy.
Wind: 20 mph, in from right.


AL       BALTIMORE AT TEXAS
         NOTE:  BALTIMORE PITCHER JUAN GUZMAN LEFT THE GAME AFTER FOUR
                INNINGS WITH AN APPARENT LOWER BACK INJURY.

Game Log

Baltimore Starting Lineups -- Brady Anderson CF, Mike Bordick SS, Bj Surhoff LF, Albert Belle RF, Harold Baines DH, Jeff Conine 1B, Cal Ripken Jr 3B, Delino Deshields 2B, Charles Johnson C, Juan Guzman RHP.

Texas Starting Lineups -- Tom Goodwin CF, Mark Mclemore 2B, Rusty Greer LF, Ivan Rodriguez C, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Roberto Kelly RF, Kelly Dransfeldt SS, Rick Helling RHP.

Umpires -- Phillips (HP), Roe (1B), D Merrill (2B), J Hirschbeck (3B).

Gametime Weather: 89 degrees, Partly Cloudy, wind in from right at 20 mph.

BALTIMORE 1ST: B Anderson flied out to right. Bordick fouled out to first. Surhoff doubled to left. Belle grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 0, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 1ST: T Goodwin reached on infield single. T Goodwin stole second. Mclemore grounded out to second, T Goodwin to third. Greer doubled to right center, T Goodwin scored. I Rodriguez flied out to left. R Palmeiro grounded out to second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 0, TEXAS 1.

BALTIMORE 2ND: Baines flied out to left. Conine singled to right. C Ripken doubled to right, Conine scored. Deshields grounded out to second, C Ripken to third. C Johnson lined out to left. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 2ND: Zeile struck out swinging. L Stevens flied out to left. R Kelly struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

BALTIMORE 3RD: B Anderson lined out to first. Bordick struck out looking. Surhoff flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 3RD: Dransfeldt grounded out to third. T Goodwin popped out to pitcher. Mclemore walked. Mclemore caught stealing, catcher to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

BALTIMORE 4TH: Belle singled to center. Baines popped out to second. Belle caught stealing, pitcher to second. Conine flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 4TH: Greer struck out swinging. I Rodriguez struck out swinging. R Palmeiro popped out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

BALTIMORE 5TH: C Ripken grounded out to third. Deshields grounded out to second. C Johnson flied out to deep right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 5TH: Doug Johns relieved Juan Guzman. Zeile walked. L Stevens struck out swinging. R Kelly grounded into fielder's choice to second, Zeile out at second. Dransfeldt singled to right, R Kelly to third. T Goodwin grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

BALTIMORE 6TH: B Anderson flied out to left. Bordick flied out to right. Surhoff lined out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 1.

TEXAS 6TH: Mclemore singled to center. Greer grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Mclemore out at second. I Rodriguez singled to center, Greer to third. R Palmeiro homered to right, Greer and I Rodriguez scored. Mike Fetters relieved Doug Johns. Zeile singled to center. L Stevens struck out swinging. R Kelly doubled to left, Zeile to third. Dransfeldt grounded out to third. (3 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 4.

BALTIMORE 7TH: Belle singled to center. Baines popped out to third. Conine walked, Belle to second. C Ripken flied out to center, Belle to third. Deshields flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 4.

TEXAS 7TH: T Goodwin grounded out to first. Mclemore doubled to right. Greer tripled to right center, Mclemore scored. I Rodriguez singled to center, Greer scored. Jesse Orosco relieved Mike Fetters. R Palmeiro singled to right, I Rodriguez to third. Shave ran for R Palmeiro. Zeile singled to center, I Rodriguez scored, Shave to second. L Stevens walked, Shave to third, Zeile to second. Gabe Molina relieved Jesse Orosco. R Kelly walked, Shave scored, Zeile to third, L Stevens to second. Dransfeldt struck out swinging. T Goodwin flied out to left. (4 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 8.

BALTIMORE 8TH: C Johnson walked. Davis ran for C Johnson. B Anderson grounded into double play, first to shortstop to first, Davis out at second. Bordick reached on infield single. Surhoff grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 8.

TEXAS 8TH: Davis catching. Mike Timlin relieved Gabe Molina. Amaral in left. Mclemore grounded out to second. Greer walked. I Rodriguez grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Greer out at second. Shave singled to center, I Rodriguez to second. Zeile struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 8.

BALTIMORE 9TH: Tim Crabtree relieved Rick Helling. Belle singled to left. Otanez ran for Belle. Baines flied out to left. Conine struck out swinging. C Ripken struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BALTIMORE 1, TEXAS 8.