Game 102: July 30, 1999 (W: 9-2)
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Commentary (by me)

I didn't hear or see anything on this game, because my wife and I were travelling back from Baltimore, and had a horror story travelling (delays in both Baltimore and our layover Chicago).  Because of this, I have no commentary of any kind on this game.

Game Recap

ARLINGTON, TEXAS (TICKER) -- Esteban Loiaza will never be confused for Nolan Ryan, but with the Texas Rangers playing like this, he does not have to be.

Loaiza tossed six solid innings for his third straight win and Todd Zeile and Ivan Rodriguez each drove in three runs as the Texas Rangers coasted to their 11th victory in 12 games, 9-2 over the Kansas City Royals.

Pitching the opener of Nolan Ryan Weekend at The Ballpark in Arlington, Loaiza (3-1) allowed two runs and six hits -- including a pair of solo homers to red-hot Mike Sweeney -- with a walk and two strikeouts. He won for the second time in as many starts and lowered his ERA from 6.98 to 6.45.

"Tonight I was able to throw a lot of strikes," said Loaiza, who returned to the rotation on Saturday. "I try not to think about it. I just think about going out there in another five games. Hopefully, I can do it again."

"We ask our starting pitchers to give us a chance to win, and Loaiza did that tonight," added Rangers manager Johnny Oates. "I was happy with the adjustments he made. The only thing he lacked was consistency."

Tim Crabtree allowed two hits and struck out two in two scoreless innings and Danny Patterson pitched the ninth to seal the Rangers' sixth straight home win.

"We're playing with a great deal of confidence and not taking anything for granted," Oates said. "We know nothing's been won yet and there's a long way to go. We have to play like we have an opportunity to add to our lead and not have it taken away."

Texas grabbed the lead with a three-run fifth against starter Jay Witasick and added four in the sixth to break it open.

"In his starts, he hasn't been beyond 6 1/3 innings. That's the hump he has to get over," Kansas City manager Tony Muser said. "I'm not one to get somebody up (in the bullpen) in the fifth inning."

Trailing, 2-0, the Rangers strung together consecutive one-out singles by Mark McLemore, Rodriguez, Rusty Greer and Rafael Palmeiro to tie it. Zeile's sacrifice fly put Texas ahead for good.

Roberto Kelly led off the sixth with a single and moved up on Royce Clayton's one-out hit that chased Witasick for Glendon Rush. McLemore fouled out, but Rodriguez delivered an RBI single that also scored Clayton when center fielder Carlos Beltran misplayed the ball for an error.

"The bottom line is we scored nine runs and won the game. It doesn't matter how we do it as long as we score," said Rodriguez, whose team had 14 hits, all singles. "Sometimes we hit three home runs and lose, 5-4. We have to do the little things to get by. We get the hits in the situations we need. We get the hits, we win the game."

Greer was hit by a pitch and Palmeiro walked before Zeile's two-run single stretched the Rangers' lead to 7-2.

"I feel like my stuff is still there in the sixth," Witasick said. "They hit two good pitches, and that's what drove me out. My goal is to prove that I can go into the later innings."

Rookie Ken Ray started the seventh for the Royals but fared no better, surrendering a two-run single to Rodriguez.

"We haven't had anyone come in and take control (in the bullpen)," Muser noted. "It has not happened all year."

Sweeney recorded his third two-homer game of the season and extended his hitting streak to 12 games. He is 23-for-49 during the streak, raising his average to 336.

Photos
(Click on any of them for a larger image)

Gaylord Perry & Ferguson Jenkins before the game	Nolan Ryan before the game	Nolan with his special boots he was given	Todd Zeile catches Jermaine Dye in a rundown	Mike Sweeney - "It's a ball!"

Juan is telling Raffy about how his pants fit him better now

Box Score

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

BATTERIES:  KAN - JAY WITASICK, GLENDON RUSCH (6TH), KEN RAY
                  (7TH), MATT WHISENANT (7TH) AND CHAD KREUTER
            TEX - ESTEBAN LOAIZA, TIM CRABTREE (7TH), DANNY
                  PATTERSON (9TH) AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ

             WP - ESTEBAN LOAIZA (3-1)
             LP - JAY WITASICK (4-8)
           SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS:  KAN - MIKE SWEENEY (16) OFF LOAIZA IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
                  MIKE SWEENEY (17) OFF LOAIZA IN THE 4TH, 0 ON
            TEX - NONE

     TIME:  3:16     ATT:  39,611

PROBABLES:  KAN - DAN REICHERT (0-0, 20.00)
            TEX - RICK HELLING (8-7, 4.33)

Box Score
KANSAS CITY (2) AT TEXAS (9) - FINAL

KANSAS CITY            ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Damon lf                3  0  1  0   1  0   1  .302
Febles 2b               4  0  0  0   0  1   4  .267
Beltran cf              4  0  0  0   0  2   2  .302
Sweeney 1b              4  2  2  2   0  0   0  .336
Dye rf                  4  0  1  0   0  1   0  .311
Randa 3b                4  0  3  0   0  0   0  .333
Je Giambi dh            3  0  0  0   1  1   2  .283
Kreuter c               4  0  1  0   0  0   4  .255
R Sanchez ss            3  0  1  0   0  0   2  .279

Totals                 33  2  9  2   2  5  15

BATTING: 2B - Randa (22, D Patterson). HR - Sweeney 2 (17, 2nd
inning off Loaiza 0 on, 0 out, 4th inning off Loaiza 0 on, 0 out).
RBI - Sweeney 2 (75). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - Beltran 1,
R Sanchez 1, Kreuter 1. GIDP - Kreuter, Febles. Team LOB - 6.

FIELDING: E - Beltran (11, ground ball). DP: 1 (Randa-Febles-Sweeney).

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Mclemore 2b             3  1  2  0   2  0   2  .282
I Rodriguez c           5  2  3  3   0  0   2  .315
Greer lf                2  2  1  1   2  0   0  .279
R Palmeiro dh           4  0  1  1   1  1   3  .342
Zeile 3b                4  0  2  3   0  1   3  .307
L Stevens 1b            5  0  0  0   0  1   4  .278
R Kelly rf              3  2  2  0   1  0   0  .317
Mateo cf                5  0  1  0   0  1   5  .233
Clayton ss              5  2  2  0   0  1   3  .255

Totals                 36  9 14  8   6  5  22

BATTING: SF - Zeile. RBI - Greer (63), R Palmeiro (85), Zeile 3 (66),
I Rodriguez 3 (62). 2-out RBI - I Rodriguez, Zeile 2. Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - Zeile 2, L Stevens 1, R Palmeiro 2, Clayton 1.
GIDP - I Rodriguez.  Team LOB - 12.

FIELDING: E - Zeile (17, drop foul). DP: 3 (Clayton-Mclemore-L Stevens,
Zeile-Mclemore-L Stevens, L Stevens).

KANSAS CITY                  ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Witasick (L, 4-8)             5 1/3   9   5   5   3   3   0   6.77
Rusch                           2/3   2   2   2   1   0   0  16.20
Ray                             2/3   2   2   2   1   0   0   9.64
Whisenant                     1 1/3   1   0   0   1   2   0   5.29

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Loaiza (W, 3-1)               6       6   2   2   1   2   2   6.45
Crabtree                      2       2   0   0   0   2   0   3.52
D Patterson                   1       1   0   0   1   1   0   4.79

HBP - Greer (by Rusch); R Kelly (by Ray).  Pitches-strikes:
Loaiza 90-60; Crabtree 31-25; D Patterson 18-9; Witasick 98-58;
Rusch 26-14; Ray 19-11; Whisenant 25-13.  Ground balls-fly balls:
Loaiza 10-6; Crabtree 2-1; D Patterson 2-0; Witasick 7-6; Rusch 0-2;
Ray 1-1; Whisenant 1-1.  Batters faced: Loaiza 23; Crabtree 7;
D Patterson 5; Witasick 27; Rusch 6; Ray 6; Whisenant 6.

UMPIRES: HP--Tim Welke. 1B--Jim Evans. 2B--Eric Cooper. 3B--Larry Mccoy.
T--3:16.  Att--39,611.   Weather: 96 degrees, clear.   Wind: 19 mph,
right to left.

AL       KANSAS CITY AT TEXAS
         NOTE:  THE HOME RUN BY KANSAS CITY'S MIKE SWEENEY IN THE SECOND
                INNING EXTENDED HIS HITTING STREAK TO 12 GAMES.

AL       KANSAS CITY AT TEXAS
         NOTE:  THE SINGLE BY TODD ZEILE IN THE SIXTH INNING EXTENDED HIS
                HITTING STREAK TO 11 GAMES.

Game Log

Kansas City Starting Lineups -- Johnny Damon LF, Carlos Febles 2B, Carlos Beltran CF, Mike Sweeney 1B, Jermaine Dye RF, Joe Randa 3B, Jeremy Giambi DH, Chad Kreuter C, Rey Sanchez SS, Jay Witasick RHP.

Texas Starting Lineups -- Mark Mclemore 2B, Ivan Rodriguez C, Rusty Greer LF, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Roberto Kelly RF, Ruben Mateo CF, Royce Clayton SS, Esteban Loaiza RHP.

Umpires -- T Welke (HP), Evans (1B), Cooper (2B), L Mccoy (3B).

Gametime Weather: 96 degrees, Clear, wind right to left at 19 mph.

KANSAS CITY 1ST: Damon popped out to first. Febles grounded out to second. Beltran lined out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 0, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 1ST: Mclemore walked. I Rodriguez lined out to shortstop. Greer walked, Mclemore to second. R Palmeiro grounded out to first, Mclemore to third, Greer to second. Zeile struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 0, TEXAS 0.

KANSAS CITY 2ND: Sweeney homered to left center. Dye flied out to shallow right. Randa lined out to first. Je Giambi grounded out to catcher. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 1, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 2ND: L Stevens popped out to shortstop. R Kelly flied out to right. Mateo singled to center. Clayton struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 1, TEXAS 0.

KANSAS CITY 3RD: Kreuter singled to center. R Sanchez flied out to right. Damon walked, Kreuter to second. Febles struck out looking. Beltran struck out looking. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 1, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 3RD: Mclemore singled to right. I Rodriguez grounded into double play, third to second to first, Mclemore out at second. Greer walked. R Palmeiro struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 1, TEXAS 0.

KANSAS CITY 4TH: Sweeney homered to center. Dye singled to center. Randa singled to right, Dye to third. Je Giambi grounded into fielder's choice to first, Randa to third, Dye out at home. Kreuter continued to bat after dropped foul ball by 3rd baseman Zeile. Kreuter grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Je Giambi out at second. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 1 Error) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 4TH: Zeile grounded out to shortstop. L Stevens fouled out to shallow left. R Kelly singled to right center. Mateo grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 0.

KANSAS CITY 5TH: R Sanchez reached on infield single. Damon lined out to second. Febles grounded into double play, third to second to first, R Sanchez out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 5TH: Clayton grounded out to second. Mclemore singled to shallow left center. I Rodriguez singled to left, Mclemore to second. Greer singled to right, Mclemore scored, I Rodriguez to second. R Palmeiro singled to right center, I Rodriguez scored, Greer to third. Zeile hit sacrifice fly to right, Greer scored. L Stevens grounded out to third. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 3.

KANSAS CITY 6TH: Beltran grounded out to pitcher. Sweeney grounded out to second. Dye grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 3.

TEXAS 6TH: R Kelly singled to center. Mateo fouled out to first. Clayton singled to shallow center, R Kelly to second. Glendon Rusch relieved Jay Witasick. Mclemore fouled out to catcher. I Rodriguez singled to shallow center, R Kelly scored, Clayton to third. Clayton scored, I Rodriguez to second on center fielder Beltran's fielding error. Greer hit by pitch. R Palmeiro walked, I Rodriguez to third, Greer to second. Zeile singled to shallow center, I Rodriguez and Greer scored, R Palmeiro to third. L Stevens popped out to first. (4 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 7.

KANSAS CITY 7TH: Tim Crabtree relieved Esteban Loaiza. Randa singled to left. Je Giambi struck out swinging. Kreuter grounded out to first, Randa to second. R Sanchez grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 7.

TEXAS 7TH: Ken Ray relieved Glendon Rusch. R Kelly hit by pitch. Mateo flied out to center. Clayton singled to left, R Kelly to second. Mclemore walked, R Kelly to third, Clayton to second. I Rodriguez singled to left, R Kelly and Clayton scored, Mclemore to second. Greer grounded out to first, Mclemore to third, I Rodriguez to second. Matt Whisenant relieved Ken Ray. R Palmeiro flied out to center. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 9.

KANSAS CITY 8TH: Damon singled to center. Febles lined into double play to first, Damon doubled off first. Beltran struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 9.

TEXAS 8TH: Zeile singled to center. L Stevens struck out swinging. R Kelly walked, Zeile to second. Mateo struck out swinging. Clayton grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 9.

KANSAS CITY 9TH: Danny Patterson relieved Tim Crabtree. Sweeney grounded out to third. Dye struck out swinging. Randa doubled to left. Je Giambi walked. Kreuter grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) KANSAS CITY 2, TEXAS 9.