Game 149: Sep 18, 1999 (W: 6-1)
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My Commentary

I didn't get to see or hear very much of this game at all.  My wife and I were out to dinner and a movie.  We saw "For Love of the Game".  Was a great movie.  Yeah, it's a Kevin Costner movie, and it had the usual "mushy sap" in it that women seem to eat up, but I very much enjoyed the movie.  

There was some awesome direction in the movie, especially the bits where Costner's character (a pitcher) was drowning out the crowd.  Extraordinarily well done, I thought.  If you like baseball, go see this.  Especially if your wife/girlfriend/whatever is into romantic movies, she'll love it, too.   I was hoping the Texas Rangers would get mentioned, even in passing, but they didn't (old Arlington Stadium was actually in his first baseball movie, Bull Durham).

Aaron Sele pitched well (from what I see in the box scores).  Mr. Flaherty hit another home run (what is it with us and one player from the other team just unloading with home runs?).   A really nice story was the appearance of Jim Morris, the oldest rookie (at 35) since 1970.  Came in, threw the last out for Tampa Bay, and blew away Royce Clayton on four straight 95 or 96 mph pitches.  Hope he sticks around next year, was great to see.

Ex Ranger Julio Franco was called up from Tampa's AAA team, and was on the bench and in uniform for Tampa, but did not appear.

-- Joe Siegler

Game Recap

ARLINGTON, TEXAS (TICKER) -- Aaron Sele pitched eight strong innings to become the third American Leaguer with at least 17 wins and Tom Goodwin had two hits and two RBI to lead the Texas Rangers to a 6-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Sele (17-8) gave up one run and six hits, striking out four without a walk, for his 10th win in 12 decisions. His only mistake came in the fifth inning, when he surrendered a leadoff homer to John Flaherty.

"I felt all right," Sele said. "I was a little out of sync at the beginning. But Pudge (catcher Ivan Rodriguez) helped me out a lot and mixed the pitches up. I was able to throw a lot of ground balls and the defense made a lot of great plays behind me. They were on their toes all night."

Charles Nagy of Cleveland also has 17 wins and Boston's Pedro Martinez leads the majors with 21.

"He gives us a lot of innings, quick innings. And we know our record when we get five runs," Texas manager Johnny Oates said. "Aaron gave us eight good innings tonight."

Tim Crabtree mopped up with a perfect ninth for the Rangers, who have won four of five since a three-game losing streak. Texas remained seven games ahead of second-place Oakland in the American League West with 13 games remaining.

Former Ranger Bobby Witt (7-14) is headed in the opposite direction, suffering his sixth straight loss. He gave up all six runs -- three earned -- and eight hits in six innings with three walks and five strikeouts.

Since winning his first two decisions on the road, Witt is 1-8 in 13 starts away from Tropicana Field.

"I thought he threw well, I just don't think we played well," Devil Rays manager Larry Rothschild said.

At 35, Tampa Bay lefthander Jim Morris became the oldest player to make his major league debut since 36-year-old Minnie Mendoza of Minnesota in 1970. Out of pro baseball since 1988, he signed with the Devil Rays in June and was promoted from Triple-A Durham before tonight's game.

Throwing fastballs that reached 96 miles per hour, the former baseball coach at Reagan County High School in Brownwood, Texas struck out Royce Clayton on four pitches to end the bottom of the eighth.

"I don't know if I'd say I was nervous. Yeah, actually I would say I was nervous," Morris said. "But I toned it down after my warmup pitches. I felt good. I don't know how hard I was throwing. I was just trying to get people out."

"He came in and got the out," Rothschild added. "He threw hard and looked like he put the ball where he wanted it."

Flaherty's homer was his third in two games and career-high 14th this season. Five of them have come against Texas, all at The Ballpark in Arlington. But the Devil Rays have lost 10 of their last 13 games.

"We didn't do a good job defensively," Flaherty said. "Looking back, you can say that Bobby should have only given up one run. He kept his composure and gave us quality innings."

Texas jumped on top in the bottom of the first. Rafael Palmeiro drew a two-out walk and scored on a double by Juan Gonzalez. Second baseman Miguel Cairo booted Todd Zeile's grounder, allowing Gonzalez to score, before Lee Stevens delivered another RBI double.

Sloppy defense cost the Devil Rays another run in the second. Tom Goodwin doubled with one out, stole third and continued home when catcher Flaherty threw the ball down the left-field line.

After Flaherty's homer, Goodwin had a two-run single with two out in the sixth to close the scoring.

Recap #2

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Aaron Sele is turning into one of baseball's most consistent starters.

"He doesn't throw 98 mph, he doesn't go out and strike out 16 or throw no-hitters, but he uses all his resources," Rangers manager Johnny Oates said after Sele led the Texas Rangers over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 6-1 Saturday night.

Sele (17-8) is tied with Cleveland's Charles Nagy for the second-most wins in the AL, trailing only Boston's Pedro Martinez (21-4).

"Pedro is in a class by himself, but Aaron gives us a lot of innings, quick innings," Oates said. "It doesn't matter if you're driving a Rolls Royce or a Ford Pinto, as long as you get there."

Sele allowed six hits in eight innings, struck out four and walked none as Texas lowered its magic number for clinching the AL West to nine. He is 10-2 in 14 starts since July 9, going six or more innings in each game he's pitched.

"I take pride if the team wins when I start," Sele said. "I don't care if I get the win, only that the team wins in my starts."

Sele is proud he has 36 wins in the last two seasons.

"The guys have played solid defense behind me and they've given me run support," he said. "I've always been a four-pitch pitcher. This year I think I've thrown more quality pitches than in the past."

Tom Goodwin drove in two runs and had two hits for the Rangers, who have won eight of their last nine against the Devil Rays. Tampa Bay allowed three unearned runs.

Two errors helped Texas to a 4-0 lead after two innings. Bobby Witt (7-14) lost his sixth straight decision, allowing six runs -- three earned -- and eight hits in six innings.

Tampa Bay's Jim Morris, a 35-year-old left-hander, became the oldest rookie in the majors since 36-year-old Minnie Mendoza with Minnesota in 1970.

Morris, the oldest rookie pitcher since 41-year-old Diomedes Oliva pitched for Pittsburgh in 1960, relieved with two outs in the eighth and struck out Royce Clayton on four fastballs in the mid-90s. 

"I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest," said Morris, a former Texas high school teacher and baseball coach. "It was an unbelievable experience."

Texas took a 3-0 lead in the first when Juan Gonzalez hit an RBI double, scored when Todd Zeile's grounder got through second baseman Miguel Cairo for an error and Lee Stevens followed with another run-scoring double.

Goodwin doubled in the second, stole third, and scored on catcher John Flaherty's wild throw.

Flaherty's career-high 14th homer cut it to 4-1 in the fifth. Five of his homers this season have been at Arlington.

Goodwin added a two-run single in the sixth.

GAME NOTES: Tampa Bay also called up 38-year-old INF Julio Franco. ... Rangers LF Rusty Greer missed his fifth consecutive game because of an injury to his left eye. ... Flaherty said the entire team was rooting for Morris. "He was impressive," Flaherty said. "He threw the ball well. It's a great story. It's one you have to see to believe."

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

Ranger starter Aaron Sele	Tom Goodwin steals third	Royce Clayton making a throw	35 year old rookie pitcher Jim Morris

Box Score

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

BATTERIES:  TAM - BOBBY WITT, JEFF SPARKS (7TH), JIM MORRIS
                  (8TH) AND JOHN FLAHERTY
            TEX - AARON SELE, TIM CRABTREE (9TH) AND IVAN
                  RODRIGUEZ

             WP - AARON SELE (17-8)
             LP - BOBBY WITT (7-14)
           SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS:  TAM - JOHN FLAHERTY (14) OFF SELE IN THE 5TH, 0 ON
            TEX - NONE

     TIME:  2:27     ATT:  36,820

PROBABLES:  TAM - ROLANDO ARROJO (5-11, 5.15)
            TEX - JOHN BURKETT (7-7, 5.80)

Box Score
TAMPA BAY (1) AT TEXAS (6) - FINAL

TAMPA BAY              ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Cairo 2b                4  0  1  0   0  0   0  .301
Da Martinez cf          4  0  0  0   0  0   1  .281
Canseco dh              4  0  2  0   0  1   0  .284
Mcgriff 1b              4  0  0  0   0  0   2  .313
Flaherty c              4  1  2  1   0  1   0  .287
Lowery lf               3  0  0  0   0  2   2  .282
Trammell rf             3  0  1  0   0  0   2  .283
Ledesma ss              3  0  0  0   0  0   1  .264
B Smith 3b              3  0  0  0   0  1   0  .173

Totals                 32  1  6  1   0  5   8

BATTING: HR - Flaherty (14, 5th inning off Sele 0 on, 0 out).
RBI - Flaherty (70). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out -
Trammell 1. GIDP - Ledesma. Team LOB - 4.

FIELDING: E - Cairo (10, ground ball); Flaherty (6, throw).
DP: 1 (Cairo-Ledesma-Mcgriff).

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Mclemore 2b             4  0  0  0   0  2   0  .275
I Rodriguez c           4  0  1  0   0  0   0  .331
R Palmeiro dh           1  1  0  0   3  0   1  .335
J Gonzalez rf           3  1  1  1   1  0   2  .317
Zeile 3b                3  1  1  0   1  1   1  .297
L Stevens 1b            4  0  2  1   0  2   3  .284
R Kelly lf              4  1  1  0   0  2   4  .314
Clayton ss              4  1  0  0   0  1   1  .275
T Goodwin cf            3  1  2  2   0  1   0  .251

Totals                 30  6  8  4   5  9  12

BATTING: 2B - J Gonzalez (31, Witt); L Stevens (29, Witt);
T Goodwin (12, Witt); R Kelly (17, Witt). RBI - J Gonzalez (116),
L Stevens (77), T Goodwin 2 (25). 2-out RBI - J Gonzalez, L Stevens,
T Goodwin 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - R Kelly 2.
GIDP - R Palmeiro. Team LOB - 5.

BASERUNNING: SB - T Goodwin (36, 3rd base off Witt/Flaherty).
CS - J Gonzalez (3, 2nd base by Witt/Flaherty); T Goodwin (10, 2nd base
by Witt).

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

TAMPA BAY                    ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Witt (L, 7-14)                6       8   6   3   3   5   0   5.85
J Sparks                      1 2/3   0   0   0   2   3   0   0.00
J Morris                        1/3   0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Sele (W, 17-8)                8       6   1   1   0   4   1   4.80
Crabtree                      1       0   0   0   0   1   0   3.15

Pitches-strikes: Sele 114-69; Crabtree 7-7; Witt 100-59; J Sparks
31-15; J Morris 4-4.  Ground balls-fly balls: Sele 13-7; Crabtree
1-1; Witt 7-4; J Sparks 0-2; J Morris 0-0.  Batters faced: Sele 29;
Crabtree 3; Witt 27; J Sparks 7; J Morris 1.

UMPIRES: HP--Chuck Meriwether. 1B--Laz Diaz. 2B--Jim Mckean.
3B--Mike Reilly.
T--2:27.  Att--36,820.   Weather: 89 degrees, cloudy.   Wind: 7 mph,
in from left.

AL       TAMPA BAY AT TEXAS
         NOTE:  TEXAS' IVAN RODRIGUEZ SINGLED IN THE FIFTH INNING TO
                EXTEND HIS HITTING STREAK TO 14 GAMES.

Game Log

Tampa Bay Starting Lineups -- Miguel Cairo 2B, Dave Martinez CF, Jose Canseco DH, Fred Mcgriff 1B, John Flaherty C, Terrell Lowery LF, Bubba Trammell RF, Aaron Ledesma SS, Bobby Smith 3B, Bobby Witt RHP.

Texas Starting Lineups -- Mark Mclemore 2B, Ivan Rodriguez C, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Juan Gonzalez RF, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Roberto Kelly LF, Royce Clayton SS, Tom Goodwin CF, Aaron Sele RHP.

Umpires -- C Meriwether (HP), Diaz (1B), Mckean (2B), Reilly (3B).

Gametime Weather: 89 degrees, Cloudy, wind in from left at 7 mph.

TAMPA BAY 1ST: Cairo popped out to shallow right. Da Martinez grounded out to third. Canseco singled to right. Mcgriff flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 0.

TEXAS 1ST: Mclemore flied out to left. I Rodriguez flied out to right. R Palmeiro walked. J Gonzalez doubled to right center, R Palmeiro scored. Zeile safe at first on 2nd baseman Cairo's fielding error, J Gonzalez scored. L Stevens doubled to left, Zeile scored. R Kelly grounded out to shortstop. (3 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Error) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 3.

TAMPA BAY 2ND: Flaherty grounded out to shortstop. Lowery struck out swinging. Trammell grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 3.

TEXAS 2ND: Clayton grounded out to second. T Goodwin doubled to right center. T Goodwin stole third. T Goodwin scored on catcher Flaherty's throwing error. Mclemore struck out swinging. I Rodriguez grounded out to third. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Error) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 4.

TAMPA BAY 3RD: Ledesma grounded out to shortstop. B Smith struck out swinging. Cairo flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 4.

TEXAS 3RD: R Palmeiro walked. J Gonzalez flied out to deep center. Zeile singled to right, R Palmeiro to third. L Stevens struck out swinging. R Kelly struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 4.

TAMPA BAY 4TH: Da Martinez grounded out to shortstop. Canseco struck out looking. Mcgriff grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 4.

TEXAS 4TH: Clayton lined out to second. T Goodwin struck out swinging. Mclemore grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 0, TEXAS 4.

TAMPA BAY 5TH: Flaherty homered to left. Lowery flied out to left center. Trammell singled to left. Ledesma grounded into double play, second to first, Trammell out at second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 4.

TEXAS 5TH: I Rodriguez singled to center. R Palmeiro grounded into double play, second to shortstop to first, I Rodriguez out at second. J Gonzalez walked. J Gonzalez caught stealing, catcher to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 4.

TAMPA BAY 6TH: B Smith grounded out to second. Cairo grounded out to third. Da Martinez grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 4.

TEXAS 6TH: Zeile struck out looking. L Stevens reached on infield single. R Kelly doubled to right, L Stevens to third. Clayton grounded into fielder's choice to pitcher, R Kelly to third, L Stevens out at home in rundown. Clayton to second advancing on play. T Goodwin singled to left, R Kelly and Clayton scored. T Goodwin caught stealing, pitcher to shortstop. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.

TAMPA BAY 7TH: Canseco singled to left. Mcgriff popped out to third. Flaherty singled to left, Canseco to second. Lowery struck out looking. Trammell lined out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.

TEXAS 7TH: Jeff Sparks relieved Bobby Witt. Mclemore struck out looking. I Rodriguez flied out to left. R Palmeiro walked. J Gonzalez popped out to shallow center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.

TAMPA BAY 8TH: Ledesma popped out to shallow center. B Smith grounded out to second. Cairo reached on infield single. Da Martinez grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.

TEXAS 8TH: Zeile walked. L Stevens struck out swinging. R Kelly struck out swinging. Jim Morris relieved Jeff Sparks. Clayton struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.

TAMPA BAY 9TH: Tim Crabtree relieved Aaron Sele. Canseco fouled out to first. Mcgriff grounded out to shortstop. Flaherty struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TAMPA BAY 1, TEXAS 6.