Baseball Today
Detroit at Texas (8:05 p.m. EDT). The surprising Rangers are just a half-game out of first place in the AL West.
STARS
Thursday
_ Derrek Lee, Cubs, drove in five runs with a career-high five hits, including a three-run homer, in Chicago's 11-3 win over Arizona.
_ Ken Griffey Jr., Reds, homered and drove in a season-high five runs in Cincinnati's 9-6 win over Milwaukee.
_ Shawn Green, Dodgers, homered twice and drove in four runs to lead Los Angeles over Florida 9-4
_ Mark Kotsay, Athletics, matched his career high with four RBIs to help Oakland beat the New York Yankees 7-4.
_ Hector Luna, Cardinals, hit a three-run homer to cap a five-run first inning in St. Louis' 7-4 win over Philadelphia.
RESHUFFLED
Dropped below the cleanup spot for the first time in 14 years, Ken Griffey Jr. homered and drove in a season-high five runs to send Cincinnati past Milwaukee 9-6 Thursday night. Griffey hit fifth, his lowest slot in the lineup since June 22, 1990, when he played for Seattle.
BIG WEEK
The Mets' Mike Piazza homered in the 11th inning Thursday night, giving New York a 2-1 victory and a three-game sweep of San Francisco. A night earlier, Piazza hit his 352nd home run as a catcher, breaking Carlton Fisk's major league record.
STILL GOING
Eric Gagne extended his major league record to 72 consecutive saves in Los Angeles' 9-4 win over Florida on Thursday night.
AVOIDING THE SWEEP
Mark Kotsay matched his career high with four RBIs, and Oakland beat New York 7-4. The A's avoided the first three-game sweep by the Yankees in Oakland since 1996.
CLEVELAND CONQUEROR
Pedro Martinez won in Cleveland again, improving to 11-1 in 15 career starts against the Indians with Boston's 5-2 win Thursday night. Martinez is 6-0 at Jacobs Field.
SUPPORT
Freddy Garcia earned his first win of the season in Seattle's 2-1 victory over Minnesota on Thursday night. Through his first five starts, Garcia had received only seven runs of support.
NIGHTLY POWER
Jose Guillen hit his third homer in three nights Thursday, a three-run shot that helped Anaheim beat Tampa Bay 7-3 for its sixth straight win.
PROBLEMS IN HOUSTON
Houston completed a three-game sweep of Pittsburgh with a 5-2 victory Thursday. The Pirates have won only one of their last 14 games at Houston.
LUCKY 5'S
Derrek Lee went 5-for-5 and drove in five runs, and Matt Clement won his fifth straight start, leading the Cubs over Arizona 11-3 Thursday. Lee's three-run homer keyed a five-run fifth inning.
SPEAKING
"You're not going to be able to go 5-for-5 every day. I don't think I'd ever gotten five hits before. It was a great day. It was a lot of fun out there."
Chicago's Derrek Lee after leading the Cubs past Arizona 11-3 Thursday.
SEASONS
May 7
1917
Babe Ruth of the Red Sox allowed only two hits in outdueling Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators 1-0. Ruth knocked in the winning run with a sacrifice fly.
1922
Jesse Barnes of the New York Giants pitched the only no-hitter of the year, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 6-0.
1925
Pittsburgh shortstop Glenn Wright made an unassisted triple play in the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals when he caught Jim Bottomley's line drive, stepped on second to double Jimmy Cooney, and tagged Rogers Hornsby coming from first.
1957
Cleveland pitcher Herb Score was hit on the right eye by a line drive off the bat of Gil McDougald in the first inning. The ball broke Score's nose and damaged his eye; he missed the rest of the season.
1959
A crowd of 93,103 came to the Los Angeles Coliseum on "Roy Campanella Night" to show their affection for the paralyzed Dodger catcher. The Dodgers were beaten by the New York Yankees 6-2 in an exhibition game that followed the ceremonies.
1960
Dodgers catcher Norm Sherry hit a home run in the 11th inning to give his brother, relief pitcher Larry Sherry, a 3-2 triumph over the Philadelphia Phillies in Los Angeles.
1997
The Montreal Expos scored 13 runs to set an NL record for runs in a sixth inning during their 19-3 win over the San Francisco Giants. Montreal also scored five runs in the fifth to set a National League record for runs in consecutive innings with 18.
Today's birthday: Brook Fordyce, 34.
Detroit at Texas (8:05 p.m. EDT). The surprising Rangers are just a half-game out of first place in the AL West.
STARS
Thursday
_ Derrek Lee, Cubs, drove in five runs with a career-high five hits, including a three-run homer, in Chicago's 11-3 win over Arizona.
_ Ken Griffey Jr., Reds, homered and drove in a season-high five runs in Cincinnati's 9-6 win over Milwaukee.
_ Shawn Green, Dodgers, homered twice and drove in four runs to lead Los Angeles over Florida 9-4
_ Mark Kotsay, Athletics, matched his career high with four RBIs to help Oakland beat the New York Yankees 7-4.
_ Hector Luna, Cardinals, hit a three-run homer to cap a five-run first inning in St. Louis' 7-4 win over Philadelphia.
RESHUFFLED
Dropped below the cleanup spot for the first time in 14 years, Ken Griffey Jr. homered and drove in a season-high five runs to send Cincinnati past Milwaukee 9-6 Thursday night. Griffey hit fifth, his lowest slot in the lineup since June 22, 1990, when he played for Seattle.
BIG WEEK
The Mets' Mike Piazza homered in the 11th inning Thursday night, giving New York a 2-1 victory and a three-game sweep of San Francisco. A night earlier, Piazza hit his 352nd home run as a catcher, breaking Carlton Fisk's major league record.
STILL GOING
Eric Gagne extended his major league record to 72 consecutive saves in Los Angeles' 9-4 win over Florida on Thursday night.
AVOIDING THE SWEEP
Mark Kotsay matched his career high with four RBIs, and Oakland beat New York 7-4. The A's avoided the first three-game sweep by the Yankees in Oakland since 1996.
CLEVELAND CONQUEROR
Pedro Martinez won in Cleveland again, improving to 11-1 in 15 career starts against the Indians with Boston's 5-2 win Thursday night. Martinez is 6-0 at Jacobs Field.
SUPPORT
Freddy Garcia earned his first win of the season in Seattle's 2-1 victory over Minnesota on Thursday night. Through his first five starts, Garcia had received only seven runs of support.
NIGHTLY POWER
Jose Guillen hit his third homer in three nights Thursday, a three-run shot that helped Anaheim beat Tampa Bay 7-3 for its sixth straight win.
PROBLEMS IN HOUSTON
Houston completed a three-game sweep of Pittsburgh with a 5-2 victory Thursday. The Pirates have won only one of their last 14 games at Houston.
LUCKY 5'S
Derrek Lee went 5-for-5 and drove in five runs, and Matt Clement won his fifth straight start, leading the Cubs over Arizona 11-3 Thursday. Lee's three-run homer keyed a five-run fifth inning.
SPEAKING
"You're not going to be able to go 5-for-5 every day. I don't think I'd ever gotten five hits before. It was a great day. It was a lot of fun out there."
Chicago's Derrek Lee after leading the Cubs past Arizona 11-3 Thursday.
SEASONS
May 7
1917
Babe Ruth of the Red Sox allowed only two hits in outdueling Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators 1-0. Ruth knocked in the winning run with a sacrifice fly.
1922
Jesse Barnes of the New York Giants pitched the only no-hitter of the year, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 6-0.
1925
Pittsburgh shortstop Glenn Wright made an unassisted triple play in the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals when he caught Jim Bottomley's line drive, stepped on second to double Jimmy Cooney, and tagged Rogers Hornsby coming from first.
1957
Cleveland pitcher Herb Score was hit on the right eye by a line drive off the bat of Gil McDougald in the first inning. The ball broke Score's nose and damaged his eye; he missed the rest of the season.
1959
A crowd of 93,103 came to the Los Angeles Coliseum on "Roy Campanella Night" to show their affection for the paralyzed Dodger catcher. The Dodgers were beaten by the New York Yankees 6-2 in an exhibition game that followed the ceremonies.
1960
Dodgers catcher Norm Sherry hit a home run in the 11th inning to give his brother, relief pitcher Larry Sherry, a 3-2 triumph over the Philadelphia Phillies in Los Angeles.
1997
The Montreal Expos scored 13 runs to set an NL record for runs in a sixth inning during their 19-3 win over the San Francisco Giants. Montreal also scored five runs in the fifth to set a National League record for runs in consecutive innings with 18.
Today's birthday: Brook Fordyce, 34.
