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Sosa hits blooper as Rangers win

Texas Rangers first base coach Gary Pettis, right, looks on as Sammy Sosa reacts to hitting a bloop single off a pitch from Tim Wakefield of the Boston Red Sox in the first inning of their game in Arlington, Texas, on Friday. The Rangers won 2-0. PHOTO: AP

American League

Sammy Sosa had a bloop RBI single in the first inning when he was trying to check his swing and the Texas Rangers went on to defeat the Boston Red Sox 2-0 in the Rangers' home opener on Friday.

It was Sosa's first home game for the Rangers since his rookie season in 1989. After a year out of Major League Baseball, he agreed to a minor league deal with Texas and made the team by hitting .408 with five home runs in 17 spring games.

After being swept in a season-opening three-game series at the Los Angeles Angels, the Rangers finally gave rookie manager Ron Washington his first victory.

Robinson Tejeda (1-0) allowed two hits, one of them an infield single, over seven shutout innings.

Orioles 6, Yankees 4

At New York, Mike Mussina was roughed up in his season debut and Baltimore's revamped bullpen succeeded in its first chance to protect a late lead, helping the Orioles to their first victory.

Royals 3, Tigers 1

At Kansas City, Missouri, Tony Pena Jr.'s third triple in four games keyed a two-run seventh inning for Kansas City. Jorge De La Rosa (1-0) went a career-high seven innings in his first start of the year.

Devil Rays 6, Blue Jays 5

At St. Petersburg, Florida, Akinori Iwamura hit his first major league homer and sprinted home from third base on B.J. Upton's infield single with two outs in the ninth inning to help Tampa Bay win its home opener.

Angels 5, Athletics 2

At Anaheim, California, Vladimir Guerrero and Howie Kendrick homered and Dustin Moseley threw six-plus innings for Los Angeles. Moseley (1-0) allowed a run and five hits.

National League

Adam Wainwright allowed five hits and struck out four in his first career start, leading the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals over the winless Houston Astros 4-2 in the National League on Friday. Wainwright (1-0) also had an RBI double and scored on Chris Duncan's two-run homer in the third inning.

Mets 11, Braves 1

At Atlanta, Jose Reyes hit two triples and drove in four runs and Oliver Perez tossed seven strong innings to lead New York. The Mets are 4-0 for the first time since 1985.

Diamondbacks 7, Nationals 1

At Washington, Micah Owings allowed one hit in five shutout innings in his big league debut and Chris Young homered and drove in four runs for Arizona. Owings (1-0) struck out six.

Cubs 9, Brewers 3

At Milwaukee, Rich Hill retired his first 15 batters and allowed one hit in seven innings for Chicago. Hill (1-0) got all the run support he needed before he stepped on the mound as the Cubs scored six times in the first inning.

Phillies 8, Marlins 2

At Miami, Pat Burrell homered and drove in four runs, Jamie Moyer pitched six-and-two-thirds innings and Philadelphia earned its first victory after three consecutive losses. Burrell hit a three-run homer and an RBI single and Jimmy Rollins hit a two-run homer for the Phillies.

Reds 6, Pirates 1

At Cincinnati, Jeff Conine hit a three-run homer and tripled, leading Cincinnati to victory over Pittsburgh. Matt Belisle (1-0) retired 14 in a row over the middle innings.

Rockies 4, Padres 3

At San Diego, Matt Holliday hit a two-run to help Colorado ruin San Diego's home opener. Jason Hirsh (1-0) made his Rockies debut memorable by striking out a career-high eight.

Dodgers 2, Giants 1

At San Francisco, Brad Penny pitched shutout ball into the eighth inning in Los Angeles' sixth straight victory in San Francisco. Barry Bonds went 0-for-3 on a chilly Bay Area night, when dense fog hovered for most of the game and players could see their own breath.
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