INTERLEAGUE PLAY
Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez broke the Major League Baseball record for most games at catcher on Wednesday with his 2,227th game at the position.
Now with the Houston Astros, Rodriguez broke the record against the Texas Rangers, the team with which he broke into the major leagues at the age of 19 in 1991.
He surpassed the record of Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk, who played for Boston (1969 to 1980) and the Chicago White Sox (1981 to 1993) and made his last appearance behind the plate on June 22, 1993 — against Texas.
“To be able to play so many games behind the plate, it’s unbelievable,” Rodriguez said. “It’s been a long time. But I’m still feeling the same way [as] when I was 19. I love this game. I love what I do.”
Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Sciosia, who caught 1,395 games for the Dodgers, called Rodriguez’s record “an incredible accomplishment.”
“The erosion rate of catchers has really accelerated because of the demands of the position. Those catchers who have caught a long time and maintained their skills [are] extraordinary,” he said.
Rodriguez won an American League Most Valuable Player award, 10 Gold Gloves and 10 All-Star appearances before the Rangers let him go after 12 seasons.
He went on to win a the 2003 World Series title with Florida.
Rodriguez, who had homered for Houston against the Rangers on Tuesday, received a standing ovation prior to his first at-bat on Wednesday, stepping out of the batter’s box to acknowledge the accolade.
The Rangers, who edged the Astros 5-4 in 10 innings, showed a video tribute that included clips of Fisk, Bob Boone and Gary Carter, the only catchers other than Rodriguez to catch more than 2,000 games.
David Murphy hit an RBI single in the 10th as Texas took advantage of two throwing errors by Rodriguez.
It was Rodriguez’s first two-error game since Aug. 26, 2004, and sixth overall in his career. Both miscues led to runs.
Omar Vizquel tied Luis Aparicio for most hits by a player from Venezuela with No. 2,677.
NATIONALS 3, YANKEES 2
At New York, local product John Lannan pitched into the ninth inning in his first career start at Yankee Stadium, leading Washington to a much-needed victory.
Lannan (4-5) allowed two runs and four hits in eight innings.
Adam Dunn homered and Nick Johnson hit a two-run triple for the Nationals, who had lost 16 of 19. Washington improved to 7-24 on the road.
Robinson Cano and Johnny Damon homered, and Wang Chien-ming (0-5) of Taiwan turned in a decent start for the Yankees.
WHITE SOX 4, CUBS 1
At Chicago, John Danks pitched seven shutout innings and Alexei Ramirez homered in the first as the White Sox beat the Cubs 4-1 in Chicago’s interleague derby on Wednesday.
The White Sox, backed by a large and vocal following at Wrigley Field, lead their series that began in 1997, 34-33.
Danks (5-5) allowed five hits, walked none and struck out nine, while being charged with one run.
Leading 1-0 on Ramirez’s sixth homer of the season, the White Sox added a run on Chris Getz’s RBI triple in the second off a wild Ryan Dempster (4-4) and got a third run in the seventh on a squeeze bunt single from Scott Podsednik.
ANGELS 4, GIANTS 3
At San Francisco, pinch-hitters Torii Hunter and Vladimir Guerrero opened Los Angeles’ three-run rally with consecutive singles in the eighth inning to beat San Francisco for its season-high sixth straight victory.
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