American League Roundup : Lacy Has 3 Homers, 6 RBIs as Orioles Trounce Yankees, 18-9

Lee Lacy hit three home runs and Larry Sheets blasted one into the center-field bleachers at Yankee Stadium to power the sizzling Baltimore Orioles to an 18-9 victory over the New York Yankees Sunday in the longest nine-inning game in league history.

Not counting a 40-minute rain delay, it took 4:16 to complete the game. Undoubtedly, Yankee pitchers, who yielded 22 hits figured it was even longer. The major-league record is 4:18 by the Dodgers and San Francisco Giants in 1962.

Lacy, who had hit two home runs in 178 at-bats this season, hit his three off three different pitchers, Ed Whitson (4-2), Bob Shirley and Doug Drabek. He also had a single and drove in six runs.

It was estimated that Sheets’ blast in the ninth carried more than 450 feet. Not many in the Bat Day crowd of 52,021 stayed around for the hit. It was the seventh loss in nine games for the Yankees.

The Orioles, who swept the three-game series, are 21-6 since May 10. They cut Boston’s lead in the East to three games.

Lacy, one of 11 players fined and ordered to undergo drug tests by Commissioner Peter Ueberroth in the aftermath of the Pittsburgh drug trials last summer, was signed as a free agent by the Orioles before last season.

Although he was nearing 36, the Orioles signed him to a four-year contract for $2.2 million. Last season, surgery to repair a torn ligament in his thumb led to a slow start. By the time he started hitting, the pennant race was lost.

“My thumb hurt all season,� Lacy said recently. “Baltimore fans never saw the real me. It also hurt when the trial started. I didn’t even want to go to the park. It’s different now. I’m helping the club.�

The 4-for-6 effort raised his average to .293, he has driven in 27 runs and has done a good job in right field.

Lacy’s three homers helped Ken Dixon to a 7-1 lead, but the Yankees chased Dixon and cut the lead to a run with a five-run sixth. The Orioles broke it open with seven in the seventh. Two came in on Lacy’s single.

Milwaukee 7, Boston 3--A Red Sox explosion in the ninth inning at Milwaukee came too late to prevent the Brewers from taking three out of four games in the series.

All it did was prevent Tim Leary from pitching a complete-game shutout and give Manager George Bamberger a scare.

The Red Sox, the top hitting team in the majors with a .275 average, were shut out Saturday by Ted Higuera and trailed, 7-0, on Leary’s four-hitter through eight innings.

But, they had three runs in and the bases loaded before rookie left-hander Dan Plesac got Bill Buckner, the potential tying run, on a routine fly to center.

“I wondered when they would break loose,� Bamberger said, with a sigh. “You have to fear them right down to the last out.�

Leary (4-5) was especially effective against Wade Boggs. The major league’s leading hitter did not get the ball out of the infield, going 0 for 3, and his average fell to .395.

Texas 5, Seattle 4--Pete Incaviglia’s one-out, bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th inning gave the Rangers their seventh straight victory.

Curtis Wilkerson was hit by a pitch by loser Karl Best (1-1) to open the 10th. After Oddibe McDowell then walked and Toby Harrah sacrificed the runners to second and third. Pete O’Brien was intentionally walked to load the bases before Incaviglia grounded a 1-1 pitch up the middle.

Best came on in the 10th in relief of starter Mike Moore.

Mitch Williams (5-0) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the 10th. He struck out Al Cowens and got Spike Owen to fly out to end the threat.

Texas tied the game 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth inning when Incaviglia led off with a double to right and Gary Ward followed with a run-scoring single.

Seattle had taken a 2-0 lead in the first inning off Texas starter Ed Correa. Harold Reynolds singled to start the rally, and Danny Tartabull followed with a double off the centerfield wall for a 1-0 Mariners lead. Two outs later, Jim Presley singled to score Tartabull.

Minnesota 5, Kansas City 2--It figured to be a mismatch at Kansas City--Mark Portugal with his 6.54 earned-run average against Cy Young Award winner Bret Saberhagen. It was, but not the way you think.

Portugal shut out the Royals on three singles until he needed help after two walks and an error loaded the bases in the seventh.

Saberhagen went eight, but his record fell to 3-6 when he gave up 10 hits and four runs, including Kent Hrbek’s 12th home run.

Portugal (2-6) has turned things around after losing his first five decisions.

Toronto 4, Detroit 2--The Blue Jays, defending champions of the East, are slowly moving up in the standings. A big reason is the job rookie Mark Eichhorn is doing out of the bullpen.

In this game at Detroit, Eichhorn (6-2) pitched four hitless innings and struck out seven.

Jesse Barfield’s two-run home run was the big blow for the Blue Jays.

Eichhorn, a right-hander who bounced around the minors for seven seasons, was invited to training camp as a non-roster player last spring. When injuries decimated the pitching staff, the 25-year-old sidearm pitcher was given a chance out of desperation. He was an instant success. He has four saves in addition to the six wins and his ERA is 0.89.

“I started throwing sidearm in 1984 because my career wasn’t going anywhere,� he said. “Still, I didn’t feel confident of making this club. I do now.�

Chicago 8, Oakland 5--Greg Walker drove in three runs with a double and a single at Chicago as the hot-and-cold White Sox swept the four-game series with the A’s.

Just a week or so ago the White Sox lost seven in a row.