AMERICAN LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Brett Says Goodby to Home Crowd

George Brett sure knows how to say goodby.

Brett, playing his last game in Kansas City, drove in the tying run in the eighth inning with his last swing in Kauffman Stadium, and Kevin Koslofski drove in the game-winner in the ninth as the Royals beat the Cleveland Indians, 3-2, Wednesday night.

After the game, Brett took a ride in a golf cart around the stadium he starred in for 20 years to the cheers of the crowd.

“The adrenaline was flowing very high again tonight,� said Brett, who was hitless his first three at-bats. “In the first three at-bats, I was trying to do more than I was capable of doing. I was trying to do too much. That last at-bat, I felt good.�

Brett’s RBI single with two out in the eighth scored Koslofski, who had singled.

It was Brett’s 1,595th run batted in, tying Mike Schmidt for 22nd place on the career list, and his 3,153rd hit, passing Paul Waner for 11th place all-time.

Brett, who won three batting titles, was honored in ceremonies that delayed the start of the game almost 15 minutes.

Toronto 9, Milwaukee 6--Pinch-hitter Domingo Martinez drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single in a four-run ninth inning as the American League East champion Blue Jays won at Milwaukee.

The Blue Jays, who clinched the division title for the third consecutive season Monday night, have won 15 of 17. Game-time temperature was 45 degrees with winds at 14 m.p.h.

Juan Guzman, named the starter for the Blue Jays’ playoff opener in Chicago on Tuesday night, gave up eight hits in seven innings. He set an AL record with his 25th and 26th wild pitches of the season.

Detroit 8, Boston 7--Chad Kreuter broke a 5-5 tie with a ninth-inning double, his fourth RBI of the game in Boston. Daniel Bautista, who drove in three runs, added a two-run single in the inning off Cory Bailey (0-1) as Detroit moved into a tie for third place in the AL East.

Kreuter, who already had a two-run homer and RBI double, followed ninth-inning singles by Mickey Tettleton and Scott Livingstone with a ground-rule double inside the left-field line.

Joe Boever (6-2) got the victory in relief of John Doherty, who pitched seven innings. Mike Henneman got the last three outs for his 23rd save despite giving up two runs.

New York 8, Baltimore 3--Jimmy Key pitched seven solid innings to earn his career-high 18th victory and Don Mattingly homered and drove in three runs at Baltimore.

The second-place Yankee have not finished as high as second since 1986.

Chicago 3, Seattle 2--White Sox Manager Gene Lamont named Jack McDowell, Alex Fernandez, Wilson Alvarez and Jason Bere as his starting rotation against Toronto in the playoffs, then watched Norberto Martin’s RBI single in the 12th inning win it for the AL West champions in Chicago.

Ken Griffey Jr. led Seattle, going four for six with a home run, double, two singles and two RBIs. The homer tied Griffey with Texas’ Juan Gonzalez and San Francisco’s Barry Bonds for the major league lead with 44.

Texas 11, Oakland 6--Doug Strange had a three-run homer and a career-high five RBIs. Strange’s homer highlighted a four-run second to help the Rangers rally from a 3-0 deficit, and he finished off a five-run third with a two-run double at Arlington, Tex.