18 Enough for Clemens to Shut Out Royals

Just another day at the office for Roger Clemens.

Well, maybe not just.

“That’s the best stuff I’ve ever seen as far as having all your pitches working and putting the ball where you want it,” Kansas City’s Dean Palmer said after Clemens struck out 18 batters in a 3-0 victory over the Royals on Tuesday night at Toronto.

“His forkball was [as] close to unhittable as you can get.”

It was the 11th consecutive win for Clemens, and the ninth time he has struck out 15 or more. He had 14 strikeouts in the first seven innings but held only a 1-0 lead at the time, fashioned when Kansas City starter Chris Haney (5-6) walked Jose Cruz Jr. with the bases loaded in the first.

After Haney loaded the bases in the seventh on a walk, single and hit by pitch, Ricky Bones relieved. Craig Grebeck then hit a two-run single to give the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead.

“Once we got a 3-0 lead I continued to be aggressive. I threw up and down the strike zone, and east and west and I made them swing at my pitch,” Clemens said. “You’ve just got to hang on and hope the other guy cracks first and fortunately that’s what happened tonight.”

Clemens (16-6) walked off the mound to a standing ovation from the 26,117 at SkyDome after his second shutout of the season and the 43rd of his career. He hasn’t lost since May 29, matched San Diego’s Kevin Brown for the major-league high winning streak this season.

Clemens didn’t give up a hit until Larry Sutton singled with one out in the fourth inning and then retired 10 consecutive before Palmer singled with two out in the seventh.

He didn’t walk anyone.

“He had just unbelievable stuff tonight, probably the best performance I’ve ever caught,” catcher Darrin Fletcher said. “I caught a perfect game through nine in San Diego one time when Pedro Martinez was throwing, but as far as punch-outs are concerned and total dominance of lineup, this was the best.”

Said Clemens: “My adrenaline is still going now right now. My pitches were all working and I just tried to pour it on when I could and just mix it up.”

Detroit 8, Texas 7--Frank Catalanotto had three doubles and Luis Gonzalez doubled twice for the Tigers, who took a seven-run lead and held on to win at Arlington, Texas.

Brian Powell (3-4) won for only the second time in eight starts, giving up four runs and eight hits in six-plus innings.

Texas, which dropped 3 1/2 games behind the first-place Angels in the AL West, trailed, 8-2, in the seventh inning before Rusty Greer’s two-run single off Matt Anderson. Sean Runyon, the third pitcher of the inning, got Will Clark to line into an inning-ending double play.

Juan Gonzalez hit a sacrifice fly in the ninth off Todd Jones for his AL-leading 129th RBI, and Clark hit a two-run homer. Todd Zeile hit a game-ending groundout with the potential tying run at first.

Todd Stottlemyre (3-2) gave up five runs and eight hits in 3 2/3 innings, his second-shortest start this season. Stottlemyre, acquired from St. Louis on July 31, has a 6.93 earned-run average for the Rangers.

Detroit, which had lost six of its previous seven and 17 of 20, had four doubles in the first inning, taking the lead on RBI doubles by Catalanotto, Tony Clark and Gonzalez.

Robert Kelly’s RBI doubled pulled the Rangers within a run in the second, but Detroit chased Stottlemyre in the fourth on Juan Encarnacion’s RBI single and Paul Bako’s run-scoring triple.

Joe Randa and Bako hit RBI singles in the fifth off Al Levine for a 7-1 lead, and Catalanotto scored from second in the sixth inning when second baseman Luis Alicea booted Gonzalez’s grounder for an error.

Minnesota 4, Tampa Bay 1--Frankie Rodriguez, starting because the Twins had traded Mike Morgan to the Chicago Cubs earlier in the day, pitched 7 2/3 shutout innings in their win at St. Petersburg, Fla.

Rodriguez (4-2), who had been scheduled for long relief since beating the Yankees last week, gave up five hits and struck out eight.

After pinch-hitter Quinton McCracken doubled home a run in the ninth against Mike Trombley, Rick Aguilera got the final out for his 32nd save for Minnesota, which got solo homers from Pat Meares, David Ortiz and Marty Cordova.

Cleveland 10, Seattle 4--Manny Ramirez was four for four with his 31st homer and five RBIs in the Indian win at Cleveland.

Ken Griffey Jr., who leads the AL with 44 homers, was one for four with a single and a walk, failing to hit a home run for the first time in three games.

Ramirez singled, doubled twice and hit a 432-foot homer, missing only a triple in his bid to become the first Cleveland player in 20 years to hit for the cycle. His best shot came in the sixth inning, when he hit a two-run double off the wall in left-center field but didn’t go for third.

The Indians won for the sixth time in nine games and scored seven runs with two outs, snapping out of their clutch-hitting drought.

Chicago 6, Baltimore 4--Frank Thomas and Albert Belle hit consecutive homers for the the seventh time this season and the ended a six-game losing streak with a win at Chicago.

Mike Mussina (12-7) lost for only the second time in 10 starts since the All-Star break, and the Orioles dropped nine games behind Boston in the AL wild-card race.

Baltimore, which has the best record in baseball since the break at 31-12, lost for the fifth time in its last 13 games.

Thomas made it 5-1 in the seventh inning with a two-run homer off Mussina, his 24th of the season. Belle then celebrated his 32nd birthday by connecting off Alan Mills for his 39th homer, his 21st since the All-Star break.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

K Marks the Spot

Pitchers who have struck out 18 or more batters in the last 15 years:

20: Kerry Wood, Chicago (NL), May 6, 1998, vs. Houston.

20: Roger Clemens, Boston, Sept. 18, 1996, at Detroit.

20: Roger Clemens, Boston, April 29, 1986, vs. Seattle.

19: Randy Johnson, Seattle, June 24, 1997, vs. Oakland.

19: David Cone, New York (NL), Oct. 6, 1991, at Philadelphia.

18: Roger Clemens, Toronto, Aug. 25, 1998, vs. Kansas City.

18: Randy Johnson, Seattle, Sept. 27, 1992, at Texas (8 innings).

18: Ramon Martinez, Dodgers, June 4, 1990, vs. Atlanta.