AMERICAN LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Happy Henderson Leads A’s, 7-2

Rickey Henderson was the center of attention and he didn’t care if some of it was bad.

“I had a good day. I had a lot of fun,” said Henderson, who doubled twice and scored twice in the Oakland Athletics’ 7-2 victory Wednesday over the Seattle Mariners at Oakland.

He dismissed the boos that greeted him as the product of a fickle public.

“The fans? Some fans would be booing me even if they didn’t read the paper,” Henderson said.

Henderson was quoted Tuesday as saying he was unhappy in Oakland and wanted to be traded, but in pregame remarks Wednesday he said he was joking.

“Rickey was outstanding,” said Dave Stewart, who earned the victory. “When he’s playing at his best and he’s healthy, there isn’t a better player on this team.”

Stewart (7-5) gave up four hits over eight innings as the Mariners lost their fifth consecutive game and 10th in a row at the Oakland Coliseum.

“Everything was working and they were cooperating. They swung at a lot of forkballs,” Stewart said. “They bring a pretty good lineup out there so you change speeds on them and change their sights.”

Baltimore 8, Milwaukee 4--Leo Gomez singled to break a ninth-inning tie, sending the Orioles past the Brewers at Milwaukee.

Randy Milligan drew a leadoff walk in the ninth from Darren Holmes (2-2) and took third on Joe Orsulak’s hit-and-run single. Gomez followed with a single past the drawn-in infield for a 5-4 lead.

Mark McLemore and Jeff Tackett each hit RBI singles, chasing Holmes. Mike Devereaux, who homered earlier and singled home a run, added a sacrifice fly.

Alan Mills (5-1) pitched 3 1/3 scoreless innings for the victory. He gave up three hits, and Gregg Olson pitched the ninth.

New York 6, Kansas City 3--Andy Stankiewicz had the first four-hit game of his major league career and Dion James got three of New York’s 15 hits, giving the Yankees a victory over the Royals at Kansas City.

The Yankees batted around in the first inning and scored four runs off Rick Reed (1-3). Reed lasted 3 1/3 innings, giving up five runs, three of them earned, and seven hits.

Jeff Johnson (2-2) gave up three runs and eight hits in seven-plus innings. Steve Farr pitched the ninth inning for his 11th save.

Stankiewicz singled leading off the game and scored on James’ double. Don Mattingly singled and the Yankees loaded the bases when Kevin Maas walked with one out.

Jim Leyritz hit a sacrifice fly and Mattingly scored when second baseman Keith Miller could not handle Matt Nokes’ sharp grounder up the middle for an error. Charlie Hayes singled home Maas for the fourth run.

Chicago 4, Cleveland 3--Tim Raines singled home the winning run with two out in the ninth inning and the White Sox beat the Indians at Chicago for their fifth consecutive victory.

The Indians lost their fifth in a row.

Lance Johnson opened the ninth with an infield single against Ted Power (1-2), took second on Craig Grebeck’s sacrifice and went to third on an infield out. Kevin Wickander relieved and Raines singled for his third hit of the game.

Roberto Hernandez (2-0) won his second game in relief since Sunday, giving up one hit in one inning. Greg Hibbard gave up three runs and six hits in eight innings.

George Bell hit his third homer in three games, capping a three-run rally in the third inning that gave the White Sox a 3-3 tie.

Detroit 5, Boston 1--Cecil Fielder is finally starting to feel as if he has recovered from the effects of a wrist injury.

After hitting a grand slam in Tuesday’s 11-7 victory, Fielder homered twice to lead the Tigers past the Red Sox at Detroit.

Fielder is hitting .231 in June but has a career-high 27 RBIs, after a career-worst 13 in May.

“It really wasn’t the wrist itself, but a mental problem,” Fielder said. “I was trying to compensate for not feeling 100%, and I was jumping at the ball, and pulling my head. Now, I’m hoping I can break the bad habits.”

Fielder is hitting .225, but Manager Sparky Anderson said he is not too concerned.

“I’m never concerned about his batting average, or anyone else’s for that matter,” he said. “All that matters is when you do it.”

Toronto 3, Texas 2--Roberto Alomar hit an RBI triple and scored on a wild pitch, capping a three-run rally in the fifth inning that led the Blue Jays over the Rangers at Arlington, Tex.

The Blue Jays swept the series, shortened to two games because of a rainout. Nolan Ryan, who pitched two innings in Tuesday night’s postponement, was not brought back a day later.

David Wells (3-2) gave up two runs and seven hits in six innings. He settled down after Texas scored twice in the first.

Tom Henke pitched the ninth for his 13th save. It was his 413th appearance, breaking the club record he shared with Dave Stieb.