Clemens Handles Mariners Again, 7-1

Roger Clemens shut down Seattle again and Derek Jeter had three hits as the New York Yankees defeated the Mariners, 7-1, Friday night at Seattle in a rematch of the American League championship series.

The Yankees, who defeated Seattle in the playoffs the last two years, picked up where they left off in October.

Clemens (3-2) gave up one run and six hits in eight innings, striking out four. He improved his career record to 22-12 against the Mariners--the most victories for any pitcher against Seattle--and tied Jim Kaat for 26th place with his 283rd career victory.

Robin Ventura led a 15-hit attack for the Yankees by going three for three, with his seventh homer of the season. Jeter was three for five with two runs batted in and Alfonso Soriano also drove in two runs.

The Yankees battered James Baldwin (2-1) for seven runs and 13 hits in 42/3 innings.

Before the game, Yankee Manager Joe Torre said he was anxious to see his team matched up against a premier opponent. Seattle tied the major league record with 116 victories last season.

The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the second on Ventura’s homer and made it 4-0 with three more in the third.

The Mariners got their first hits, three singles, in the fifth for their run off Clemens. Ichiro Suzuki had an RBI single.

Suzuki, last year’s MVP, left the game at the start of the seventh with a cut on his left knee. He ran into a fence in foul territory when he attempted to catch Coomer’s fly ball in the fourth inning.

Boston 4, Tampa Bay 2--John Burkett pitched six scoreless innings in his Red Sox debut at Fenway Park, and Manny Ramirez hit a two-run homer to lead the victory over the Devil Rays.

Burkett (2-0) gave up three hits, struck out six and walked one in his second start after beginning the year on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. The 37-year-old right-hander signed an $11 million, two-year contract in the off-season after going 12-12 with a 3.04 ERA for Atlanta last year.

Oakland 6, Chicago 4--Ramon Hernandez homered twice, and Terrence Long hit a two-run shot as the Athletics defeated the White Sox at Oakland.

Cory Lidle (1-3) got off to a shaky start but worked through seven innings, giving up two runs--one earned--on five hits. He matched his career high with eight strikeouts.

Cleveland 7, Texas 4--Russell Branyan homered twice off Doug Davis (2-2) at Arlington, Texas, as the Indians won for only the second time in 11 games after a 10-game winning streak.

Omar Vizquel also homered for the Indians, and Chuck Finley (2-2) gave up two runs in five innings.

Detroit 3, Minnesota 2--Robert Fick led off the bottom of the 10th inning with a home run off Bob Wells (0-1) to win it for the Tigers at Detroit.

Tiger pitcher Seth Greisinger made his first major league start since Sept. 26, 1998, after missing most of the last three seasons with elbow injuries.

Greisinger gave up two runs, six hits and two walks in five innings, striking out five.

Baltimore 10, Kansas City 5--Tony Batista had four RBIs, including a tiebreaking two-run single off Jason Grimsley (1-1) in the Orioles’ five-run 10th inning at Kansas City, Mo.

Jeff Conine went four for five with two RBIs and Batista hit a two-run homer for the Orioles. Buddy Groom (1-0) pitched 12/3 perfect innings of relief for the victory.