MINNESOTA 5, OAKLAND 3 IN OAKLAND

Date:  Friday, July 31.

Batting stars:  Gary Gaetti was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer (his twenty-first) and a double, scoring twice.  Kent Hrbek was 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Pitching stars:  Bert Blyleven pitched 7.1 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk with five strikeouts.  Jeff Reardon retired all five men he faced striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Jose Canseco was 2-for-4 with a home run (his twenty-second) and two RBIs.  Luis Polonia was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.  Carney Lansford was 2-for-4 with a run.

The game:  Canseco homered in the fourth to put Oakland ahead 1-0.  The Twins took the lead in the sixth with an RBI single by Kent Hrbek and a three-run homer by Gaetti.  The Athletics got one back in the bottom of the sixth on a Canseco single.  They closed to 4-3 in the eighth when Polonia drove in a run with a double.  That brought on Reardon, and he slammed the door, retiring all five men he faced.  Randy Bush drove in an insurance run with a pinch-hit single in the ninth.

Of note:  Kirby Puckett was 0-for-4 with a run, dropping his average to .325...Greg Gagne batted second in this game, with Steve Lombardozzi batting eighth...Dennis Lamp started for Oakland and went six innings, giving up four runs on five hits and a walk with two strikeouts.

Record:  The Twins were 56-48, in first place, 2.5 games ahead of California.

We will try to resume player profiles some time next week.