BOSTON 8, MINNESOTA 3 IN BOSTON

Date:  Wednesday, May 8.

Batting star:  Brian Harper was 3-for-4 with three RBIs.

Pitching star:  Terry Leach struck out two in two perfect innings.

Opposition stars:  Roger Clemens struck out ten in eight innings, giving up one run on four hits and a walk.  Wade Boggs was 3-for-3 with a double, two walks, and two RBIs.  Jody Reed was 3-for-4 with two doubles, a walk, and three RBIs.  Carlos Quintana was 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs.

The game:  The Red Sox put men on first and third with none out in the first inning and did not score.  They would not be denied in the second, however, as Quintana singled, Luis Rivera walked, and Boggs hit a two-out single to score the first run of the game.  It could've been worse, though, as Boston left the bases loaded.

The Red Sox increased their lead in the third, as three walks and a two-run single by Tony Pena made the score 3-0.  They added another in the fourth on two singles and a sacrifice fly by Tom Brunansky, and got one more in the fifth when Boggs singled and scored on Reed's double, making the score 5-0.

The Twins finally got on the board in the seventh when Kirby Puckett led off with a double and scored on Harper's two-out single.  Boston got the run back with interest in the bottom of the seventh.  A single, an error, and a walk loaded the bases.  Boggs then walked to force in a run and Reed hit a two-run double, making the score 8-1.  The Twins got two in the ninth on two walks and Harper's two-run double, but it was far too little and far too late.

WP:  Clemens (6-0).  LP:  Jack Morris (2-4).  S:  None.

Notes:  Randy Bush was again in right field in place of Shane Mack.  Granted that Mack was off to a slow start, but so was Bush.  With an 0-for-3 in this game, he was batting .189/.286/.216.  Given the difference in defense, there was really no good reason to play Bush in right field this much.

Gene Larkin was again at first base in place of Kent Hrbek.

With the blowout game, there were a lot of late-inning substitutions.  Carmelo Castillo pinch-hit for Dan Gladden and went to right field, with Bush moving to left.  Mack replaced Puckett in center.  Al Newman pinch-hit for Greg Gagne and stayed in to play short.  Scott Leius pinch-hit for Bush and Junior Ortiz pinch-hit for Mike Pagliarulo.

Harper raised his average to .338.  Gagne was 0-for-2 and was at .329.  Chili Davis was 1-for-4 and was batting .322.  Puckett was 1-for-3 to go to .317.  Chuck Knoblauch was 0-for-3 with a walk and was batting .307.

Castillo was 0-for-1 and was batting .182.  Leius walked and remained at .185.  Bush, as stated above, was at .189.  Mack walked and remained at .190.

Morris pitched five innings and allowed five runs on ten his and five walks while striking out six.  His ERA was 5.89.  Carl Willis pitched an inning and allowed three runs (two earned) on two hits and two walks and struck out one.  His ERA was 7.94.

Clemens, as you may remember was Really Good back then.  He would win his third Cy Young Award, and it was the fifth time in six years that he finished in the top six.  He would make it six times in seven years in 1992.  He ended up with seven Cys, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1997, 1998, 2001, and 2004.  His numbers obviously say he should be in the Hall of Fame, and we all know the only reason he's not.

The Twins failed in their attempt to get over .500.  Could they get back to .500 in the next game?

Record:  The Twins were 13-14 and remained tied for fifth with California in the American League West.  They were 4.5 games behind Oakland.