SCOREBOARD
Sunday, April 8
Boston at Texas (8:05 p.m. EDT). Curt Schilling’s opening-day loss was his shortest outing for the Red Sox.
STARS
Friday
-Jose Reyes, Mets, went 3-for-6 with two triples and four RBIs and New York beat Atlanta 11-1.
-Rich Hill, Cubs, retired his first 15 batters and allowed one hit in seven innings, leading Chicago to a 9-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.
-Pat Burrell, Phillies, homered and drove in four runs to help Philadelphia beat Florida 8-2.
-Brad Penny, Dodgers, pitched shutout ball into the eighth inning in a 2-1 win over the Giants.
-Akinori Iwamura, Devil Rays, went 4-for-4, hit his first major league home run, and scored the game-winning run with two outs in the ninth inning to help the Devil Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5.
-Kazuo Matsui, Rockies, had three hits, two stolen bases, an RBI and a run scored in a 4-3 win over the Padres.
COLD FRONT
The Mariners and Indians game was postponed because of snow. The Indians were leading 4-0 with two outs in the top of the fifth, when the umpires halted play for the third time. The first pitch had been delayed for nearly an hour because of the winterlike weather. Along with a 57-minute delay at the start, the game was interrupted for 22 minutes, 17 minutes and finally for 1:17. … The White Sox’ game Friday night with Minnesota was postponed because of cold rain and gusting wind. Temperatures were already in the low 30s by Friday afternoon and were expected to drop into the 20s by night.
NEW DEAL
The Seattle Mariners signed shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to a four-year contract worth 13.75 million on Wednesday. Betancourt, who fled Cuba in December 2003 by boat, will make $2 million in ’09, $3 million in 2010 and $4 million in 2011.
STREAKS
The Dodgers’ 2-1 victory over the Giants on Friday night was their sixth straight win in San Francisco.
INJURED
Indians catcher Victor Martinez injured his left leg while running to first base in the third inning of Cleveland’s frosty home opener on Friday against Seattle. Martinez hit a grounder to third baseman Adrian Beltre, who misplayed the bouncer for an error. Martinez didn’t see Beltre’s bobble as he hustled down to first, but he came up limping just as he approached the bag. The Indians said Martinez was day to day, but the injury appeared to be one that could keep him out for at least a few games.
SPEAKING
“We’ll let him hit triples for a while until he learns how to bunt. He’s a delightful kid. He’s a respectful kid. He knows he’s got to work on a few things. He’s going to have to work on his bunting.” – Royals manager Buddy Bell on Tony Pena Jr. After popping out on his first bunt attempt in a 3-1 win over the Tigers on Friday night, Pena Jr. hit an RBI triple in a classic sacrifice situation after Bell let him swing away.
SEASONS
April 8
1969 – The Montreal Expos played their first regular-season game – the first international contest in major league history – and defeated the eventual world champion New York Mets, 11-10, at Shea Stadium. Expos pitcher Dan McGinn hit the expansion team’s first home run.
1974 – In the opener in Atlanta, Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s career record by hitting his 715th home run off Los Angeles left-hander Al Downing in the fourth inning. The Braves beat the Dodgers 7-4 before a crowd of nearly 54,000.
1975 – Frank Robinson became the first black manager in major league history by making his debut as player-manager of the Cleveland Indians. He hit a home run in his first at-bat – as a designated hitter – to help beat the New York Yankees, 5-3.
1986 – Jim Presley of the Seattle Mariners hit home runs in the ninth and 10th innings for a come-from-behind 8-4 opening day victory over the California Angels.
1987 – Pitchers Phil Niekro and Steve Carlton of the Cleveland Indians teamed up to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 14-3. Niekro recorded his 312th victory and Carlton pitched four shutout innings in relief. It was the first time in modern history that two 300-game winners pitched for the same team in the same game.
1993 – Carlos Baerga of the Cleveland Indians became the first player in major league history to hit home runs from both sides of the plate in the same inning. The homers came in the seventh inning of a 15-5 rout of the New York Yankees.
1994 – Kurt Mercker of the Atlanta Braves pitched the season’s first no-hitter, beating the Dodgers 6-0. It was the first complete game of Mercker’s career.
2002 – Craig Biggio hit for the cycle and had four RBIs in Houston’s 8-4 win over Colorado.
Today’s birthdays: Felix Hernandez 21; Chris Iannetta 24; Jeremy Guthrie 28.
