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RECAP
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GAME LOG
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Ricky Ledee is still helping the New
York Yankees.
Ledee hit a fourth-inning grand slam to back Rick Helling and
the Rangers beat the Red Sox 6-3 Saturday night, Boston's fifth
loss in seven games.
|  | | Gabe Kapler bumped his hitting streak to 25 games with a 3-for-3 effort against the Red Sox. |
Ledee's former Yankee teammates are trying to keep a comfortable
margin in the AL East over the second-place Red Sox, and Ledee gave
them a boost with his second career grand slam and 10th homer of
the season.
"That is in the past," Ledee said of his career in pinstripes.
"I don't think about that anymore. I'm here now and at least I
know I'll be here for the rest of the season."
Ledee, dealt from the Yankees to Cleveland in June, hit a high
2-0 knuckleball off Tim Wakefield (6-7) for his first homer since
Texas acquired him from the Indians on July 28. Ledee added a
sacrifice fly in the eighth for his fifth RBI, matching his career
high.
"He's shown us a lot of good things since we got him," Rangers
manager Johnny Oates said. "He's been working a lot on his swing.
He was doing a lot of thinking when he first got here. We're giving
him a chance, give him a lot of playing time and see what
happens."
Helling (14-8) gave up one run and four hits in seven innings,
struck out five and walked three, improving to 7-1 in his last 10
starts.
Gabe Kapler doubled in the second inning to stretch his hitting
streak to 25 games, a Rangers' record and the longest in the major
leagues this season.
Arizona's Tony Womack had a 24-game streak from May 2-29. Mickey
Rivers set the previous Rangers record in 1980 when he hit safely
in 24 straight games from Aug. 14-Sept. 9.
Kapler went for 3-for-3, doubling in the second, walking in the
fourth, hitting an RBI single in the fifth and another single in
the eighth.
"I've been downplaying it, but it's really nice, something to
remember," Kapler said. "I've tried to do the same things every
at-bat -- see the ball well, be aggressive, hit the ball hard. I
know I had a real poor first half of the season, but I know I can
do the job."
With the game scoreless, Wakefield lost his control in the
fourth inning and loaded the bases with walks to Rusty Greer,
Rafael Palmeiro and Kapler -- throwing 14 consecutive balls.
When he rediscovered the strike zone, he threw a fat pitch to
Ledee, who hit it 420 feet into the right field upper deck.
"I was trying to be aggressive," Ledee said. "He'd thrown a
lot of balls but I was looking for him to come around the plate. He
has confidence in his knuckleball. He's tough to hit."
After Wakefield walked the next batter, Bill Haselman, he was
replaced by Bryce Florie.
Wakefield walked five and struck out two in three-plus innings,
giving up four runs and two hits.
"I just couldn't throw the knuckleball for a strike,"
Wakefield said. "I don't know if I had too much movement or what.
It was just one inning where I couldn't find the strike zone. Don't
make a big deal out of it."
Boston got a run in the fifth on Manny Alexander's RBI single,
but Texas made it 5-1 in the fifth on Kapler's RBI single.
Trot Nixon hit a two-run triple off John Wetteland in the
ninth.
Game notes
Ledee's slam was the third by the Rangers this season. ...
Boston pitchers have given up five slams this year. ... Rangers 2B
Luis Alicea had a 38-game errorless streak snapped in the sixth
inning. ... Wakefield had his shortest start this season.
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Texas Clubhouse
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