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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Move over, Big Mac, and make some room for Fred
McGriff in the major league record book.
|  | | Greg Vaughn had gone 38 at-bats with no homers, but his two-run shot Saturday lifted Tampa in Game 1 of a doubleheader. |
Greg Vaughn broke out of a slump with a two-run homer, and
McGriff added a milestone shot in the ninth inning as Tampa Bay
beat Baltimore 4-1 Saturday in the opener of a day-night
doubleheader. The Orioles won the night game 2-0 to salvage a split.
McGriff's drive off Sidney Ponson gave him home runs in 37
different ballparks, tying the major league record set by Mark
McGwire. He had gone 63 at-bats at Camden Yards before launching a
395-footer over the center field wall.
"My teammates have been razzing me about it for a while, so,
yeah, I knew about it," McGriff said. "People always look at
different records and they keep track of everything. It's just one
of those things. But my teammates have been giving me a tough time
about never hitting a home run in this ballpark."
That's what he thought about as he rounded the bases.
"I was thinking about my teammates and the record, that I'd
finally done it," he said.
McGriff and McGwire lead Ellis Burks (36). Asked to assess the
significance of the record, he said, "It's a tough call because
some guys never get a chance to play in both leagues. It's just
that I've been blessed to stay healthy, blessed to go out there and
play in a lot of ballparks, play for a lot of years."
McGriff's homer, his 22nd of the season, landed him in the
record book. But Vaughn's shot decided the game.
Vaughn's 23rd home run of the season gave the Devil Rays a 3-1
sixth-inning lead. He was 4-for-38 since his last homer, on Aug. 12
against Chicago.
"It's been a struggle a little bit, but you've just got to keep
battling and hopefully good things will happen," he said.
Dave Eiland (2-1) entered in the third inning for starter Tanyon
Sturtze, who pitched two scoreless innings before leaving with a
left ribcage strain.
"He strained an oblique muscle, which is not good," Devil Rays
manager Larry Rothschild said.
"I felt it pop," Sturtze said. "I am real upset right now
because I had a chance to get some starts under my belt. It will be
at least 10 to 15 days."
Eiland allowed one run and five hits in 4 1-3 innings, and was
lifted with the bases loaded and one out in the sixth. Esteban Yan
struck out Jerry Hairston and retired Luis Matos on a fly ball.
Yan pitched a scoreless eighth and Roberto Hernandez got three
outs for his 25th save in 31 tries.
Ponson (7-9) gave up seven hits in his fourth complete game,
walking none and striking out four. The right-hander has yielded 26
homers in 26 starts this season.
"If you look at it objectively, Sidney had a well-pitched
game," Orioles manager Mike Hargrove said. "He threw the ball
well. He's a fastball pitcher, and most of them give up a lot of
fly balls."
Tampa Bay got a run in the second when John Flaherty hit a
two-out RBI single after McGriff was credited with a double on a
liner that left fielder Delino DeShields appeared to lose in the
sun.
Flaherty was in a 2-for-30 skid before his hit.
The Orioles failed to get a runner to second until the fifth
inning, when Chris Richard hit a two-out double and scored on a
single by Greg Myers. It was only the sixth RBI for the backup
catcher, the first since July 29.
Game notes
Matos went 0-for-3, stranding five runners. ... Devil Rays
pitcher Tony Saunders, who re-fractured his left arm Thursday,
announced his retirement Saturday in Florida. ... Tampa Bay has won
19 games against Baltimore, the most versus any opponent.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Tampa Bay Clubhouse
Baltimore Clubhouse
RECAPS
Tampa Bay 4
Baltimore 1
Baltimore 2
Tampa Bay 0
(2nd game)
NY Yankees 10
Oakland 6
Detroit 8
Minnesota 2
Toronto 9
Texas 3
Boston 5
Kansas City 3
Seattle 11
Chi. White Sox 5
Cleveland 9
Anaheim 5
Chicago Cubs 6
Los Angeles 4
Colorado 11
Pittsburgh 4
Philadelphia 5
San Francisco 2
Cincinnati 3
Florida 2
Montreal 5
Houston 4
St. Louis 6
Atlanta 3
Arizona 5
NY Mets 1
Milwaukee 6
San Diego 5
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Tony Saunders is emotional about the end of his pitching career.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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