NEW YORK, 15 June 2004 — The New York Yankees staged two rallies to edge the San Diego Padres 6-5 in 12 innings in Interleague action on Sunday, spoiling David Wells’ return to the Bronx.
The popular Wells, who was greeted by chants of “Boomer”, sat down after tossing seven scoreless innings with his team leading 2-0.
The score remained that way into the bottom of the ninth and the Yankees were down to their last out when Hideki Matsui tagged closer Trevor Hoffman for his 11th home run of the season. Pinch-hitter Kenny Lofton then took Hoffman deep to extend the contest.
The Padres appeared to have clinched the game a second time when they pushed across three runs in the top of 12th, but the hosts rallied again, Alex Rodriguez grounding out and Jason Giambi singling to plate two runs. Jorge Posada doubled to knot the score at 5-5 and then Ruben Sierra’s sacrifice brought Giambi home.
All four runs were charged to Rod Beck (0-1).
In Cleveland, the Indians overcame an early 7-1 deficit to down the reeling Reds 10-8, handing Cincinnati its sixth straight loss. Ken Griffey Jr.’s 499th homer contributed to Cincinnati’s early lead.
In Toronto, fireballer Randy Johnson tossed six-plus innings of six-hit ball, striking out 11, as the Arizona Diamondbacks rallied for a 5-3 win over the Blue Jays.
In Baltimore, Barry Bonds cracked his 676th homer with a man aboard in the third, carrying the San Francisco Giants to a 7-3 win over the Orioles. Bonds’ blast gave him exactly 500 as a Giant.
In Detroit, Dontrelle Willis (6-3) went all the way, scattering seven hits while striking out eight, as the Florida Marlins thumped the Tigers 9-2. The Marlins racked up 15 hits, the speedy Juan Pierre collecting four of them.
In St. Petersburg, Julio Lugo’s ninth-inning single plated the deciding run, giving the Tampa Bay Devil Rays a 3-2 win over the Colorado Rockies.
In Arlington, Scott Rolen belted a two-run homer and John Mabry added a three-run shot as the St. Louis Cardinals went up 10-0 after two innings and coasted to a 13-2 win over the Texas Rangers.
In Minneapolis, Placido Polanco had two of his team’s seven hits and scored the deciding run as the Philadelphia Phillies outlasted the Minnesota Twins 2-1. Rheal Cormier (3-3) worked a scoreless seventh to notch the victory.
In Kansas City, Mike Piazza’s two-run homer helped the Mets to a 5-2 win over the Royals, snapping New York’s five-game losing skid. Tom Glavine (7-3) scattered four hits over 7 2/3 innings, lowering his ERA to a major-league best 2.03.
In Chicago, Joe Crede had a two-run homer and Carlos Lee extended his hitting streak to 27 games as the White Sox drubbed the Atlanta Braves 10-3.
In Seattle, the Mariners drubbed the cellar-dwelling Montreal Expos 8-1, giving them a sweep of their three-game series. Joel Pineiro (2-8) tossed eight innings of six-hit ball to snap a seven-game losing streak.
In Oakland, Adam Melhuse belted his first grand slam and Mark Mulder (8-2) worked eight innings, scattering four hits, as the surging A’s routed the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-3.
In Anaheim, Todd Walker’s 15th-inning single plated the winning run, the Chicago Cubs edging the hosts Angels 6-5. Derrek Lee went 5-for-5 and drove in two more Chicago runs.
In Boston, Pedro Martinez (7-3) held the Dodgers to seven hits and a run in seven innings and second baseman Pokey Reese drove in two runs and sparkled in the field as the Red Sox defeated Los Angeles 4-1.
In the lone National League game in Milwaukee, Jeff Kent’s solo homer in the seventh plated the deciding run as the Houston Astros edged the Brewers 5-4.
