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 Sunday, March 5
Mariners take control with five-run third
 
Associated Press

 PEORIA, Ariz. -- Edgar Martinez had three hits, including a three-run homer, as the Seattle Mariners pounded out 17 hits in a 16-8 victory over the San Diego Padres on Saturday.

Martinez also had five RBI for the Mariners, who jumped in front with a five-run third inning and a four-run fourth.

"We played really well," Martinez said. "It felt good to make some hard contact and help the team."

Mike Cameron, acquired in the Ken Griffey Jr. trade, had two doubles, Mark McLemore homered and singled, and John Olerud had a two-run homer in the fourth off Padres closer Trevor Hoffman.

Hoffman struggled through the fourth inning, allowing four earned runs on four hits. But he said he felt fine on the mound and was able to work on all four of his pitches.

"I felt pretty comfortable on the hill," Hoffman said. "It doesn't count, but nobody wants to get hit like that."

Cardinals 17, Expos 15
JUPITER, Fla. -- Andy Benes' first game back with the St. Louis Cardinals was such a disaster, he was able to joke about it.

"A couple of my teammates said it's not easy to throw a baseball right on the opposition's barrel as much as I did," Benes said after a 17-15 victory over the Montreal Expos on Saturday. "The next time should be a little bit better."

Then again, he wasn't alone. The Cardinals and Expos combined for 29 hits.

Benes was supposed to go two innings, but had to leave one out short, having allowed five runs and seven hits. He spent an abnormally long time stretching in the trainer's room after his stint.

"That was my punishment for not getting in two innings," he joked.

Oakland 12, Anaheim 4
TEMPE, Ariz. -- David McCarty made his case for a spot on Oakland's roster by homering twice in an eight-run ninth inning as the Athletics beat the Anaheim Angels 12-4 on Saturday.

Signed to a minor league contract in the offseason, McCarty, 30, led off the inning with a solo shot to snap a 4-4 tie. Later in the inning, he hit a three-run homer. McCarty spent all of last season in the minors.

The A's got two runs off Angels' starter Ken Hill in the top of the second inning on a double by Olmedo Saenz and a triple by Ramon Hernandez.

Angels catcher Bengie Molina erased the A's lead with a three-run homer in the bottom of the second off A's starter Gil Heredia. Garret Anderson and Troy Glaus started the inning with singles.

Houston 5, Detroit 4
KISSIMMEE, Fla. - Dwight Gooden made a strong first impression for the Houston Astros on Saturday.

Gooden, signed to a minor-league contract during the offseason, retired all six batters he faced as the Astros rallied from a three-run deficit to defeat the Detroit Tigers 5-4.

"I can't remember a spring doing that the first time out," Gooden said.

Gooden, 35, recorded three fly outs and three groundouts. The Astros are counting on Gooden this season to fill the No. 4 or 5 spot in the rotation while right-hander Scott Elarton continues his rehabilitation from rotator-cuff surgery.

Pittsburgh 12, New York 4
Jason Kendall went 1-for-2 and scored two runs in his return from a dislocated right ankle as the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the New York Yankees 12-4 in an exhibition game Saturday.

Kendall, who injured himself July 4, caught three innings, grounded out to third base in the first inning, flared an RBI single to right field in the second and was hit in the upper left arm by a pitch in the third.

"Everything was fine," Kendall said. "It was good to put the uniform back on and do the thing that was taken away from me for the last three months of last season.

"My ankle felt great, and I don't think there should be any more questions about it. I feel fine and the ankle is not an issue," Kendall said. "I proved today that I can do everything I need to do on a baseball field."

New York 7, Los Angeles 3
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- The New York Mets hit five home runs in a 7-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday, yet the biggest ovation was saved for country singer Garth Brooks who caught the final out of the game.

Brooks, a non-roster invitee, entered the game in left field in the top of the eighth and drew a standing ovation from the crowd of 6.,056 after flagging down a knuckling fly ball to end the game.

"The ball was doing some weird things in the wind," Brooks said. "But I stayed with it."

Brooks struck out in his only plate appearance and limped around the clubhouse as a result of taking a foul ball off his left foot during batting practice.

Tampa Bay 4, Atlanta 2
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Juan Guzman didn't need Tampa Bay's big bats in his first start for the Devil Rays.

Guzman allowed one run, two hits and two walks in two innings Saturday as Tampa Bay beat the Atlanta Braves 4-2 without power hitters Jose Canseco, Greg Vaughn, Fred McGriff and Vinny Castilla in the lineup.

"That's all right. Save them for the season," Guzman said. "I can't wait to see them. It's going to be fun."

Atlanta starter Greg Maddux pitched two shutout innings, allowing a single and a walk. He had one strikeout.

Angels 8, Mariners 5
PEORIA, Ariz. -- Mo Vaughn, who needed 57 at-bats to hit his first home run last spring, connected on his first pitch this year, a 400-foot drive off Jamie Moyer.

Arizona 12, Chicago 9
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Kelly Stinnett and Greg Colbrunn homered, and the Arizona Diamondbacks scored five times in the first inning Saturday on their way to a 12-9 victory over the Chicago White Sox in exhibition play.

In the opening inning, Matt Williams hit a two-run single, Bernard Gilkey had an RBI double and Travis Lee doubled in two more off White Sox starter Mike Sirotka.

Reds 8, Rangers 1
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Playing without Ken Griffey Jr., the Cincinnati Reds pounded out 17 hits in an 8-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Saturday.

Hal Morris and Sean Casey had three hits apiece, including RBI singles in the third inning off Mike Munoz, for the Reds.

Cincinnati starter Steve Parris worked quickly through the Rangers' batting order, allowing three singles in four innings.

Blue Jays 5, 3, Indians 2, 3
TORONTO -- Raul Mondesi went hitless in his Skydome debut for Toronto and Manny Ramirez hit a two-run homer for Cleveland as the Blue Jays beat the Indians in the opener and tied the second game of an exhibition doubleheader Saturday.

Toronto won the opener in the pair of seven-inning games 5-2 and the two teams finished in a 3-3 tie in the second contest.

Shannon Stewart and Kevin Brown both homered for the first time this spring to pace Toronto's victory in the opener.

Chicago 4, San Francisco 2
MESA, Ariz. -- Mark Grace's run-scoring single in the seventh gave him six RBI in two exhibition games as the Chicago Cubs beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2 Saturday.

Corey Patterson hit a solo homer leading off the bottom of the eighth for the Cubs. Sammy Sosa went 2-for-3, both singles. Sosa, who hit 14 homers last spring and 63 during the regular season, is looking for his first spring homer.

Florida 10, Baltimore 8
VIERA, Fla. -- Nate Rolison hit a two-out, three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Florida Marlins a 10-8 win Saturday over the Baltimore Orioles.

Rolison, who played at Double-A Portland the past two seasons, drove a 1-1 pitch off Gabe Molina over the left field fence with runners on first and second to end the game.

Milwaukee 6, Colorado 2
TUCSON, Ariz. -- James Mouton had a two-run single and Luis Lopez had three hits, leading the Milwaukee Brewers to a 6-2 exhibition win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday.

The Brewers, winning for the first time in three spring outings under new manager Davey Lopes, broke open a 3-2 game with a three-run seventh.

Boston 7, Minnesota 1
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Carl Everett hit his first homer for the Boston Red Sox and Andy Sheets added a two-run double in a 7-1 exhibition win over the Minnesota Twins on Saturday.

Everett, who hit 25 homers for Houston last year before being obtained in an offseason trade, gave Boston a 3-1 lead in the third inning with a two-run homer off loser Jason Ryan. It drove in Trot Nixon, whose RBI double had tied the game 1-1. Everett had been 0-for-3 in exhibition games.

Philadelphia 9, Kansas City 3
HAINES CITY, Fla. -- Chris Pritchett, a non-roster first baseman, singled three times and hit his second home run of the exhibition season Saturday as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Kansas City Royals 9-3.

Pritchett, who hit .156 in 20 games last year with Anaheim, hit an RBI single off Derek Wallace for a 4-3 lead in the top of the eighth. Wallace took the loss.