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KANSAS CITY — This one didn’t come with fireworks or a home-plate celebration, but it was a game-winning homer for Luis Valbuena, all the same.

For the second time in three days, it was Valbuena’s blast that propelled the Tribe to victory Monday night. The rookie infielder’s eighth-inning, three-run shot off Joakim Soria gave the Indians the edge in a 10-6 win over the Royals at Kauffman Stadium in the opener of a three-game set. A three-run ninth inning highlighted by Asdrubal Cabrera’s two-run double was the icing on the cake.

With one swing of the bat, Valbuena ensured Travis Hafner’s first four-RBI game in nearly two years and Jeremy Sowers’ seven-inning effort wouldn’t go to waste. And just two days removed from his walk-off shot against the Mariners, Valbuena made it seem as though these clutch clouts will be par for the course.

“I’m not going to try to do that every night,” Valbuena said through an interpreter. “I’m just trying to make good contact.”

It was Hafner’s early contact and the lack of contact against Sowers that gave the Indians an early lead.

Pronk went deep off Royals starter Gil Meche in the fourth with a three-run shot for his second homer in three days as well. And Sowers held the Royals hitless through three and scoreless through four, as the Tribe held the 3-0 lead.

Then a familiar pattern emerged. Sowers ran into trouble in the fifth.

After walking leadoff man Brayan Pena, Sowers gave up consecutive singles to Alberto Callaspo and Mark Teahen, the latter of which knocked in a run. John Buck then ripped a two-run double, and after Mitch Maier’s sacrifice bunt put two runners in scoring position, Yuniesky Betancourt added a sac fly to give the Royals a 4-3 lead.

“The disappointing thing was the leadoff walk,” Sowers said. “Teahen and Buck hit good pitches. Callaspo hit a pretty decent pitch himself. They just executed well that inning. I was OK, aside from the walk. That stuff comes back to bite you.”

Fifth innings usually tend to bite Sowers. He’s allowed a total of 16 runs in the first through fourth innings this season, yet 19 in the fifth alone.

The bright side for Sowers in this one was that he didn’t let the fifth completely unravel him. He recovered to pitch a perfect sixth, and the Indians tied the game that inning when Shin-Soo Choo tripled and Hafner drove him home with an RBI double to the gap in left-center field.

That gave Pronk his first four-RBI effort since Sept. 4, 2007, against the Twins.

“Those were a couple of the better swings we’ve seen from [Hafner] in a while,” manager Eric Wedge said.

Wedge felt it was important to give Sowers a chance to run through the seventh, even after Teahen led off with a single. Sowers struck out Buck, and Maier’s bunt groundout moved the runner over. That proved important when Betancourt bounced a single past the outstretched glove of the shortstop Cabrera. The Royals took a 5-4 lead on that hit.

Sowers, though, made it through that inning without further damage.

“Working through seven innings gives you more opportunities for your teammates to pick you up,” Sowers said. “From a statistical standpoint, [the outing] could have been better, but we kept it close enough so that Valbuena could hit that homer when I was still the pitcher of record.”

Valbuena’s homer came after Soria, an All-Star closer, served up consecutive one-out singles to Jhonny Peralta and Hafner. On a 1-1 pitch, Soria tossed Valbuena a fastball that dipped low in the zone, and Valbuena fished it out and punched it to right. The ball just barely cleared the wall, 379 feet away, to give the Tribe the go-ahead, 7-5 lead.

“That was just unfortunately right in his nitro zone,” Royals manager Trey Hillman said.

Whatever a “nitro zone” is, Valbuena appears to have found his lately. He has three homers in his past seven games and eight on the season. Not bad for a guy who has never been touted for his power.

“I’ve been working hard in BP,” Valbuena said. “I’m lucky enough that I’m getting good pitches that I can turn on and drive the ball.”

Though Valbuena’s shot saved Sowers from defeat, it didn’t mean the Indians’ work was done. Reliever Jess Todd gave back one run of the Tribe’s lead in the bottom of the eighth. So when the Indians strung together three more runs off Jamey Wright and John Bale in the ninth, with Cabrera lacing a two-run double to left off Bale, it was necessary insurance.

In the end, Valbuena still held up as the hero. But this homer didn’t come with the pomp and circumstance of the one he hit Saturday night. Asked which was the better feeling — hitting a solo walk-off homer in extra innings or hitting a three-run homer to erase an eighth-inning deficit — Valbuena didn’t hesitate.

“The walk-off,” he said with a smile.

As for the Indians, who now lead the battle for fourth place in the AL Central by eight games, they’ll take the help any way they can get it.

VERONA, New York (AP) — Tiger Woods (FSY) edged defending champion Camilo Villegas (FSY) to win the Notah Begay III (FSY) Foundation Challenge skins tournament at Turning Stone Resort’s Atunyote Golf Club on Monday.
After Villegas won $180,000 with a birdie at the 14th hole, Woods won the next three holes to finish with $230,000 to Villegas’ $200,000.

Begay won the final hole to pocket $70,000, while Mike Weir (FSY) was shut out for the second straight year.

The event, a collaboration between the Oneida Indian Nation of New York and San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians of California, is an effort to aid the health of Native American youth and their communities. Begay, the only full-blooded Native American to play on the PGA Tour, established his foundation in 2005. It uses the sports of golf and soccer to promote physical fitness and wellness among Native American youth, who are plagued by obesity and diabetes.

Begay received a check for $750,000 for his foundation and Woods, his roommate in college at Stanford and his longtime friend, departed with the winning trophy, a piece of Pueblo Indian black pottery from Begay’s home state of New Mexico.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: PGA Tour | Tiger Woods | Annika Sorenstam | Mike Weir | Fred Funk | Fred Couples | Camilo Villegas | Yang Yong-eun | Notah Begay III
It was a rare appearance by the world’s top player, whose schedule leaves little room for such forays. Woods was glowing afterward, the stunning loss to Y.E. Yang (FSY) in the PGA Championship a week ago erased by a few swings for charity.

“Today was incredible, to come here and bring awareness to what Notah is trying to do,” said Woods, who won five holes to three for Villegas. “It’s great to see what he’s doing, to put his heart, soul and passion into something like this and bring this many people together to help them understand and educate the public. I’m just so proud of him as a friend. We’ve been through a lot together.”

“To have Tiger be a part of this is just a tremendous asset for the foundation and the event,” Begay said. “I think he enjoyed himself. He beat us, but I think we’ve kind of grown accustomed to that.”

Just like a year ago, the first six holes were worth $10,000 apiece, the second six $20,000, holes 13 through 17 were worth $50,000 each, and No. 18 was worth $70,000.

Villegas won the inaugural event and seemed set to make it two in a row. After Woods birdied No. 8 to reach $80,000, the players halved the next five holes to boost the purse for No. 14 to $180,000.

Villegas hit his second shot at the 410-yard, par 4 to within 8 feet of the pin, then dropped to the turf in his spiderlike stance to study the line for the putt. After Woods’ birdie try slid a foot past the pin and Weir’s slid just left of the hole, Villegas calmly rolled his in.

Undaunted, Woods, the bottom of his gray pants wet from walking the soggy course, hit his second shot at the par-4 15th hole, a 442-yard dogleg, inside 10 feet of the pin and won the $50,000 hole.

With a stiff right-to-left wind blowing at they teed off at No. 16, Woods hit to 8 feet and curled in another birdie putt for another $50,000 as this three rivals failed to match him.

At No. 17, another par 4, after Villegas lipped out a 15-foot birdie putt and Weir missed again just left, Woods calmly sank the winning putt, a perfectly paced 12-footer for birdie.

The last time Woods appeared in a major skins game format was in 2005, when he competed against Fred Couples (FSY), Fred Funk (FSY) and Annika Sorenstam. Funk ended up the star in that nationally televised event, winning the most skins and showing some skin of his own by donning a skirt at one point after getting outdriven by Sorenstam.

Woods was scheduled to play in Begay’s event a year ago but had to skip it after injuring his knee. He made good on his promise this year and hinted that he might return.

“I’d do anything for him,” Woods said. “What he’s trying to do, and what he has done for Native American communities is unheard of, really.”

Ryan Howard homered twice and drove in five runs, Cliff Lee won his eighth straight start and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Mets, 6-2, yesterday in New York.

Lee (5-0) did not allow an earned run in seven innings, lowering his ERA with the Phillies to 0.68 in five outings since he was acquired in a July 29 trade with Cleveland.

One day after second baseman Eric Bruntlett became the second major leaguer to end a game with an unassisted triple play, the Phillies beat their injury-riddled rivals in more conventional fashion.

Lee, last year’s AL Cy Young Award winner, yielded six hits and no walks against a light-hitting lineup that featured Fernando Tatis (six homers) in the cleanup spot. The left-hander struck out five.

Philadelphia took the final three in a four-game series, increasing its NL East lead to seven games over idle Atlanta.

The defending World Series champions are 40-21 on the road.

Brewers 7, Nationals 1 – Ryan Braun hit a two-run home run to jumpstart a six-run sixth, and visiting Milwaukee downed Washington.

The Brewers sent 11 batters to the plate in an inning that helped them take three of four from the Nationals after being swept by Pittsburgh to start the road trip.

American League

Twins 2, Orioles 1 – In Minneapolis, Scott Baker (12-7) allowed a run and four hits in seven innings as Minnesota defeated Baltimore for its fourth straight win, matching a season high.

Jason Kubel drove in the go-ahead run and Alexi Casilla tripled and scored on a wild pitch from rookie Chris Tillman in the sixth inning.

Baker retired 10 consecutive Orioles at one point. After scoring the game’s first run in the third, Baltimore only got one more runner in scoring position until the ninth.

Twins first baseman Justin Morneau went 0-for-2 with two walks in his return to the lineup. He had missed six games with an inner ear infection.

Orioles outfielder Adam Jones sat out with a sore back.

Indians 10, Royals 6 – Travis Hafner and Luis Valbuena each hit three-run homers, powering Cleveland past host Kansas City.

Hafner drove in four runs, tacking on an RBI double to sink the Royals even deeper into the AL Central basement.

Johan Santana of the New York Mets was supposed to start Tuesday’s game against Florida. He was also supposed to get a second start this week. Instead, he may not make another start this season.

Manager Jerry Manuel said Monday night that the Mets have scratched their ace because of elbow soreness. Even though he wouldn’t elaborate any more, mlb.com is reporting that several Mets teammates are fearing the worst. “I don’t think anyone expects good news,” Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey is quoted as saying. Nelson Figueroa will now start in Santana’s place.

Perhaps the last Mets player fantasy owners could count on this season, Santana experienced increased pain in his elbow in his last start and there’s a growing fear that he’ll need season-ending surgery. If that happens, he’ll be the fifth Mets starter to be sidelined by injury this season. That’s in addition to the injuries suffered by each of their top four hitters – Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, David Wright and Carlos Delgado.

There’s always some degree of bad luck with injuries, but if Santana has been pitching in pain since the All-Star break, it seems the Mets have to shoulder some of the responsibility for the end result here. (Perhaps it serves as a warning to downgrade Mets in general next season.)

If surgery is necessary, at least Santana should get a head start in preparing for next season.

Even before the veteran right-hander went to the mound for Triple-A Charlotte on Monday, throwing five scoreless innings in Minor League rehab start No. 3 in the first game of a doubleheader at Gwinnett, White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper made it abundantly clear as to how Peavy will primarily decide his return to the Majors.

“Peavy is giving us the input,” Cooper said. “You can tell by his words and where he’s at verbally, really. He’s got a high bar for himself.

“I happen to think he’s closer than words were saying, but we are not going to push him out there. We would love to have him back. But we don’t worry about what we don’t have. We are worried about what we do have.”

What the White Sox (63-62) do have is a situation bordering on dire where their postseason possibilities are concerned, following Boston’s 12-8 shellacking of the South Siders on Monday night at Fenway Park. The loss could drop the South Siders to 3 1/2 games behind Detroit, and left them just one game ahead of third-place Minnesota in the American League Central.

With Monday’s debacle marking just the first of 11 consecutive road games against playoff contenders, for a team sitting at 27-32 away from home, the White Sox are in need of a boost and they need it quickly.

Enter Peavy.

Actually, manager Ozzie Guillen and Cooper said all the right things following Monday’s setback, when Jose Contreras officially was moved from the starting rotation to the bullpen on the heels of giving up seven runs (just one earned) over 2 2/3 innings. Cooper admitted he would know more on Tuesday, when Peavy is scheduled to join the team in Boston, adding how Peavy certainly would be the best option for Saturday and the rest of the season if he’s ready to come back from a strained tendon in his right ankle that has sidelined him since June 9. But that’s still a major “if.”

The decision ultimately rests with the talented hurler, who the White Sox added in a trade with San Diego at the non-waiver Trade Deadline on July 31.

“He’s a Cy Young Award winner. A Cy Young Award winner, when he’s healthy, is better than any option you have,” Cooper said. “But I don’t know if he’s there just yet.

“[It would be wrong] to have to quicken his process because we fumbled the ball [Monday] — two wrongs don’t make a right. Peavy will be here when he says the time is right for him. Until I hear it out of his mouth, I’m not going to go with it.”

A prevailing school of thought regarding Peavy had him making one more start this weekend for Charlotte and then joining the White Sox at the start of September. As long as Peavy is on the mound by Sept. 2 or 3, he still has the chance to make seven starts this season for Chicago.

His strong effort Monday, in which Peavy fanned three, walked two and allowed four hits, jut might bring him back on Saturday at Yankee Stadium. CC Sabathia is scheduled to take the mound for the Yankees in a game that might have a few media members in attendance.

While Cooper and the White Sox front office certainly aren’t pushing Peavy to rush into a decision on his eagerly anticipated comeback, they have talked to him about slightly lessening his lofty expectations for return. Being ready to throw five or six innings on Saturday might be enough to sway Williams and Peavy in making the call, assuming Peavy has no ill-effects from Monday’s start, which included taking a line drive off of his pitching elbow.

“One thing we have been getting him off of is that going eight or nine innings and being the man,” said Cooper. “He’s going to be a great addition when he’s ready to come back, but he doesn’t have to carry all the weight on his shoulders like he did in San Diego.

“We have other capable guys. If he can feel good going five or six innings, then we will welcome him back with open arms. But again, not until he’s ready and says the words.”

The Giants and Jets prepare for the 2009 N.F.L. season. Discuss all the preseason news and training camp developments on the Times’s pro football blog.

In an excerpt of an interview that will be broadcast in full Tuesday, Burress said his gun, a .40-caliber Glock, fired after he missed a step walking up stairs at the Latin Quarter nightclub in Manhattan on Nov. 29.

The gun began to slide down his pant leg, Burress said, and he accidentally pulled the trigger through his pants when he tried to stop the gun from hitting the ground. He said he took two or three steps, realized his pants were wet and saw that the top of his shoe had blood on it.

Burress said he immediately turned to his teammate Antonio Pierce and asked to be taken to the hospital. “And he was like why?” Burress said. “I said, ‘I just think I shot myself,’ and he was like, ‘Noooo!’ ”

Burress agreed to accept a two-year prison term. He will be sentenced Sept. 22.

When asked why he did not have a holster, Burress said simply, “Bad judgment.”

MINNEAPOLIS — Scott Baker has been the Twins’ most consistent pitcher over the past three months, but it had been a while since he found himself in a low-scoring pitchers’ duel like the one he was in on Monday.

In the end, it was Baker and the Twins that emerged victorious over Chris Tillman and the Orioles, as Minnesota took the series opener by a 2-1 final at the Metrodome.

“We needed the pitching, and we got it tonight,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said.

The victory marked Baker’s third win in as many starts, and the right-hander has now gone 10-1 since June 4.

“I think it’s been the same objective the whole season,” said Baker (12-7). “You obviously continue to make adjustments. I felt like I was on the right path the whole time. It just started to work out.”

Things certainly worked out for Baker for the better part of Monday’s contest, as he lasted seven innings while giving up just one run on four Baltimore hits. The Orioles’ lone run came in the third inning on Brian Roberts’ Major League-leading 48th double of the season, which scored Michael Aubrey.

After limiting the Orioles to one run after six innings, Baker’s patience was finally rewarded.

Twins second baseman Alexi Casilla, hitting just .195 entering Monday’s game, started the bottom of the sixth with a triple to center that rolled all the way to the wall. He eventually scored on a wild pitch by Tillman, knotting the game at 1-1.

Casilla finished the game 2-for-3 and has hit .394 in his past 12 games, dating back to August 8.

“He’s obviously playing with confidence, and it’s showing,” Baker said. “It’s a good time for him to be doing this, for sure.”

“Best all-around stretch this year, for sure,” Gardenhire said of Casilla’s recent play. “He’s seeing the ball and hitting the ball and he’s putting a good swing on it. That’s the Lexi that we’re all happy to see.”

After Tillman gave up back-to-back singles to Denard Span and Orlando Cabrera following Casilla’s triple, Baltimore’s starter won a battle against Twins catcher Joe Mauer. Tillman got Mauer — who finished the day 0-for-4 — to strike out swinging for the first out of the inning. But an intentional walk to Justin Morneau loaded the bases for Jason Kubel, who delivered for the Twins.

Kubel’s sacrifice fly to left scored Span from third to put the Twins up 2-1. That would be all Minnesota’s pitchers would need.

Baker went to work after allowing a run in the third, retiring the next 10 Baltimore hitters he faced. The righty was most effective with his fastball, but used a mix of pitches to collect five strikeouts on the night.

“I thought he pitched aggressive with his fastball tonight, inside and out,” Gardenhire said. “I think you saw him stand up a lot of hitters, coming in hard and locating it with a good angle too. When Bake’s pitching with his fastball like that, he can throw it by people.”

Baker benefited from a handful of spectacular defensive plays on the night, including a nice diving stop by Casilla at second and a running catch in foul territory by the left fielder Span that ended the fifth inning.

With two outs and Baltimore up in the fifth, Aubrey sent a fly ball that hooked into foul territory near the Twins’ bullpen in the left-field corner. Span gave chase and caught the ball just shy of the bench in the bullpen, leaped up to avoid crashing into Minnesota’s relievers, and spun around before taking a seat on the bench next to Jesse Crain.

“The ball was hit, and I just started running,” Span said. “I really wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to get to it. … I just jumped, and Jesse Crain, fortunately he kind of broke my collision with the side railing. I looked at him and just gave him a little hug.”

“Span’s play was unbelievable,” Gardenhire said. “We thought there was no chance for him to get to that ball, and he ran it down. That’s just covering a lot of ground.”

The plays by Span and Casilla, as well as a nice defensive stop by Morneau at first base on a sharp ground ball, backed Baker’s gem as Minnesota continued to exhibit the sharp defense on display in the Twins’ sweep in Kansas City.

“Sometimes you need a little help. There’s no doubt about it,” Baker said. “We have excellent defense. We always have. So it definitely makes it a lot easier to realize that it’s OK if they put it in play. You’ll take your chances that way.”

Twins closer Joe Nathan made things interesting in the ninth inning, as he walked Nick Markakis and Nolan Reimold after striking out the first two batters of the inning. But Nathan got Matt Wieters to strike out swinging, picking up his 32nd save in the process. This came just three days after Nathan needed 53 pitches to put away the Royals after blowing the save.

“Nathan gave us his normal 25, 30-pitch inning and then got through for us,” Gardenhire said. “A nice win for us, nice way to start the homestand.

Quarterback Philip Rivers signed a six-year contract extension Monday with the San Diego Chargers worth $93 million.

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The deal goes through the 2015 season, and includes $38 million guaranteed.

Rivers is coming off his best N.F.L. season, when he set a team record for touchdown passes with a league-high 34. He also led the N.F.L. with a quarterback rating of 105.5.

“Philip has proven he has all of the necessary qualities to be a successful quarterback in the N.F.L.,” the Chargers’ president, Dean Spanos, said. “He’s a proven winner and an unquestioned leader for this football team.”

The Chargers acquired Rivers in a draft-day trade in 2004 after selecting Eli Manning with the first overall pick. The Giants drafted Rivers with the fourth pick, then sent him to the Chargers with a package of three draft picks for the rights to Manning.

Rivers became the Chargers’ starter in 2006. He led the team to the playoffs the past three seasons and has a career record of 36-18, including the playoffs.

Manning recently signed a six-year extension worth $97 million, with $35 million guaranteed. Manning and Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger, another quarterback drafted in the first round in 2004, have won Super Bowls. Roethlisberger signed an eight-year contract extension worth $102 million in 2008.

MORE WORK FOR FAVRE Brett Favre’s crash course in all things Viking ramps up this week, with Coach Brad Childress saying he expects the 39-year-old Favre to play the entire first half of Minnesota’s next exhibition game, at Houston on Monday.

Favre signed last Tuesday, arriving with such fanfare that there was little time to fully prepare for his first appearance for the Vikings, which came Friday night against Kansas City. He played two series against the Chiefs, going 1 for 4 for 4 yards and no first downs.

“He’s doing everything he needs to do to get up to speed,” Childress said.

PANTHERS LOSE SAFETY Add a broken hand to the growing list of injuries depleting Carolina’s troubled defense. Free safety Charles Godfrey, who started 16 games as a rookie last season, had surgery to repair a broken bone in his right hand. With Godfrey’s backup, Nate Salley, still sidelined with a sore knee, the Panthers signed the veteran safety Kevin Kaesviharn.

PALMER WON’T PLAY Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer is expected to miss his third straight preseason game because of a sprained left ankle, leaving him with little chance to play before the season opener. If Palmer sits out as expected against St. Louis on Thursday, he will have only one preseason game — against Indianapolis on Sept. 3 — remaining. “I can throw, but not drop back right now,” Palmer said. “I’m trying to keep my arm in shape, basically.”

HILL WILL START FOR 49ERS Shaun Hill beat out Alex Smith and will start at quarterback for San Francisco in its season opener, Coach Mike Singletary said

You can all breathe easier. The least exciting quarterback controversy in 49ers history is finally over. Congratulations to everyone for pretending it actually was a competition.

Monday afternoon, coach Mike Singletary made the expected announcement that Shaun Hill is going to be the team’s No. 1 man behind the center, with Alex Smith as No. 2. Smith is not the “backup,” understand. Singletary does not like that word.

(I also surmise that when members of the 49ers’ secondary are told to retreat while covering receivers, they are now told to “move in the No. 2 direction.”)

Hill was hardly a surprise pick. I am not certain of the exact moment when Singletary decided that Hill would be the guy. But I know when I did.

It wasn’t this summer. It was last season in Arizona, during that Monday night game with the crazy ending. The 49ers were desperately driving toward a potential winning touchdown — and should have scored it — but things became way too goofy and stupid. And the 49ers wound up losing to the Cardinals when the clock expired needlessly.

Yet here is what I recall about those final hectic seconds: Hill seemed to be the calmest guy wearing a 49ers logo. And that included the coaches.

Do you remember? After Hill had completed a pass to the Arizona 1-yard line with 42 seconds remaining and no timeouts, confusion reigned. Mike Martz, the former 49ers offensive coordinator, later confessed that he

SEATTLE — Ken Griffey Jr. hit his 625th career home run, a two-run blast in the fifth inning, and Jose Lopez added a solo shot, powering the Mariners and right-hander Ian Snell to a 3-1 victory over the Athletics on Monday night before 21,056 at Safeco Field.

Griffey’s 14th home run of the season came with Lopez aboard, moments after he was hit by a pitch from starter Vin Mazzaro. Plate umpire Marty Foster issued a warning to both managers and there were no further incidents in the series opener.

Snell took a no-hitter into the fifth inning and retired the first two batters he faced on three pitches. But the no-no attempt ended when Daric Barton slapped a single up the middle on a 2-2 pitch.

Shortstop Jack Wilson, returning to the lineup after missing 10 games because of a tight left hamstring, made a gallant attempt to snag the ball, but fell short with a head-long dive.

The closest the Athletics came to a hit before that was in the fourth, when first baseman Russell Branyan stabbed Jack Cust’s hot-shot down the line and combined with Snell for the out.

The Athletics broke through against Snell in the sixth on three singles, the last one by catcher Kurt Suzuki.

Lopez established a single-season career high in home runs, slugging his 18th of the season leading off the third inning. The blast carried deep into the left-field seats and gave Seattle a 1-0 lead.

It also provided the second leg of a cycle for the second baseman. The potential of Lopez getting the third leg of the cycle when he came to bat in the fifth didn’t last long. He was hit by the first pitch and was not at all happy about it, glaring at the pitcher as he walked to first base.

There were two outs and nobody on base when Lopez came to bat in the first inning. He doubled off left fielder Scott Hairston’s glove in left-center and advanced to third when Griffey Jr. was hit by a pitch and Bill Hall walked.

But the bases remained loaded when catcher Kenji Johjima hit into a forceout.