Major-league roundup
Andy Pettitte heard the cheers when he jogged out to the mound to warm up for his first start after a rocky offseason. He tried to give the Yankee Stadium crowd another solid performance.
The rest of the day just didn't go as planned.
Jonny Gomes homered and drove in 4 runs against Pettitte, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees 6-3 on Saturday.
"I'd be lying if I didn't say that it was great and (I'm) much appreciative," Pettitte said of the welcome he got from the crowd of 52,247. "I wish I could've given them a better performance than that."
Pettitte was on a shorter-than-normal pitch count after he opened the season on the disabled list with back spasms. He lasted just 5 innings and was outpitched by Edwin Jackson, who held the powerful Yankees lineup in check. Pettitte allowed 5 runs (3 earned) on 8 hits, walked two, struck out three and hit Carlos Pena twice.
It was Pettitte's first regular-season start since he admitted using human growth hormone and accused buddy and former teammate Roger Clemens of also using HGH.
Athletics 6, Indians 1: Cleveland's C.C. Sabathia (0-1) got roughed up, and Dana Eveland allowed 1 run in 7 innings to win in his Oakland debut, beating Cleveland. Sabathia gave up 4 runs, 6 hits and 4 walks in 5½ innings and has a 7.59 ERA after 2 starts this season.
Blue Jays 10, Red Sox 2: Frank Thomas hit a 2-run homer, David Eckstein had 3 RBI, and host Toronto used a 6-run eighth inning to beat Boston for the sixth straight time.
Twins 6, Royals 4: Justin Morneau hit his first home run of the season and drove in 4 runs, and Livan Hernandez won his second straight start as host Minnesota beat Kansas City.
National League
Brewers 5, Giants 4: Manny Parra earned his first major-league victory, delivering a breakout performance in host Milwaukee's win over San Francisco. The 25-year-old left-hander held the Giants hitless through 5 innings before giving up a pair of runs in the sixth and leaving the game with a 3-2 lead.
Reds 4, Phillies 3: Paul Bako hit a run-scoring infield single with one out in the ninth inning to lift host Cincinnati over Philadelphia. Francisco Cordero (1-0) pitched a perfect ninth for his first win since the Brewers beat St. Louis 1-0 on Sept. 20, 2006, at Milwaukee.
Cardinals 5, Nationals 4: Adam Wainwright completed a dominant first time around for host St. Louis' injury-depleted rotation, working 8 strong innings in a victory over Washington. Yadier Molina had 2 hits and 2 RBI, and Wainwright (1-0) also drove in a run.
Braves 11, Mets 5: Kelly Johnson's pinch-hit grand slam broke open a close game, and host Atlanta beat New York. Johnson, the regular second baseman, didn't start for the third straight game due to his sore right knee. With two outs in the seventh and the Braves leading 5-3, Johnson pulled a 3-2 pitch from Jorge Sosa into the right-field seats for his second career grand slam.
Padres 4, Dodgers 1: Jake Peavy threw a 2-hitter, striking out eight to lead host San Diego to a win over Los Angeles. Peavy (2-0) improved to 10-1 in 19 career starts against the Padres' biggest rival.