American League Roundup : Weaver Touches Off an Oriole Power Play

There’s nothing to this job of big-league managing. Just make out your lineup card and stand back.

At least that’s the way it’s been for Earl Weaver.

Since Weaver rejoined the Orioles as manager Friday night after a 2 1/2-year absence, the club has unloaded eight home runs, including five Sunday in a 9-1 rout of the Milwaukee Brewers that completed a sweep of a four-game series at Baltimore.

Wayne Gross, batting only .242, hit a pair of homers and was joined in the home run derby by Fred Lynn, Jim Dwyer and John Shelby as the Orioles handed the Brewers their fifth loss in a row.

“We knew we would break out of our hitting slump eventually. There is just too much talent here for that to go on too long,” Weaver said.

Mike Boddicker (7-6) pitched a six-hitter to get the victory. He lost his shutout in the ninth when Jim Gantner singled home a run.

Gross led off the third and fifth innings with his seventh and eighth home runs, while Dwyer highlighted a three-run seventh with a two-run shot, his fifth homer of the season, to chase loser Danny Darwin (6-5).

Lynn and Shelby homered in the eighth off reliever Pete Ladd.

Oakland 3-11, Cleveland 2-6--Dwayne Murphy managed to collect only one of the Oakland A’s 20 hits in the doubleheader sweep at Cleveland, but it was easily the most important.

Murphy hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning of the first game to win it for the A’s.

“It was my only hit of the series, but I couldn’t have asked for a better one,” Murphy said.

The homer was Murphy’s 10th, but he has driven in only 18 runs this season.

“That looks bad, 10 home runs and only 18 RBIs,” he said. “I get into situations where I could get ‘em in, and I can’t get ‘em in.”

Carney Lansford and Dusty Baker homered to highlight the second-game victory, which went to Steve McCatty (3-3). Don Sutton (5-5) got the other win, his 285th career triumph.

Tom Waddell (2-4) and Vern Ruhle (1-3) were burdened with the losses.

New York 2, Detroit 1--Dave Winfield singled home Rickey Henderson in the bottom of the ninth and Bob Shirley (2-1) hurled a four-hitter to snap streaks of four straight losses by the Yankees and six straight wins by the Tigers.

Randy O’Neal (1-1) was the loser.

Detroit tied the game in the fourth on Kirk Gibson’s 12th homer of the year, the ball bouncing off the back wall of the right-field bleachers. It marked only the second time in the new Yankee Stadium that a ball had been hit to that spot.

Mike Pagliarulo gave New York a 1-0 lead in the third with his fourth homer of the year. It was his second in two days, and they came on consecutive at-bats.

Boston 7, Toronto 6--Dwight Evans’ sacrifice fly scored Marty Barrett to cap a four-run, eighth-inning rally that gave the Red Sox a sweep of their four-game series against the visiting Blue Jays.

Steve Crawford (4-2) pitched 2 innings, striking out three, to help Boston to its fifth straight victory and 13th in its last 14 games. Gary Lavelle (2-2) took the loss in relief.

Evans’ game-winner was preceded by a two-run single by Glenn Hoffman.

Seattle 2, Kansas City 1--Jim Presley’s ninth-inning single scored Barry Bonnell from second in Seattle to hand the slumping Royals their third straight loss and their 11th in their last 16 games. Bonnell opened the ninth with a double to left off reliever Joe Beckwith (1-3) and scored when Presley drilled a 2-and-1 pitch to center.

Karl Best (2-1) worked the final 1 innings to earn the win.

Kansas City’s Bud Black, who worked the first eight innings, had a career-high 10 strikeouts. He is the first Royal pitcher to strike out more than nine since Rich Gale did it on June 26, 1983.

Minnesota 4, Texas 1--Gary Gaetti hit a two-run homer, Greg Gagne added a solo home run and Ken Schrom allowed seven singles in leading the Twins to a victory on the road.

Gaetti’s ninth homer broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth inning.

Schrom (5-5) allowed a hit in every inning except the second and ninth, walked four batters and struck out four in his third complete game this season.

Charlie Hough (5-7) lasted six innings, giving up seven hits and three runs. Hough had pitched six consecutive complete games against the Twins with a 5-0 record dating back to September, 1982.