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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Brad Radke is well aware of his standing
among the American League leaders for losses.
Radke pitched his fourth career shutout Sunday, scattering eight
hits to lead the Minnesota Twins to a 1-0 victory over the Anaheim
Angels.
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| Radke |
"I knew I was up there," he said. "I've been up there for a
while."
Radke (12-15) remained in a three-way tie with Toronto's Kelvim
Escobar and Baltimore's Mike Mussina for most losses.
Philadelphia's Omar Daal leads the majors with 19.
Radke, who walked one and struck out four, got a break in the
sixth inning when a high drive by Mo Vaughn that might have been a
two-run homer instead hit a Metrodome speaker in right field and
dropped harmlessly for a single.
Radke promptly retired Tim Salmon and Garret Anderson to end
the threat.
"I didn't turn around," Radke said. "All of a sudden, the
fans were cheering. I didn't know what was going on."
Vaughn had a pretty good idea.
"It was gone," he said.
Angels manager Mike Scioscia thought so, too.
"Two-to-one, we're winning," he said. "I was looking up in
the stands to see where it was going to land."
After Vaughn's near-miss, Radke retired 11 of the final 13
Anaheim batters. He struck out Anderson and Troy Glaus in the ninth
to cap the 110-pitch effort.
"This guy has tremendous command," Scioscia said. "He changes
speed as well as anyone in our league. To get a shutout with as
well as we've been swinging the bats, that's impressive."
Anaheim had won four straight and eight
of its last 11, scoring 23 runs in the last two games.
But Radke, who improved to 10-4 lifetime against the Angels, was
too much as he won for the fourth time in his last six outings.
"You get a zero up there against that lineup, that's
something," said Twins manager Tom Kelly. "You really have to
pitch your eyeballs out. Brad certainly pitched a good game."
He wasn't the only one. Tim Belcher (4-3) threw a complete game
of his own -- his first since 1998. He allowed five hits and one
walk in eight innings, striking out six.
"He's really stepped it up for us since he came off the
disabled list," Scioscia said.
Since returning Sept. 7, Belcher has made three starts, throwing
21 innings and allowing just six earned runs. Belcher, who had been
shelved with a strained right flexor muscle, has just seven starts
this year.
"His cutter was really working," said the Twins' Torii Hunter,
who went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and had a seven-game hitting
streak snapped. "Both pitchers did a great job."
The Twins used speed to give Radke an early lead. Cristian
Guzman led off by beating out a chop to shortstop and rookie Luis
Rivas followed with a triple -- the first of his career -- down the
right-field line to drive in Guzman.
Radke escaped a jam in the second after Anderson and Glaus
opened the inning with singles and Bengie Molina reached on a bunt
to load the bases.
Radke struck out Adam Kennedy and got Kevin Stocker to hit a
soft fly to shallow right. Rookie John Barnes, playing in his
second career major league game, threw a perfect strike to nail
Anderson at the plate and complete the double play.
Later, Radke got another assist from the outfield. Salmon led
off the fourth with a double, and then Anderson flew out to Hunter
in medium center field. Salmon tagged, and Hunter threw to third.
It wasn't close.
"I don't know what happened," said Hunter of his 10th assist
of the season. "I think maybe he thought when I stepped back, he
could tag. I was waiting for him to tag, and I got him."
Game notes
Glaus committed his 31st error of the season in the fifth
inning. Anaheim's starting infield of Glaus, Benji Gil (17),
Kennedy (18) and Vaughn (14) has a total of 80 errors. ... Twins OF
Matt Lawton, who left Saturday's game in the seventh inning after
being hit on the elbow by a pitch two innings earlier, was held out
of the lineup Sunday. ... Molina left the game in the second inning
with tightness in his left quadriceps.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Anaheim Clubhouse
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RECAPS
Detroit 5
Boston 4
Cleveland 15
NY Yankees 4
Oakland 0
Tampa Bay 0
Seattle 3
Baltimore 2
Toronto 14
Chi. White Sox 1
Minnesota 1
Anaheim 0
Texas 6
Kansas City 5
Cincinnati 8
Milwaukee 4
Montreal 5
NY Mets 0
Philadelphia 6
Florida 5
St. Louis 4
Chicago Cubs 2
Houston 5
Pittsburgh 3
San Francisco 5
San Diego 1
Los Angeles 12
Colorado 6
Atlanta 7
Arizona 1
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