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Rangers' Sosa sets ballpark record for home runs

Apr 26, 2007 - 9:04 PM CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- Sammy Sosa hit a historic home run and then doubled his pleasure. That didn't prevent the Texas Rangers from getting swept in a two-game series.

Trot Nixon hit a two-run homer and Jhonny Peralta added a solo shot as the Cleveland Indians extended their winning streak to five games with a 9-4 victory over the Rangers in a Thursday afternoon contest.

But it was a day to celebrate for Sosa, who set a major league record by homering in his 44th different ballpark. He led off the sixth inning with a 439-foot drive into the left field seats off Paul Byrd (2-1), making Jacobs Field the 44th ballpark he has homered in.

"It's nice to have that record, but if we would have won the game, I would have enjoyed it more," said Sosa, who broke the record he shared with Ken Griffey Jr. and Fred McGriff.

Sosa has hit a home run in every active ballpark, except Washington's RFK Stadium and St. Louis' new Busch Stadium.

The 38-year-old Sosa later hit his second home run of the game and the 594th of his career in the eighth inning - a solo blast off Tom Mastny that went over the yellow home-run line atop the left field wall.

It was Sosa's 69th career multi-homer game.

"The more I play, the more comfortable I feel," Sosa said. "Everybody would like to start as hot as A-Rod (Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees), but nobody is A-Rod."

Rodriguez tied a major league record with 14 home runs in April.

A former National League MVP whose reputation was tainted by baseball's steroids scandal, Sosa did not play at all last year and had to settle for signing a minor-league contract with Texas in January.

A seven-time All-Star and a national hero in the Dominican Republic, Sosa made the team in spring training and has six homers and 18 RBI.

"I never doubted that he could still play," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He's got a pedigree. He's going to the Hall of Fame."

Sosa now needs just six home runs to reach 600 for his career.

In March 2005, Sosa was among several prominent baseball players - including Mark McGwire - called to testify about steroids in baseball. Sosa denied ever using performance-enhancing drugs.

Sosa will forever be connected with McGwire for their joint assault on Roger Maris' single-season home run record in 1998. McGwire ended up on top with 70 home runs, but Sosa won the NL MVP with 66 homers and 158 RBI for the Chicago Cubs.

Between 1998-2001, Sosa belted 243 home runs and became the first player in major league history to hit 60 or more homers in three consecutive seasons.

But Sosa's latest heroics did not help the Rangers, who have dropped three straight.

The Indians jumped on Kameron Loe (1-1), who was making his second start of the season, for three runs in the first inning.

Grady Sizemore reached on an infield single, stole second and moved to third on a passed ball. After Travis Hafner walked, Sizemore scored on a fielder's choice grounder by Victor Martinez. Nixon then hit his first home run of the season to highlight the inning.

"(Nixon) leaned on that one," Indians manager Eric Wedge said. "He put some good at-bats together last night and it carried over to today (Thursday). That first inning was big for us."

Texas scored its first run in the second inning. Hank Blalock doubled, moved to third on a sacrifice by Ian Kinsler and came home on a grounder by Brad Wilkerson.

The Indians responded with two runs in the second inning. Shin-Soo Choo singled and scored on a double by Kelly Shoppach. Shoppach moved to third on a flyout by Sizemore and scored on a wild pitch.

"I felt good after the first two innings," Loe said. "But when you give up five runs in the first two innings, it's tough to come back."

Texas scored its second run in the fourth inning on back-to-back doubles by Blalock and Kinsler.

After Sosa's first homer pulled the Rangers within 5-3, the Indians scored three times in the sixth, knocking out Loe. Nixon, Choo and Josh Barfield singled to load the bases. Barfield's hit snapped an 0-for-19 slump. Sizemore plated Nixon with an infield single and Casey Blake and Hafner walked with the bases loaded.

Byrd left after giving up a leadoff single to Gerald Laird in the seventh inning. He allowed three runs and eight hits.

Peralta hit his third home run of the season in the seventh inning to increase the lead to 9-3.

Rain delayed the start of the game 25 minutes.