ANGELS STUNG EARLY BY A'S : STAIRS TIES RBI RECORD OAKLAND 16, ANGELS 8.

Byline: Associated Press 

Getting two hits in the same inning was no big deal for Matt Stairs. Hitting his first career grand slam and driving in six runs in the same inning, however, was something special.

Stairs, promoted from the minors a day earlier, tied a major-league record with six RBI during a 13-run first inning that sent the Oakland Athletics over the Angels 16-8 Friday night.

Oakland set a team record for runs in an inning, combining nine hits - including Stairs' slam and two-run single - and five walks while sending 18 batters to the plate.

``I was working down in Triple-A,'' Stairs said. ``I changed a lot of things about my swing.''

``I'm happy for the chance to share a major-league record,'' he said. ``I've been struggling with the bases loaded, so I was excited about my first grand slam.''

Stairs became the 12th player in major-league history to drive in six runs in an inning. Boston's Carlos Quintana was the last to do it on July 30, 1991.

Last year, when he played for Boston, Stairs had two consecutive games in which he got two hits in the same inning.

The A's struck after the Angels scored three times in the top of the first. Oakland and California combined to set a modern major-league record for most runs in a first inning.

A crowd of 36,129, the first sellout of the season at the Coliseum, showed up on Fireworks Night and saw Oakland post the biggest first inning in the majors since May 21, 1952, when Brooklyn scored 15 against Cincinnati. It was the biggest first inning in the AL since Cleveland scored 14 against the Philadelphia A's on June 18, 1950.

The record for runs in an inning is 17, set by Boston against Detroit in 1953.

Stairs' slam came against Ryan Hancock (4-1), who faced 10 batters and allowed eight runs on five hits and two walks. Reliever Brad Pennington walked all three batters he faced, and Jim Abbott gave up hits to the first four batters he faced - including Stairs' single - before retiring Mike Bordick on a fly ball to end the inning.

``I just got off on the wrong foot and stayed there,'' said Hancock, who shut out the A's for seven innings on June 30. ``They buried me. I never had an outing like this in my career.''

Scott Brosius drove in three runs in the opening inning. Jose Herrera, who had two hits, Damon Mashore, Mark McGwire and George Williams also drove in runs.

John Wasdin (6-2) pitched seven innings to pick up the victory.

``That was unbelievable,'' Wasdin said. ``I've never seen anything like that. We scored seven, eight runs and kept getting hits. That's nice to see.''

Chili Davis hit a two-run homer in the Angels first. Tim Salmon, J.T. Snow and Darin Erstad later homered for California.

The A's added two runs in the second. Herrera scored on a wild pitch, and Brosius singled in a run.

Notes: Salmon left the game in the fifth inning with a strained left forearm. . . . Jason Giambi left the game with a bruised right elbow after getting hit by a pitch in the Oakland first. . . . The A's have won nine consecutive season series from the Angels. . . . The Angels have allowed 22 home runs in their past nine games.

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Photo

Photo: Oakland's Matt Stairs follows through his grand-slam home-run swing en route to tying a major-league record with six RBI in an inning.

Associated Press