CHICAGO - So much for Sammy Sosa's big homecoming bash.
Sosa went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in his first game since May 15, and Mark Kotsay and Mark Redman led the Athletics to a 2-1 victory over the Cubs on Friday.
Kotsay homered and drove in another run, and Redman held the Cubs to four hits and an unearned run in eight innings.
"I'm just happy to be back," Sosa said. "I want to do the best that I can, but I didn't have any luck today. They pitched me great. I'll see you tomorrow."
Sosa had a chance to tie the score when he came to the plate with two outs in the ninth. The sellout crowd of 40,073 rose to its feet and chanted, "SAM-MEE! SAM-MEE!" But Sosa grounded out to end the game.
"You guys expect me to hit two or three home runs in one at-bat. You're talking about over a month I've been out," said Sosa, who sprained a ligament in his back with two hard sneezes before the Cubs' game in San Diego on May 16.
"Today was the first game, be patient. I just want to go out and do the best that I can right now."
To be fair to Sosa, the rest of the Cubs weren't much better as their six-game winning streak ended. Chicago managed only a run-scoring single by Ramon Martinez and had one hit in the last four innings.
The Cubs are 6-10 in one-run games.
"It's tough to lose another one-run game, but what can I say?" manager Dusty Baker said. "Matty (Clement) threw a great game. If it hadn't been for Kotsay, they wouldn't have gotten anything."
Clement was sharp, allowing seven hits and two runs in eight innings while striking out eight and walking none. But Kotsay made all the difference. He went 2-for-4, hitting a homer in the third and a run-scoring double in the fifth to give the A's their 12th victory in 16 games.
DODGERS 6, YANKEES 3: Jeff Weaver beat his former team, Juan Encarnacion drove in the go-ahead run and Los Angeles won the first regular-season meeting between two of baseball's most storied franchises.
Playing before the largest regular-season crowd, 55,207, in Dodger Stadium history, New York lost a second straight game for the first time since May 21-22 at Texas.
The teams hadn't played in a game that meant anything since the 1981 World Series, which the Dodgers won 4-2 by taking the final four. Of their 11 World Series meetings, the Yankees won eight.
ASTROS 5, ANGELS 0: Pete Munro combined with three relievers on a five-hitter and Jeff Kent drove in three as host Houston ended a four-game losing streak and gave manager Jimy Williams his 900th career victory. Williams is 900-778 in the majors.
Munro allowed three hits, struck out three and walked one in 61/3 innings in his second start of the season and fourth appearance.
RANGERS 8, MARLINS 1: John Wasdin won his first start in nearly six years, Alfonso Soriano drove in two and visiting Texas snapped a four-game losing streak.
Wasdin, making his second start of the season and first since April 25, allowed six hits and a run in seven innings. He walked two and struck out one to win his first start since July 29, 1998, with the Red Sox.
RED SOX 14, GIANTS 9: Pinch-hitter Kevin Millar hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth for visiting Boston. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez also homered in the fifth, and Trot Nixon and Doug Mirabelli hit back-to-back home runs in the ninth for the Red Sox.
WHITE SOX 11, EXPOS 7: Carlos Lee went 4-for-6 with four RBIs to lead host Chicago as Montreal lost its seventh straight. Lee, who fell a triple short of the cycle, singled in the eighth off Luis Ayala to make it 8-7.
BLUE JAYS 3, PADRES 2: Frank Menechino homered on David Wells' fifth pitch and Ted Lilly and two relievers combined on a six-hitter as Toronto snapped a four-game losing streak and won for the fourth time in its past 14 road games. San Diego lost its season-high sixth straight.
ROCKIES 5, ORIOLES 3: Shawn Estes allowed two runs in seven innings for his first win in a month and Todd Helton drove in three for host Colorado. A cold, misty night helped keep scoring down between the teams with their leagues' highest ERAs.
ROYALS 10, PHILLIES 4: Matt Stairs homered twice and Benito Santiago hit a three-run shot for visiting Kansas City. Chris George allowed four runs and nine hits, all singles, in 62/3 innings, helping the Royals win their third straight, all by the same score.
INDIANS 4, BRAVES 2: Cliff Lee outpitched Crystal River's Mike Hampton to win for the first time in six starts, and Casey Blake hit a tiebreaking homer to lift visiting Cleveland in the teams' first meeting since the 1995 World Series.
METS 3, TIGERS 2: Mike Cameron homered with two outs in the ninth to give host New York its second win in a row. Richard Hidalgo, acquired the previous day from Houston, was 0-for-4 in his debut for the Mets. Tom Glavine pitched seven solid innings and hit a two-run single.
MARINERS 5, PIRATES 4: Jamie Moyer pitched six solid innings and hit a two-run single, leading visiting Seattle. Moyer also delivered a bases-loaded single over third base in a three-run second, his first two RBIs in 16 years.
BREWERS 4, TWINS 1: Ben Sheets pitched four-hit ball for six innings and Chad Moeller homered as host Milwaukee snapped Minnesota's three-game winning streak.
