Stars approaching milestones

Tuesday, May 13, 2003 | 9:33 a.m.

Rafael Palmeiro smacked home run No. 500 on Sunday, a club Sammy Sosa joined earlier this season, and Roger Clemens is a couple of wins away from 300 for his career.

Believe it or not, Father John Collett caught Palmeiro's big blast in the right-field seats of The Ballpark in Arlington on Sunday. Others were reaching for it, the priest said, but they "weren't gonna get it."

In exchange for other memorabilia, the padre gladly traded the invaluable ball to the Rangers' power-hitting lefty. Why isn't Barry Bonds ever so lucky?

A few other impressive milestones that have been passed or are within sight:

1,203 Games -- Friday night, 46-year-old Jesse Orosco became the oldest player to save a game since Hoyt Wilhelm when he sealed a victory for the Padres in New York. Wilhelm was 50 when he saved one for the Dodgers in 1972.

Shea Stadium was the site of Orosco's most memorable moment, when he closed out the World Series in 1986 and flung his glove seven stories into the air. Anyone born then is just finishing his or her junior year of high school.

Orosco is the first pitcher to bust the 1,200-game threshold. Can't hit a lick, though. Orosco whiffed in the only plate appearance of his life, in 1993, for the Brewers.

2,000 Bases On Balls -- Bonds has rocketed close to this figure with 375 free tickets to first over the past two seasons as everyone but Frank Robinson, his former manager, chooses the minimal-damage option.

With 44 more, Bonds joins Rickey Henderson (2,179), Babe Ruth (2.042) and Ted Williams (2,019).

4,000 Strikeouts -- Clemens, with 41 to go, is bearing down to make this a smokin' trio, with Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Steve Carlton (4,000). Arizona starter Randy Johnson is 223 units shy of forming a fabled quartet.

Now for a more notorious club begging for membership:

2,000 & 1,900 Strikeouts -- San Francisco first baseman Andres Galarraga is 53 from the former, and Sosa needs 27 to join the latter.

(Reggie Jackson has the leather "2K Ks jackets ready for both. The Straw missed a few high balls, whiffing 2,597 times.)

In the three games, Sosa didn't belt a ball over the wall. He hit it only once, on a double in the first game of the series. He went 4-for-13, with two runs, an RBI and four strikeouts as Colorado took two of the three games.

He was so bothered by not living up to expectations, he spent extra time studying his swing on the VCR when he should have been clipping his toe nails and, well, you know the rest.

Hall of Famer Ernie Banks (1955) and Ron Santo ('66) are the only others to pull off the feat in the same year, and Gonzalez has five months to land in a walk-off class by himself.

"It's amazing," Cubs starter Kerry Wood told MLB.com of Gonzalez's penchant for clutch power hitting. Wood and his teammates were just as amazed when St. Louis pitcher Cal Edred struck out Paul Bako on a 3-2 breaking ball.

"We said, 'That's kind of a gutsy pitch in the 10th inning with the leadoff hitter, throwing a 3-2 breaking ball for a strike.' It got to 3-2 to (Gonzalez), and I turned to Shawn (Estes) and asked, 'Is he going to throw it again here?' (Estes) said, 'I bet he does.' And he threw it, and Alex hit it. What Alex has been doing is amazing."

In a few weeks, the Bronx Bombers return to Wrigley Field for the first time in more than 60 years. Yeah, the fan said, Ruth's shot!

No.

That was the '32 World Series between the Cubs and Yanks. In Game 3 at Wrigley, it was 4-4 with one out in the fifth when Cubs pitcher Charlie Root had a 2-2 count on the Babe.

This is when drama, history and the truth collide. Ruth supposedly made a gesture in the direction of center field, which could have been interpreted as where he planned to deposit the next delivery, a point at Root or some sort of exaggerated gesture at the Cubs' bench.

Or perhaps the Babe's arm pit itched? He went along with the pointing-to-center- field bit, but enough doubters existed to offer other theories.

Ruth plopped Root's next pitch over the center-field wall, and the Yankees swept the Series.

The Cubs rallied for their second showdown of the decade with the Yankees when 37-year-old catcher Gabby Hartnett was given player-manager duties upon the July 1938 firing of Charley Grimm.

New York then swept that Series, too, via the hitting of Bill Dickey, Frankie Crosetti, Tommy Henrich and rookie Joe Gordon.

Got it? Pass the lettuce wraps.

Most important to those on a tight deadline, the game lasted only 109 minutes. In his previous start, Mulder allowed only one run on four hits -- with no walks -- in nine innings of a victory at Chicago that lasted 1 hour, 54 minutes.

The start before that, the Tigers did nothing with a walk and three hits over nine innings in a loss to Mulder that went 2:06. Sunday's win against the Yankees in Oakland was a marathon, at 2:25, compared to most of Mulder's starts.

A 6-foot-6 lefty, Mulder is 6-1 with an ERA of 0.77 over his last four starts, all victories.

Mulder, 25, is one of the most economical pitchers in the majors, finishing second last season in fewest pitches thrown per batter (3.49). The Fourth Estate salutes Mulder.

"Trader Jack" McKeon, glad to have you back.

McKeon, 72, might have been enjoying retirement in Florida, but he was called upon by Marlins brass, who dumped Jeff Torborg late Saturday night, to run the team for the rest of this season, which is oddly familiar with another time when he was summoned to lead.

In 1976, Oakland, led by Bill North's 75 stolen bases, had 341. The A's finished 87-74, 2 1/2 games off the AL West pace. The following year, McKeon replaced Chuck Tanner, who zipped to Pittsburgh and guided the Pirates to a World Series title in '79.

Back to McKeon. The A's finished 63-98 in '77.

Last year, the Marlins, under Torborg, were demons on the basepaths. He gave them the green light to run 250 times. Lou Piniella of Seattle was second, among major-league managers letting his guys go, at 195 tries.

By the end of his run, Torborg had let the Marlins run 75 times this season. Anaheim was next at 47. McKeon vowed not to alter the plan, and Florida stole three Sunday in winning his debut as manager.