Bonds belts his first home run of spring

Barry Bonds played long ball, Sammy Sosa had fun against his former team, and Carl Pavano missed another outing for the New York Yankees.

After a bout with the flu, Bonds hit his first home run of spring training Friday when he connected off Esteban Loaiza in the San Francisco Giants’ 5-3 loss to the Oakland Athletics at Scottsdale, Ariz.

“I hit it pretty good,” Bonds said. “But it’s spring training. I don’t take spring training seriously besides getting in shape.”

Sosa has 588 homers – and it appears he can still hit even after sitting out last season.

The former slugger was too focused on his comeback to get nostalgic about facing the Chicago Cubs in Surprise, Ariz. But the way he’s swinging the bat, he figures to see his old team again in June, when the Cubs visit the Texas Rangers for the first time.

The 38-year-old Sosa, in camp with the Rangers on a minor league contract after a year out of baseball, went 2-for-3 with a walk as Texas beat a Chicago split squad 11-9.

Sosa is 9-for-18 with two home runs and four RBIs through six games.

“I know I was playing against them, but I was thinking about a normal game,” insisted Sosa, a seven-time All-Star with the Cubs from 1992-2004 and the 1998 NL MVP. “I’m just happy to have an opportunity to have another good game.”

Pavano has had a difficult time just getting started with the Yankees, and his comeback stalled again when he was scratched from his scheduled outing Friday night against Tampa Bay. The oft-injured right-hander was excused to address a personal matter. He took part in pregame drills, then left Legends Field about 45 minutes before the first pitch.

In other spring training games:

Astros 9, Blue Jays 7

At Dunedin, Fla., Hunter Pence had three hits and scored twice for Houston.

Cardinals 4, Marlins 1

At Jupiter, Fla., Anthony Reyes turned in his second consecutive strong outing.

Red Sox 11, Phillies 10

At Clearwater, Fla., David Ortiz hit a long home run and Boston roughed up Cole Hamels.

Dodgers 8, Twins 7

At Vero Beach, Fla., James Loney had three hits for Los Angeles and is 11-for-22 this spring.

Orioles 4, Nationals 3

At Fort Lauderdale, Fla., pitcher Paul Shuey’s comeback bid with Baltimore was dealt a blow when he strained his Achilles’ tendon while attempting to cover the plate on a wild pitch.

Braves 8, Pirates (ss) 5

At Bradenton, Fla., Chuck James pitched three shutout innings, and Kelly Johnson hit a broken-bat homer for Atlanta. Pirates starter Zach Duke permitted one run in four innings.

Pirates (ss) 6, Indians (ss) 2

At Winter Haven, Fla., Paul Byrd allowed two runs.

Indians (ss) 7, Reds 3

At Sarasota, Fla., Adam Miller pitched three scoreless innings.

Tigers 9, Mets 5

At Port St. Lucie, Fla., Kenny Rogers gave up a two-run homer to Carlos Beltran.

Rockies 6, Mariners 5, (10)

At Peoria, Ariz., Jeff Weaver yielded one run and three hits in three innings for Seattle.

D’backs 4, White Sox 2

At Tucson, Ariz., Chicago pitcher Jon Garland had his second subpar outing.

Cubs (ss) 10, Padres (ss) 6

At Mesa, Ariz., Chicago manager Lou Piniella said Rich Hill definitely is in the rotation.

Angels (ss) 12, Padres (ss) 4

At Tempe, Ariz., David Wells allowed three runs and four hits in 12â3 innings.