Cone beats Jays

David Cone got a lot out of some little changes.

Bouncing back from a pounding in Toronto, the 37-year-old right-hander held the visiting Blue Jays to three hits in seven innings Friday night in the New York Yankees' 6-0 victory.

''Something was out of whack,'' said Cone, who made some slight adjustments in his delivery. ''What I was doing wasn't working, so I needed to try something new. My mechanics were all off.''

Cone (1-2) moved from the extreme right of the pitching rubber to the left side and swung his arms before starting his delivery.

''Whether it's in his mind or actual, it obviously helped everything because he seemed comfortable,'' manager Joe Torre said.

In other AL games Friday night, it was Baltimore 4, Texas 3; Chicago 3, Detroit 2; Cleveland 4, Boston 3; Kansas City 8, Seattle 5; Tampa Bay 11, Anaheim 2; and Oakland 5, Minnesota 2.

Cone allowed eight runs in three innings in an 8-2 loss to Toronto last Saturday. He was 2-7 with a 5.98 ERA in 17 regular-season starts since his perfect game against Montreal last July 18.

The Blue Jays had only five baserunners and only one made it as far as second against Cone, who threw only 84 pitches.

''He didn't look himself against us in Toronto,'' Toronto's Darren Fletcher said. ''He looked like the old David Cone.''

Bernie Williams hit a two-run double off Kelvim Escobar (2-3) in New York's four-run third. Jorge Posada, who homered from both sides of the plate Sunday in Toronto, hit a solo shot in the sixth.

It was the second straight shutout for the Yankees, who got five scoreless innings from Andy Pettitte in a 2-0 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday.

In the National League, there's no telling when Mike Piazza might be back in the New York Mets' lineup. No telling when the San Francisco Giants might win at Pacific Bell Park, either.

While John Rocker had a relatively quiet night on the road as the Atlanta Braves beat San Diego 7-2 Friday night for their 11th straight win, the Mets and Giants sustained losses.

Piazza sprained his right wrist and hyperextended his right elbow in New York's 12-5 defeat at Colorado.

''The diagnosis right now is we're going to lose him for some days, there's no doubt about that,'' Mets manager Bobby Valentine said.

The All-Star catcher was hurt in the fifth inning trying to catch a throw in the dirt as Todd Helton slid home.

''Immediately, I felt some pain in my wrist,'' Piazza said. ''Initially, I thought it was going to be OK. I tried to shake it off, but it was pretty persistent.''

The Giants fell to 0-6 at their bayside ballpark, losing to Montreal 9-3. Never before had a team lost its first six games at a newly built stadium.

The expansion Mets started out 0-7 at the old Polo Grounds in 1962.

''We've got to get it together at home,'' said San Francisco manager Dusty Baker, whose team has won five straight on the road. ''We've got 12 more games on this homestand. We're going to get some wins.''

In other NL games, Houston beat Milwaukee 7-0, St. Louis downed Philadelphia 7-4, Chicago defeated Arizona 6-5, Los Angeles beat Florida 5-3 and Pittsburgh edged Cincinnati 2-1.