Rays sweep Red Sox, lead AL East by 3 games
Evan Longoria went 3-for-4 and drove in 3 runs as host Tampa Bay beat Boston 7-6 on Wednesday night to complete their second three-game sweep of the World Series champions this season.
The Rays improved the best record in baseball to 52-32, rallying from a 3-run deficit in the seventh inning and extending their lead in the AL East to a franchise-best 3 games over the second-place Red Sox.
Boston matched a season high with its fifth consecutive loss.
Tampa Bay is 6-0 at home against Boston, which has swept two three-game series from the Rays at Fenway Park.
Longoria had an RBI single off Daisuke Matsuzaka in the first inning, and his 2-run double off Craig Hansen (1-3) was the big blow in a 6-run seventh. The rookie has 15 RBI in his last 10 games.
Jason Bartlett had a 2-run single in the seventh that made it 7-4.
Gary Glover (1-2), the third of four Tampa Bay pitchers, allowed 1 run in 1 innings to get the win.
The Red Sox pulled within 7-6 on Kevin Youkilis' sacrifice fly in the ninth. Dan Wheeler struck out Jason Varitek for his third save.
Yankees 18, Rangers 7: Jason Giambi hit a grand slam and drove in a season-high 6 runs, and Alex Rodriguez added a 3-run homer as New York beat Texas to avoid a series sweep.
The Yankees scored just 7 runs and batted .172 in losing three of their last four games.
Rodriguez scored four times, the last coming on his line-drive homer to right during the Yankees' season-high 9-run seventh inning. It was Rodriguez's 535th homer, moving him past Jimmie Foxx for 14th on the career list and within one of Mickey Mantle.
Twins 7, Tigers 0: Nick Blackburn (7-4) combined with two relievers on a 5-hitter, and Joe Mauer's two-out, 2-run single sparked a 5-run third inning that led surging Minnesota over visiting Detroit. The Twins took two of three from the Tigers and have won 13 of their last 15 games. Detroit, which had won 18 of 22 coming into the series, was shut out for the 10th time this season, the most in the major leagues. The Twins have outscored the Tigers 39-17 in six games at the Metrodome this year, winning five.
Angels 7, Athletics 4: Joe Saunders (12-4) pitched into the seventh inning to match Brandon Webb for the major-league lead with his 12th win, and Juan Rivera and Eric Aybar homered to carry host Los Angeles past Oakland. Saunders allowed 4 runs - 2 earned - and 6 hits in 6 innings to help the Angels open a 5-game lead over their AL West rivals. Francisco Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth for his major-league-leading 34th save in 36 attempts, tying John Smoltz's 2003 record for the most before the all-star break.
Orioles 5, Royals 2: Daniel Cabrera (6-4) pitched a 7-hitter to earn his first victory since May 20, and Aubrey Huff homered as host Baltimore defeated Kansas City. Cabrera retired 13 straight batters before David DeJesus singled with two outs in the eighth. He struck out two and walked none in his second complete game of the season, both against the Royals. Cabrera is 5-0 with a 2.21 ERA lifetime against Kansas City, and the Orioles are 8-0 in his 8 career starts against the Royals.
National League
Phillies 7, Braves 3: Ryan Howard hit a 3-run homer, and Pat Burrell added a solo shot as Philadelphia survived a ninth-inning scare to beat Atlanta. The Phillies improved to 5-0 in Atlanta this season and 7-1 overall in the season series. The Braves (40-45) fell a season-worst five games under .500 with their second straight loss in the series, despite homers from Chipper Jones and Ruben Gotay.
Marlins 4, Nationals 2: Alfredo Amezaga hit a go-ahead, 2-run home run in seventh inning when play resumed after a 1-hour rain delay, leading host Florida past Washington. The Marlins trailed 2-1 when the game was halted with one and two outs in the seventh for 1 hour, 35 minutes. Charlie Manning (0-2) relieved starter Odalis Perez after the delay, and Amezaga his second home run of the season and 11th in 1,106 career at-bats.
Pirates 9, Reds 5: Xavier Nady homered twice and drove in 4 runs to lead Pittsburgh, which lost another pitcher to injury, past host Cincinnati. Closer Matt Capps will be gone for about eight weeks after a medical test detected bursitis and tightness in his pitching shoulder. Capps is the fourth Pittsburgh pitcher to wind up on the disabled list in the last two weeks.
Dodgers 4, Astros 1: Hiroki Kuroda threw 7 shutout innings after coming off the disabled list, and Jeff Kent had 2 RBI doubles for Los Angeles in a victory over host Houston. Kuroda (4-6) allowed 5 hits in his first start since going on the DL on June 18 with tendinitis in his right shoulder.
Andre Ethier hit a solo homer, and Blake DeWitt scored on Luis Maza's squeeze bunt for the Dodgers, who have won five of their last six road games.