Tigers earn first sweep at Yankee Stadium since 1966
The last time the Detroit Tigers left Yankee Stadium with a three-game sweep, Al Kaline was playing the outfield and Denny McLain was on the mound.
Miguel Cabrera homered, tripled and drove in 3 runs, and Detroit beat the Yankees 8-4 Thursday night for its first three-game sweep in New York since 1966.
"That's not going to happen very often," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "You feel very fortunate here if you win two out of three. You feel OK if you win one out of three."
Reserve infielder Ramon Santiago made the most of his first start at shortstop this season, turning in a key defensive play and hitting a tiebreaking triple to back Nate Robertson (1-3).
Magglio Ordonez had 3 hits -- including a 2-run double off Ian Kennedy -- and scored twice for the Tigers, who got a strong effort from their bullpen and won for the eighth time in 10 games.
"We've got a long way to go, but we are playing better," said Leyland, whose star-studded team opened 0-7. "I don't think we're over the hump yet."
Bobby Abreu hit a 3-run homer in the first inning but failed to come through with the bases loaded in the sixth. The banged-up Yankees, who have lost six of eight, got more bad news before the game when they learned pitcher Phil Hughes is expected to be out until at least July with a stress fracture in one of his ribs.
"Right now it just seems like we have to be perfect out there and that's tough to do sometimes," Johnny Damon said. "We caught Detroit at the wrong time. Maybe when we go there (May 9-11) we can repay them."
Blue Jays 3, Red Sox 0: A.J. Burnett scattered 3 hits pitching into the eighth inning, and Alex Rios homered for Toronto, which wrapped up a miserable road trip (2-7) with a win over Boston.
Indians 3, Mariners 2 (11): Asdrubal Cabrera broke an 0-for-14 slump with a bases-loaded single in the 11th inning to give host Cleveland a win over Seattle. The Mariners' Richie Sexson hit his 300th career homer.
Rays 4, Orioles 2: Matt Garza (1-0) allowed 3 hits in 6 innings, Carl Crawford snapped a tie with a 2-run single in the seventh, and Tampa Bay beat host Baltimore. The Rays are four games over .500 (16-12) for only the third time in their 11-year history.
Rangers 2, Royals 1: Sidney Ponson (1-0) got his first victory in a year, and Texas finished a successful homestand by beating Kansas City. The Rangers took two of three from both Minnesota and Kansas City during the homestand.
National League
Phillies 3, Padres 2: Ryan Howard hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the eighth inning to lift host Philadelphia over San Diego. Tom Gordon (3-2) pitched a perfect eighth, and Brad Lidge retired the side in the ninth for his seventh save in as many chances.
Nationals 3, Pirates 2: Austin Kearns broke a tie with a two-out RBI single in the eighth inning, and host Washington beat Pittsburgh to extend its winning streak to a season-high four.
Dodgers 5, Marlins 3: Matt Kemp drove in the tiebreaking run with a ninth-inning single, and Los Angeles completed its second consecutive series sweep by beating host Florida. The Dodgers' six-game winning streak is their longest since taking seven in a row to close the 2006 season.