Yankees move winning streak to four
NEW YORK -- Scott Brosius broke an 0-for-14 skid with a two-out, tiebreaking RBI single in the seventh inning to lead the New York Yankees to their fourth straight win, 4-2 over the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday night.
Derek Jeter had a homer and an RBI double, and Paul O'Neill added a solo shot for the Yankees, who have rebounded from a four-game losing streak to take a season-high 2 1/2-game lead over second-place Boston in the AL East.
Blue Jays 4, Red Sox 3
BOSTON -- Alex Gonzalez homered in the 10th off Derek Lowe (4-8).
Manny Ramirez and Dante Bichette hit consecutive home runs to give the Red Sox a 3-0 lead in the first, but Boston did not get another hit until Troy O'Leary singled with one out in the 10th.
Billy Koch got his 20th save, retiring Doug Mirabelli on a grounder with the bases loaded to end it. Paul Quantrill (9-2) got the win.
Indians 7, White Sox 5
CLEVELAND -- Jim Thome stayed hot, hitting his AL-leading 32nd homer and 11th of July.
Thome struck out in his previous seven at-bats over the previous two games but hit an RBI single in the first and homered in third off Rocky Biddle (2-7).
Royals 5, Mariners 1
SEATTLE -- Neifi Perez doubled and scored in his Kansas City debut, and Paul Byrd pitched shutout ball into the ninth inning as the Royals beat the Seattle Mariners.
Perez, acquired earlier in the day from Colorado in a three-team trade that sent Jermaine Dye to Oakland, went 1-for-5. His double off Aaron Sele (12-2) sparked a four-run burst in the fourth inning.
The Mariners lost two straight for just the eighth time this season.
Byrd (2-4) broke his three-game losing streak and won for the first time since June 15. He walked one and struck out four in his first career appearance against the Mariners.
Devil Rays 3, Angels 1
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Emergency starter Paul Wilson pitched five scoreless innings and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Anaheim Angels.
Tampa Bay catcher Mike DiFelice was removed from the game midway through the second inning after the Devil Rays traded him and pitcher Albie Lopez, to the Arizona Diamondbacks for left-hander Nick Bierbrodt, outfielder Jason Conti and cash.
Twins 3, Athletics 1
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Joe Mays dominated the Oakland Athletics' revamped lineup, pitching two-hit ball through 7 2-3 innings to snap the Minnesota Twins' five-game losing streak.
Minnesota overshadowed Jermaine Dye's debut in Oakland with a sterling effort from Mays (12-7), who retired the first nine A's and faced the minimum 21 batters through seven innings.
Jacque Jones drove in two runs, and Denny Hocking homered for the Twins, who have fallen into a virtual tie atop the AL Central with Cleveland. Minnesota won for just the second time in 11 games and sent the A's to just their fourth loss in 17 games.
Dye, acquired earlier in the day from Kansas City in a three-team trade, played right field and hit fifth for the A's. He went 0-for-3, with Corey Koskie robbing him of a hit with a diving stop at third base in his first at-bat.
LaTroy Hawkins pitched the ninth for his 26th save in 30 chances. Cory Lidle (4-5) took the loss.
Rangers 6, Orioles 5, 1st game
Rangers 5, Orioles 2, 2nd game
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Called up just to make the spot start, Justin Duchscherer pitched into the seventh inning to win his major league debut as the Texas Rangers beat the Baltimore Orioles in the first game of a doubleheader.
The Rangers earned the sweep when Mike Lamb hit an RBI double and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Alex Rodriguez in a three-run eighth inning as Texas won 5-2.
Jeff Zimmerman earned saves in both games. The Rangers have their first three-game winning streak since April 13-15.
Baltimore has lost 17 of its last 20 games, including five straight to Texas.
John Parrish (0-1), recalled from Triple-A Rochester to make his first start of the season, gave up five runs in the first inning of the opener.
Texas reliever Mike Venafro (4-2) got three outs on nine pitches for the victory in the second game. Jose Mercedes (4-12), the fourth Baltimore pitcher, was the loser.