AROUND THE HORN Friday's other games

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Athletics 7, Royals 0
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Mark Mulder carried a no-hitter into the seventh and pitched his third straight complete game, and Bobby Crosby homered twice. Mulder pitched a three-hitter for his eighth career shutout, his first since blanking the Chicago White Sox on May 6 last year. Mike Sweeney lined a single to left leading off the seventh for Kansas City's first hit.
Rangers 9, Yankees
ARLINGTON, Texas -- With his first swing, Alex Rodriguez silenced the booing fans who greeted his return to Texas. A few innings later, the sellout crowd had plenty to cheer about -- mostly from the kids A-Rod was so glad to leave behind. Laynce Nix hit a pair of two-run homers, Mark Teixeira doubled twice and scored three runs and rookie Frankie Francisco struck out Rodriguez, helping the Texas Rangers rally from a three-run deficit.
White Sox 8, Twins 2
MINNEAPOLIS -- Mark Buehrle pitched seven solid innings, and Timo Perez and Jose Valentin each hit two-run homers for Chicago. Buehrle (4-1) gave up two runs on seven hits and tied his season high with eight strikeouts. He improved to 12-4 against the Twins, the most victories he has against any opponent. The left-hander had plenty of help from Chicago's lineup, which had 12 hits despite missing cleanup hitter Frank Thomas because of an upset stomach. Leadoff hitter Juan Uribe went 3-for-4, and Chicago's first four hitters combined to go 9-for-19.
Red Sox 11, Blue Jays 5
BOSTON -- Manny Ramirez's solo homer broke an eighth-inning tie and Pokey Reese drove in three runs to lead Boston. Simon Pond hit his first major league homer for Toronto, a solo shot that tied it at 5 in the seventh. But Boston sent 11 batters to the plate in the eighth, scoring six runs.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Cardinals 7, Cubs 6
CHICAGO -- Albert Pujols and Jim Edmonds hit consecutive home runs. St. Louis won its third straight and moved a season-high four games above .500. Moises Alou hit a late homer for the third straight day, connecting for a three-run shot in the Cubs' seventh. But he struck out to the game.
Phillies 5, Padres 4
PHILADELPHIA -- Chase Utley had three RBIs, including a go-ahead single in the eighth inning that capped a comeback from a three-run deficit for Philadelphia. Utley, who had three hits, homered for the second straight game, and David Bell also homered for the Phillies.
Reds 7, Astros 4
CINCINNATI -- Ken Griffey Jr.'s slump-breaking double keyed a five-run rally in the seventh inning for Cincinnati. Griffey's double just inside first base snapped a 4-all tie and a personal 0-for-13 skid, sending the Reds to their sixth victory in seven games. Cincinnati has surged into a second-place tie with Chicago in the NL Central, a game behind the Astros.
Giants 6, Expos 5
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Barry Bonds drew a leadoff walk to spark a six-run seventh inning that carried San Francisco over Montreal. Bonds played despite a sore back that had kept him out of the last two games. He said he wanted the fans in San Juan -- where the Expos play 22 of their home games -- to get a chance to see him in action. He went 1-for-3 with an infield single.
Braves 2, Dodgers 0
ATLANTA -- Chipper Jones homered in the seventh to break up a scoreless duel between Russ Ortiz and Odalis Perez. The Dodgers have lost eight in a row -- their longest slide since June 1992, when the team dropped 10 straight. Despite the losing streak, Los Angeles remained first in the NL West by percentage points over San Diego. Perez (2-3) had given up only two hits and not allowed a runner past second when Jones lofted his fifth homer into the left-field seats.
Mets 9, Rockies 7
NEW YORK -- Mike Piazza homered and Danny Garcia had two of the New York Mets' nine doubles against Colorado. Matt Ginter (1-0) got his first win as a starter, and Jason Phillips added two doubles for the Mets.
Marlins 6, Diamondbacks 5, 10 innings
MIAMI -- Mike Redmond drew a bases-loaded walk to force in the winning run for Florida. Juan Pierre led off the 10th with a single, and stole second one out later. Reliever Brian Bruney (2-1) intentionally walked Miguel Cabrera and then walked Abraham Nunez to load the bases.
-- Associated Press