MLB ROUNDUP | Wednesday's other games

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Yankees 12, Royals 5
NEW YORK -- Gary Sheffield homered and drove in four runs, and Shawn Chacon overcame a shaky start to earn his first win of the season for New York. Jason Giambi had a pair of RBI doubles, Derek Jeter scored three times and Sheffield finished with three hits as New York tagged Royals starter Jeremy Affeldt (0-1). Reggie Sanders homered for the second consecutive day for the Royals.
White Sox 4, Tigers 3
DETROIT -- Jim Thome homered for the second straight game and Jose Contreras tossed eight innings for Chicago. Contreras (1-0), who stretched his winning streak to nine games dating to last season, struck out two and allowed six hits and one walk. Chris Shelton hit his major league-leading sixth homer of the season, a two-run shot, to pull the Tigers within one in the ninth. But Bobby Jenks recovered to get the next two outs for his third save.
Blue Jays 8, Red Sox 4
BOSTON -- Alexis Rios, Bengie Molina and Vernon Wells homered off David Wells in the left-hander's first start of the season, leading Toronto past Boston. Wells (0-1) was booed early and often after giving up three runs in the first, two in the second and two in the fifth. He gave up seven runs, 10 hits, walked one and struck out one in four-plus innings. Rios had a two-run homer and a career-best four RBIs for the Blue Jays, who had a season-high 16 hits. Gustavo Chacin (2-0) benefited from a 5-0 lead after two innings, allowing three runs on five hits in five innings.
Devil Rays 7, Orioles 4
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Jonny Gomes hit a tie-breaking grand slam in the eighth inning for Tampa Bay. Tomas Perez opened the eighth with a single off Sendy Rleal (0-1) and went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Joey Gathright. Damon Hollins' single put runners on first and third before Russell Branyan reached to load the bases when Rleal was charged with an error for misplaying his bunt. Gomes then sent a 1-1 pitch into the left field stands for his first career grand slam and a 7-3 lead.
Twins 6, Athletics 5
MINNEAPOLIS -- Justin Morneau hit his second homer in two nights and Torii Hunter had two hits and a home run to lead Minnesota over Oakland. Tony Batista added three hits and an RBI for the Twins. Joe Nathan pitched a perfect ninth inning for his second save. Nick Swisher went 3-for-4 with two home runs and tied a career high with four RBIs for the A's, who are now guaranteed of losing their first series of the season.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Cubs 4, Reds 1
CHICAGO -- A classic performance by Greg Maddux two days before his 40th birthday carried Chicago over sloppy-fielding Cincinnati. Working quickly and using an assortment of pitches and speeds, Maddux (2-0) allowed three hits and a run in six innings to get his 320th career win. The Reds had five errors -- three by third baseman Edwin Encarnacion -- to help Chicago build a 3-0 lead. Cincinnati has another concern. Center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. left the game in the fourth inning with stiffness in the back of his right knee. He walked in the first and struck out in the top of the fourth before Ryan Freel replaced him in center in the bottom of the inning.
Padres 7, Marlins 2
MIAMI -- Adrian Gonzalez went 4-for-5 with two RBIs and Chris Young allowed one hit in six innings to lead San Diego to its second straight win. Vinny Castilla also hit a two-run homer for the Padres. Miguel Cabrera hit his second homer of the season for Florida, which lost its fifth game in a row and is off to a 1-6 start. Young (1-0) left with a 7-0 lead after throwing 101 pitches. The only hit off him was a high-hopper down the third-base line by Hanley Ramirez that rolled into the outfield for a double. Florida finished with six hits. Gonzalez singled and Castilla hit his first homer of the season in the sixth to make it 5-0. Brian Moehler (0-2) allowed six runs, five earned, in 51/3 innings for the Marlins.
Mets 3, Nationals 1
WASHINGTON -- Pedro Martinez escaped a bases-loaded, no-out jam as New York won its fifth straight. After the Nationals loaded the bases in the sixth, Martinez (2-0) struck out Jose Vidro for the first out and got Jose Guillen to hit into a double play, neatly turned by second baseman Anderson Hernandez, whose throw beat just beat Guillen. Except for that one inning, Martinez was impeccable, allowing only three hits and walking one. Billy Wagner got the last three outs for his second save. Carlos Delgado doubled home a run.
Phillies 7, Braves 5
ATLANTA -- Aaron Rowand hit a two-run homer, Pat Burrell also homered and Philadelphia won for only the second time this season. Wilson Betemit, filling in for injured third baseman Chipper Jones, hit a two-out, two-run double in the eighth that brought the tying run to the plate. But Arthur Rhodes struck out pinch-hitter Matt Diaz to end the threat.
Cardinals 8, Brewers 3
ST. LOUIS -- Jim Edmonds hit a three-run double and scored on a pair of errors during a pivotal at-bat in the fifth inning, helping St. Louis beat Milwaukee. Jason Marquis (2-0) worked around a three-run homer by Carlos Lee in an otherwise solid six-inning stint, and Scott Rolen had two RBIs to take the team lead with 11 for the Cardinals.
Associated Press
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.