MLB ROUNDUP \ Wednesday’s other games

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Yankees 10, Mariners 2

NEW YORK — Alex Rodriguez had a night befitting legends. The Yankees planned to take him out of the starting lineup because of his sprained right ankle, but A-Rod talked his way in. Then he homered twice in an eight-run seventh inning to help the Yankees open a three-game lead over the Mariners in the AL wild-card race. He walked and popped out in his first two plate appearances against Jarrod Washburn (9-13). Then, with the Yankees trailing 2-1 in the seventh, Rodriguez hit a 3-2 fastball over the retired numbers behind the fence in left-center. Pinch-hitter Jorge Posada’s bases-loaded walk off Sean Green put the Yankees ahead, and New York padded the margin on Johnny Damon’s run-scoring grounder, Melky Cabrera’s RBI single and Derek Jeter’s two-run double. Rodriguez then drove a 2-1 pitch from Brandon Morrow into the left-field seats for a two-run homer. He rounded the bases, received congratulations in the dugout and emerged for his second curtain call of the inning. His first homer tied Mel Ott on the career list, and his second matched Ernie Banks and Eddie Mathews for 17th place at 512.

Tigers 2, White Sox 1, 11 innings

DETROIT — Timo Perez’s single off the right-center field wall with two outs in the 11th inning lifted Detroit. Mike Hessman homered for Detroit, which stayed seven games behind the first-place Cleveland Indians in the AL Central and 31⁄2 back of the New York Yankees in the wild-card race.

Athletics 6, Angels 2

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Joe Blanton settled down after a rocky start and Mark Ellis hit a three-run homer for Oakland. Donnie Murphy had a career-high three hits and two RBIs for Oakland, including a homer leading off the seventh inning to chase Joe Saunders.

Blue Jays 6, Red Sox 4

BOSTON — Vernon Wells broke out of a slump with a tiebreaking homer in the ninth inning and two singles, and the Blue Jays ended Boston’s four-game winning streak. Wells connected for a two-run shot after Hideki Okajima (3-2) hit leadoff batter Gregg Zaun with a pitch and John McDonald sacrificed.

Rangers 3, Royals 2

ARLINGTON, Texas — Vicente Padilla pitched two-hit shutout ball for six innings, Hank Blalock had two hits and two RBIs, and the Texas Rangers hung on to beat Kansas City. Michael Young added two hits, and Frank Catalanotto reached base three times to help the Rangers win for the ninth time in their last 11 games.

Devil Rays, 17 Orioles 2

ST PETERSBURG, Fla. — Carlos Pena homered twice, including a grand slam, and drove in a team-record seven runs to lead Tampa Bay. Pena hit his fifth career grand slam and second this year, and Delmon Young had a three-run shot during an eight-run fourth.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Braves 9, Phillies 8

ATLANTA — The Braves overcame two large deficits and pulled out a shocking victory on Matt Diaz’s three-run double with two outs in the ninth inning. The Braves, who trailed 5-0 and 8-2, made a game of it with four runs in the eighth — though their chances looked slim when Brett Myers (3-6) retired the first two hitters in the ninth.

Reds 7, Mets 0

CINCINNATI — Brandon Phillips broke Cincinnati’s record for homers by a second baseman, and Cincinnati ended New York’s five-game winning streak. Right-hander Tom Shearn (2-0), a 30-year-old rookie relishing his long-awaited trip to the big leagues, gave up only three hits in six innings to a Mets lineup missing five of its regulars. Phillips’ 28th homer in the first inning off John Maine (14-9) surpassed Hall of Famer Joe Morgan’s previous club mark for a second baseman.

Brewers 14, Astros 2

MILWAUKEE — Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun and Corey Hart each hit a three-run homer, and the Brewers connected five times in all to beat Houston. Yovani Gallardo (7-4) pitched seven shutout innings and Milwaukee won for the fifth time in six games.

Nationals 6, Marlins 4

WASHINGTON — Wily Mo Pena singled to break a tie in the seventh, leading Washington over the Marlins, the Nationals’ fifth straight win.

Associated Press