Baseball roundup Sunday’s other games

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Tigers 6, Twins 2

MINNEAPOLIS — Placido Polanco drove in three runs, Detroit’s bullpen pitched four shutout innings and the Tigers avoided a three-game sweep to increase their AL Central lead to three games. Ryan Raburn homered for slumping Detroit, which won for the second time in six games and fourth in 13. Minnesota, which had won six straight, got two hits from Joe Mauer, who increased his batting average to a major league-best .374. In his fourth start after missing two months following elbow surgery, Tigers left-hander Nate Robertson (2-2) went deep in the count against many hitters but allowed just two earned runs in five innings.

Mariners 7, Yankees 1

SEATTLE — Ken Griffey Jr. homered and drove in four runs, putting the New York Yankees’ playoff party on hold by leading the Mariners to a victory. The loss prevented New York from clinching a spot in the postseason. The Yankees can secure their 14th playoff berth in 15 years with a victory at the Los Angeles Angels tonight or a Texas loss at Oakland. The 39-year-old Griffey lined an RBI double in the first inning, then cracked a three-run homer in the second off starter Joba Chamberlain.

Red Sox 9, Orioles 3

BALTIMORE — Jason Bay and Jacoby Ellsbury both homered and drove in three runs to lead Daisuke Matsuzaka and the Red Sox past the Orioles. Bay’s 35th homer tied a career high, and the three RBIs gave him a career-best 110. The slugger sat out Saturday’s game with flulike symptoms after leaving Friday’s game early for the same reason. The Red Sox outscored Baltimore 23-9 in a three-game sweep. Boston won the season series 16-2, including the final eight games.

Royals 2, White Sox 1

CHICAGO — Robinson Tejeda won his third straight start and the Royals beat the White Sox. Mitch Maier had an RBI single for the Royals, who have won 10 of their last 13 games. Since moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation on Sept. 4, Tejeda (4-1) is 3-0. He has allowed just two runs over 22 1-3 innings as a starter.

Angels 10, Rangers 5

ARLINGTON, Texas — Gary Matthews Jr. snapped out of his September slump with a tiebreaking homer and a two-run single for the Angels in a victory over the Rangers. Howie Kendrick drove in five runs with a two-run homer and a bases-loaded triple for the Angels (89-60), who won two of three in the series. Juan Rivera and Chone Figgins also homered. Closing in on a third straight AL West title and fifth in six years, the Angels stretched their lead to 7 1/2 games over second-place Texas with 13 to play.

Rays 3, Blue Jays 1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — David Price allowed one run over 6 2-3 innings, Carl Crawford hit a two-run homer and the Rays beat Roy Halladay and the Blue Jays. The Rays are 4-1 against Halladay this year, and became the first team to beat the Toronto ace four times during the same season. Halladay (15-10) allowed two runs and 10 hits over seven innings. The right-hander has lost five of his last seven starts.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Dodgers 6, Giants 2

LOS ANGELES — Andre Ethier hit a go-ahead homer off Tim Lincecum and Los Angeles beat San Francisco to go 30 games over .500 for the first time in almost 24 years. Randy Wolf (11-6) shrugged off a pair of home runs by leadoff hitter Andres Torres, allowing five hits in six-plus innings for the win. The left-hander is 6-0 with a 2.41 over his last eight starts. Ronnie Belliard added a two-run single against Lincecum (14-6), the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner. The Dodgers, trying to win consecutive NL West titles for the first time since 1977-78, reduced their magic number to eight for clinching the division and four for securing a postseason berth for the third time in four years. Los Angeles is five games ahead of Colorado in the division race with 12 to play. The Giants fell 4 1/2 games behind the Rockies for the NL wild card.

Rockies 5, Diamondbacks 1

PHOENIX — Jason Giambi homered for the second consecutive game and Ubaldo Jimenez outpitched Dan Haren to help Colorado tighten its grip on the NL wild card with a victory over Arizona. Colorado expanded its wild-card lead on its three nearest pursuers because San Francisco, Florida and Atlanta all lost. The Rockies lead the Giants by 4 1/2 games, the Marlins by five and the Braves by 5 1/2. Giambi, who had a three-run, pinch-hit homer in the ninth inning of Colorado’s 10-4 victory Saturday night, added a two-run shot off Haren (14-9) in the eighth. That gives him 11 RBIs in his 12 games since joining the Rockies.

Phillies 4, Braves 2

ATLANTA — The Philadelphia Phillies ended rookie Tommy Hanson’s streak of 19 consecutive scoreless innings, damaging Atlanta’s faint wild-card hopes. Brad Lidge pitched another shaky ninth inning but posted his 31st save in 41 chances. The NL East-leading Phillies took two of three in the series. Philadelphia tagged Hanson (10-4) for four runs and seven hits, including four for extra bases, in five innings.

Reds 8, Marlins 1

CINCINNATI — Corky Miller hit a rare home run to back Kip Wells’ strong pitching and Cincinnati gained a split of its four-game series against Florida. Miller’s three-run shot and Joey Votto’s two-run homer created a cushion for Wells (2-4), who went seven-plus innings. It was his longest outing since being acquired by the Reds in July. Florida starter Sean West (7-6) gave up five runs in 4 2-3 innings.

Brewers 6, Astros 0

MILWAUKEE — Prince Fielder hit his 40th homer and Yovani Gallardo pitched five solid innings to help Milwaukee complete a sweep of Houston with its fifth straight victory.

Mets 6, Nationals 2

NEW YORK — John Maine pitched five shutout innings to earn his first win since May 31, and New York beat Washington. Daniel Murphy had two hits and two RBIs for the Mets, who won two of three in a series between the bottom two teams in the NL East. Carlos Beltran had an RBI single and Wilson Valdez added a two-run triple in the ninth.

Associated Press