MLB roundup Wednesday’s other games

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Ray 4, Red Sox 0

BOSTON

David Price pitched eight crisp innings, B.J. Upton and Evan Longoria homered and the Tampa Bay Rays held the Boston Red Sox to three hits for the third straight game. Price (11-10) struck out six and walked three before Kyle Farnsworth worked a perfect ninth. The combined shutout followed a day-night doubleheader in which James Shields and Jeff Niemann each pitched a complete game. Boston beat Shields in the opener 3-1 but Niemann struck out 10 in a 6-2 win in the nightcap. John Lackey (11-9) allowed four runs, three earned, and six hits in 62/3 innings for Boston, which has dropped five of seven.

Athletics 6, Orioles 5

OAKLAND, Calif.

Kurt Suzuki hit two solo homers and right fielder David DeJesus cut down pinch-runner Blake Davis at the plate to end the game, preserving Oakland’s victory. It was the second career multihomer game for Suzuki, who connected in the second and sixth against Alfredo Simon (3-6). Brandon Allen tripled and scored on the same play and also had a sacrifice fly for the A’s, who snapped a four-game losing streak Tuesday night and followed that up with another victory for a winning series.

Twins 6, Tigers 5

DETROIT

Justin Morneau’s bases-loaded single in the ninth inning gave the Twins a victory over the first-place Tigers. With the game tied at 4, Rene Tosoni led off the top of the ninth with a single off Jose Valverde (2-4). Tsuyoshi Nishioka and Ben Revere both reached when the Tigers misplayed sacrifice bunts. Valverde struck out Trevor Plouffe and Joe Mauer, but Morneau hit a ball up the middle to make it 6-4. Joe Nathan allowed an RBI single to Miguel Cabrera in the bottom of the inning but still picked up his 11th save. He is 33 for 33 lifetime in save opportunities against Detroit.

Royals 5, Yankees 4

KANSAS CITY, Mo.

Alex Gordon hit a three-run home run, Billy Butler added a contested solo shot and the Royals survived a harrowing ninth inning to beat the Yankees and avoid a three-game sweep. The Yankees loaded the bases with one out in the ninth and made it 5-4 on Robinson Cano’s sacrifice fly. After a passed ball, Joakim Soria reloaded the bases by walking Nick Swisher. Then Jorge Posada, on his 40th birthday, took a called third strike to end it. The wobbly Soria got his 22nd save in 29 opportunities.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Brewers 3, Dodgers 1

MILWAUKEE

Zack Greinke won his fifth straight start and Jerry Hairston singled in two runs to lift surging Milwaukee to its 19th victory in 21 games. The NL Central-leading Brewers remained seven games ahead of St. Louis. The hottest team in baseball has gotten contributions on offense from unlikely candidates all season, including Hairston, the utilityman acquired at the nonwaiver trade deadline when second baseman Rickie Weeks severely sprained his left ankle. Hairston’s two-out single in the sixth helped Greinke (12-4) become the first Brewers pitcher in franchise history to win his first nine home decisions with the club. Greinke’s only mistake came when Tony Gwynn Jr. homered.

Giants 7, Braves 5

ATLANTA

Matt Cain snapped his three-game losing streak with five-hit ball over eight innings, and the San Francisco Giants barely avoided another loss to Atlanta in the final at-bat. The Giants broke it open with four runs in the fourth, one of them driven in by Cain (10-9) on a sacrifice fly. But he did his best work on the mound, striking out nine and giving up only an unearned run in the first on Chipper Jones’ bases-loaded walk. After Cain left, the Braves scored four runs in the ninth and had the tying run at the plate. But Brian McCann struck out swinging against Jeremy Affeldt. San Francisco pounded All-Star Jair Jurrjens (12-5) for eight hits and five runs in six innings.

Phillies 9, Diamondbacks 2

PHILADELPHIA

Cliff Lee threw seven impressive innings, Wilson Valdez hit a tiebreaking two-run double in the seventh and Philadelphia snapped Arizona’s seven-game winning streak. Lee (13-7) allowed two runs and three hits, striking out seven. The All-Star lefty has won four straight starts. Lee’s 18-inning scoreless streak ended when Paul Goldschmidt hit a two-run homer for the NL West leaders. Jimmy Rollins hit a leadoff homer for the major-league leading Phillies, who’ve won 11 of 14 this month. Diamondbacks starter Joe Saunders (8-10) pitched well before unraveling in the seventh.

Associated Press