Angels Open Four-Game Lead in AL West
A seven-game winning streak has the Angels headed toward their second straight AL West title. Pinch-hitter Casey Kotchman grounded a tiebreaking, two-run single through a drawn-in infield in the eighth inning, and Los Angeles beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 7-5 on Friday night to open a four-game lead over Oakland with nine games remaining.
"I sense momentum, I sense chemistry, I sense things coming together for us in all phases of the game," Angels pitcher Paul Byrd said. "It’s really good timing. I’m really excited with the way our team’s playing right now and the way we’re picking each other up."
With the score 5-all, Joe Borowski (1-5) walked Juan Rivera with one out in the eighth and Bengie Molina doubled over a leaping Alex Gonzalez at third. Kotchman batted for Robb Quinlan and got his first hit in eight pinch at-bats this season.
"When you’re given an opportunity, you try to make the most of it," Kotchman said. "Everybody tries to stay ready each and every day, especially down the stretch when you’re trying to get as many Ws as you can."
In other AL games, it was: Texas 3, Oakland 1; Chicago 3, Minnesota 1; Cleveland 7, Kansas City 6; New York 5, Toronto 0; Boston 6, Baltimore 3; and Seattle 2, Detroit 1.
At Anaheim, Scot Shields (9-11) pitched a perfect eighth, and Francisco Rodriguez had a 1-2-3 ninth for his 41st save in 46 attempts.
Rangers 3, Athletics 1
Mark Teixeira hit his 42nd homer leading off the fourth and Michael Young homered in the sixth off Dan Haren (13-12) to put visiting Texas ahead 2-1.
"We need a seven-game winning streak," A’s manager Ken Macha said.
Kenny Rogers (14-7) improved to 4-0 this year against his former team and is 21-1 in the Coliseum since a loss Aug. 7, 1994. He matched his season high with five walks, allowing one run and five hits in 6 1-3 innings. Francisco Cordero pitched the ninth for his 35th save.
White Sox 3, Twins 1
Jose Contreras (14-7) pitched a six-hitter for his first career complete game, and Jermaine Dye hit a three-run homer in the first at Chicago. Contreras matched a season high with nine strikeouts and walked one to win his seventh straight start.
Chicago, which won for the fifth time in 15 games, maintained a 1 1/2-game lead in the AL Central over Cleveland. The White Sox have been in first place every day of the season and led by 15 games on Aug. 1.
Kyle Lohse (9-13) allowed three runs and eight hits in six innings.
Indians 7, Royals 6
Travis Hafner homered in his sixth consecutive game and visiting Cleveland scored an unearned run in the ninth after wasting a 6-2 lead. The Indians won for the ninth time in 10 games and maintained a 1 1/2-game lead over Boston in the AL wild-card race.
With the score 6-all in the ninth, Grady Sizemore reached on a one-out error by second baseman Andres Blanco. Coco Crisp hit a high bouncer that pitcher Mike MacDougal (4-6) threw wildly for another error, and Jhonny Peralta followed with a run-scoring single.
Bob Howry (7-3) allowed a two-out homer in the eighth to Mark Teahen that tied the score 6-6. Bob Wickman pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his league-leading 45th save.
Yankees 5, Blue Jays 0
Shawn Chacon (6-3) improved to 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA in three starts against the Blue Jays this season, allowing three hits in eight innings as New York held onto a one-game lead over Boston in the AL East. The Yankees have won five straight and 11 of 12.
Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano hit back-to-back homers off Ted Lilly (9-11) leading off a four-run first at Yankee Stadium, which also included RBIs by Hideki Matsui and Tino Martinez.
Red Sox 6, Orioles 3
Manny Ramirez hit his 40th homer and drove in three runs, and visiting Boston took advantage of a key error by Miguel Tejada to hand Baltimore its sixth straight loss.
Bronson Arroyo (14-9) overcame a sluggish start to improve to 4-0 in his last five starts, allowing three runs and seven hits in seven-plus innings. Mike Timlin worked the ninth for his 10th save.
Boston scored three unearned runs off Daniel Cabrera (10-12) in the fifth to take a 4-3 lead. With two on and two outs, Ramirez hit a bouncer to deep shortstop. Tejada made a high and wide throw to first that allowed a run to score, and Trot Nixon followed with a two-run double.
Mariners 2, Tigers 1
Ryan Franklin (7-15) won for the first time in eight starts since July 30, allowing one run and five hits in seven innings at Detroit. Eddie Guardado got three outs for his 34th save as Detroit lost its eighth straight, dropping to 4-19 in September. Chris Spurling (3-4) was the loser.