American LeagueRod Barajas homered with one out in the ninth inning Saturday, capping a late comeback that gave the Texas Rangers a 4-3 victory over the New York Yankees.
Barajas, who became the full-time starter Friday when rookie Gerald Laird tore a ligament in his left thumb, smacked an 0-1 breaking ball from Tom Gordon (1-2) high into the left-field seats.
"It's electric out there right now, a playoff atmosphere," Barajas said. "With the packed houses, it definitely makes it nicer."
Emotions have been high in Arlington all weekend, partly because of the Yankees but mostly because of the return of Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts and made an error that helped start Texas' rally in the eighth from a 3-1 deficit.
Carlos Almanzar (4-0) pitched a perfect ninth for the win.
Red Sox 5, Blue Jays 2
In Boston, Manny Ramirez hit a mammoth homer for the second consecutive night, helping Boston rally past Toronto.
Anastacio Martinez (1-0) got three outs to win his major league debut in relief of Pedro Martinez, giving the Red Sox their sixth victory in eight games. Keith Foulke worked the ninth for his ninth save of the season and 23rd in a row.
Toronto starter Ted Lilly struck out 10 in 5 2-3 innings, but Ramirez's two-run shot over the Green Monster tied it at 2 in the sixth.
Mark Bellhorn's seventh-inning single put Boston ahead, and David Ortiz added an RBI single in the eighth.
Pedro Martinez allowed two runs and five hits in six innings, striking out seven.
Kerry Ligtenberg (1-2) took the loss.
National League
Jeff Weaver took a shutout into the eighth inning and the Los Angeles Dodgers ended an eight-game losing streak Saturday with a 7-4 victory over the Atlanta Braves.
"It's never fun going through what we've been through," Los Angeles manager Jim Tracy said. "But I have to tell you, the way this team has handled themselves and the way they've stuck together and the pride they've shown in the face of adversity, in the long run we will gain from it."
Jason Grabowski hit a two-run homer in the Dodgers' four-run third inning. Alex Cora added an RBI triple, then a solo shot in the seventh. Weaver (3-5) shut out the Braves for seven innings before giving up a three-run homer to pinch-hitter Dewayne Wise in the eighth. The right-hander set a season high with nine strikeouts and walked only one.
Eric Gagne pitched the ninth for the Dodgers, allowing a solo home run to Andruw Jones.
Jaret Wright (2-5) gave up eight hits and five runs in 4 1-3 innings. He is 0-3 with a 9.75 ERA in three day games. He is 2-2 with a 2.08 ERA in five night games.
Cubs 7, Cardinals 1
In Chicago, Glendon Rusch filled in just fine as a spot starter for the Chicago Cubs, who scored four times in the first inning of an easy victory over St. Louis.
In his second start for injured ace Kerry Wood, Rusch (2-0) allowed six hits and struck out nine in 7 2-3 strong innings.
He got a big boost from the Cubs' early offense, including a two-run double by Derrek Lee. Todd Hollandsworth hit a two-run homer off Woody Williams (1-5) in the third to put Chicago ahead 6-1.
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