AMERICAN LEAGUE
Willy Aybar broke an eighth-inning tie with a two-run double for the Tampa Bay Rays as they rallied past the Los Angeles Angels 4-2 in the American League on Tuesday.
Angels starter Ervin Santana took a no-hit bid into the sixth and left with a 2-1 lead after seven innings.
PHOTO: AP
The Rays loaded the bases in the eighth with no outs against Scot Shields (5-4) on two walks and an error. Carlos Pena drew a one-out walk from Darren Oliver, forcing in the tying run before Aybar singled.
James Shields (11-7) allowed two runs and nine hits in eight innings.
Vladimir Guerrero of the Angels hit a solo homer in the second, giving him six homers and 20 RBIs in his last 16 games. Garret Anderson made it 2-0 in the fourth with an RBI double that extended his hitting streak to 22 games.
PHOTO: AP
RED SOX 7, ORIOLES 2
In Baltimore, Maryland, Daisuke Matsuzaka won his fourth straight start despite struggling through five innings as Boston got homers from Jason Varitek and Kevin Youkilis.
Matsuzaka (15-2) gave up two runs, six hits and five walks. He stranded nine runners, five in scoring position.
Varitek’s second homer in two games put Boston up 3-0 in the second. He added an RBI double in the fifth after Youkilis hit his 24th homer with a man on. Youkilis added an RBI single in the eighth to cap a three-hit, three-RBI night.
Baltimore’s Daniel Cabrera (8-8) allowed six runs and nine hits in four-and-a-third innings and is 2-11 with a 7.13 ERA in 16 career starts against Boston.
BLUE JAYS 2, YANKEES 1
In Toronto, New York center fielder Johnny Damon allowed two balls to glance off his glove, including an eighth-inning drive by Marco Scutaro that became the go-ahead double for Toronto.
A.J. Burnett (16-9) allowed one run and five hits in eight innings and has won seven straight home starts. He struck out a season-high 13 and earned a win in his sixth straight start.
With the score 1-1 in the eighth, Joe Inglett hit a two-out single to center off Jose Veras (3-2). Scutaro followed with a deep drive to center. Damon settled under the ball on the warning track, but it ticked off his glove and the wall, allowing Inglett to score.
Damon, who was playing center for just the 10th time this season, dropped Alex Rios’ fly ball in the first and was charged with a two-base error.
Tuesday’s other results:
• Indians 9, Royals 4
• White Sox 5, Mariners 0
• Twins 13, Athletics 2
• Tigers 11, Rangers 3
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AP, NEW YORK
Carlos Delgado hit a go-ahead double off the left-center fence as the New York Mets broke loose in the eighth inning to rally past the Atlanta Braves 7-3 in the National League on Tuesday.
Damion Easley delivered a two-run single with the bases loaded and Ramon Castro added an RBI double to cap a five-run eighth against Atlanta’s bullpen.
A night after their six-game winning streak was snapped in Pittsburgh, the Mets won for the 10th time in 13 games and maintained their one-and-a-half game National League East lead over Philadelphia.
PHILLIES 5, NATIONALS 4
In Philadelphia, Jayson Werth hit a tie-breaking solo homer off Steven Shell (0-1), sending Washington to their 11th straight loss. It is the longest skid for the franchise since the Montreal Expos dropped 11 in a row in June and July 1991.
Brad Lidge finished for his 31st save in as many chances. Lidge has 34 consecutive saves, dating to last season with Houston.
Jimmy Rollins got a mixed reaction from the crowd in his first home game since calling Philadelphia fans “frontrunners” last week in a television interview. The reigning National League MVP heard boos and cheers each time he came to bat and went 0-for-4.
ASTROS 5, BREWERS 2
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Geoff Blum hit a tie-breaking three-run homer in the sixth inning as Houston downed Milwaukee.
Blum was hitless in nine at-bats before he hit a 1-2 pitch from Ben Sheets (11-7) for his career-high 12th home run, giving the Astros their 10th win in 13 games. Houston are 14-5 this month.
Brian Moehler (9-4) extended his winning streak to five games by allowing one earned run and nine hits in five-and-a-third innings. He was 0-3 in his last eight starts against the Brewers, including 0-2 this season.
Four relievers combined to shut down Milwaukee the rest of the way, including Jose Valverde, who pitched the ninth for his 32nd save.
Tuesday’s other results:
• Cubs 5, Reds 0
• Pirates 4, Cardinals 1
• Diamondbacks 7, Padres 6
• Rockies 8, Dodgers 3
• Marlins 6, Giants 0
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
If all goes well when the biggest marathon field ever gathered in Australia races 42km through the streets of Sydney on Sunday, World Marathon Majors (WMM) will soon add a seventh race to the elite series. The Sydney Marathon is to become the first race since Tokyo in 2013 to join long-established majors in New York, London, Boston, Berlin and Chicago if it passes the WMM assessment criteria for the second straight year. “We’re really excited for Sunday to arrive,” race director Wayne Larden told a news conference in Sydney yesterday. “We’re prepared, we’re ready. All of our plans look good on
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
When details from a scientific experiment that could have helped clear Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva landed at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the leader of the organization’s reaction was unequivocal: “We have to stop that urgently,” he wrote. No mention of the test ever became public and Valieva’s defense at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) went on without it. What effect the information could have had on Valieva’s case is unclear, but without it, the skater, then 15 years old, was eventually disqualified from the 2022 Winter Olympics after testing positive for a banned heart medication that would later