AMERICAN LEAGUE
Adam Lind belted two home runs to lift the Toronto Blue Jays to a 6-3 victory over the American League West-leading Texas Rangers on Monday.
The Blue Jays (33-27) jumped on top when Lind hit two-run shots in the second and fourth innings as Toronto handed Rangers pitcher Scott Feldman his first loss of the year.
Right-hander Feldman allowed four runs in six innings to fall to 5-1 and break a string of six wins for the Rangers from his last six starts.
Feldman had enjoyed a hot streak since moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation in late April, but served up two soft pitches to Lind, who has already equaled a career-high 11 home runs this year in his first season as a regular starter.
“Both of those pitches were up in the zone,” Feldman told reporters of Lind’s two homers. “I’m not too good up in the zone. Those two pitches were the game right there.”
Lind, who played left field against the Rangers, has gone 18-for-40 for a .450 batting average in his last 10 games.
Lind’s offense provided ample support for Rangers (33-24) starter Casey Janssen, who was charged with three runs in five-and-a-third innings before being relieved by Jason Frasor and Scott Downs, who handled the final one-and-a-third innings.
Texas scored three times in the fifth, including a run off a Marlon Byrd single, but the Blue Jays made two clutch outs to preserve a 4-3 advantage.
Toronto shortstop Marco Scutaro finished 3-for-5 with an RBI single in the ninth, when the Blue Jays added two insurance runs.
In the process, the Blue Jays ended a nine-game losing streak, all on the road, that dropped them to third place in the AL East.
ATHLETICS 4, TWINS 3
At Oakland, California, Jack Cust hit a go-ahead solo home run and Jack Hannahan tied the game with a three-run double as Oakland beat Minnesota.
Rookie Josh Outman (4-0) recovered from an early deficit to continue an impressive run by the A’s young staff.
Outman, one of four rookies in Oakland’s rotation, fell behind in the top of the fourth when Carlos Gomez drew a two-out, bases-loaded walk, and then Matt Tolbert singled in two runs.
The A’s tied it in the bottom half and went ahead on Cust’s homer off Luis Ayala (1-2) in the fifth.
Oakland’s Aaron Cunningham sustained a concussion after being hit in the head by a pitch.
YANKEES 5, RAYS 3
At New York, Andy Pettitte recovered from two wild outings and Johnny Damon hit a tie-breaking home run in the sixth inning as New York defeated Tampa Bay.
Mark Teixeira, Nick Swisher and Derek Jeter also homered for the Yankees, who got all their runs on longballs as Andy Sonnanstine allowed a career-high four. Tampa Bay’s Gabe Kapler hit his first home run of the season.
Damon broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth with a drive to right off Sonnanstine (4-6), and Jeter chased him with a leadoff drive in the eighth.
In the other American League game it was:
• White Sox 6, Tigers 1
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AP, MIAMI
Sean West did not allow a hit until the seventh inning in his fourth career start and Brett Carroll hit his first career home run to help the Florida Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants 4-0 on Monday.
West allowed one baserunner through the first six innings. Edgar Renteria then lined a single to left on West’s first pitch of the seventh. He gave up two hits, one walk and struck out six in eight innings.
RSS