The last time any position player wound up as the winning pitcher was May 25 last year, when Philadelphia infielder Wilson Valdez threw one scoreless inning in a 19-inning victory over Cincinnati.
J.J. Hardy had five hits, including two homers, as Baltimore completed a sweep and won their fifth in a row. The shortstop also made a relay to the plate that cut down the potential winning run to end the 16th.
Robert Andino hit a three-run shot for the Orioles, who improved to a major league-best 19-9.
Boston rookie Will Middlebrooks hit a grand slam for his first major league homer.
In other AL action, it was:
‧ Yankees 10, Royals 4
‧ Tigers 3, White Sox 1
‧ Athletics 9, Rays 5
‧ Mariners 5, Twins 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AP, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
Ricky Nolasco remained unbeaten and Giancarlo Stanton drew a bases-loaded walk to force in the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning as the Miami Marlins beat the San Diego Padres 6-3 on Sunday for their season-best sixth straight victory.
Miami had lost eight of nine before their winning streak. The Marlins have swept consecutive three-game series on the road for the second time in team history.
Stanton’s walk keyed a four-run eighth. The slugger saw eight pitches from Andrew Cashner (2-2) and all of them registered at least 101mph.
Nolasco (4-0) allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings to tie Dontrelle Willis for the club record with his 68th career win.
GIANTS 4, BREWERS 3 (11)
In San Francisco, pinch-hitter Hector Sanchez singled over a five-man infield with the bases loaded in the 11th inning, giving San Francisco a victory over Milwaukee.
Buster Poster singled off sidearm submariner Tim Dillard (0-1) leading off the inning and pinch-runner Emmanuel Burriss moved to second on Angel Pagan’s sacrifice bunt.
Travis Ishikawa’s run-scoring double for the Brewers handed fill-in closer Santiago Casilla his first blown save in the ninth.
Left hander Javier Lopez (3-0) got one out for the win after Matt Cain struck out 10 in seven innings. Pagan extended his hitting streak to 20 games, the longest active run in the majors.
PHILLIES 9, NATIONALS 3
In Washington, Cole Hamels gave up five hits over eight innings and Hunter Pence hit a pair of two-run home runs to lead Philadelphia over Washington.
Hamels was in line for his 11th career complete game as he batted to lead off the ninth.
The Phillies’ offense then batted around, scoring six runs, and Hamels was lifted for pinch-hitter John Mayberry when his spot came up the second time in the inning.
Washington rookie Bryce Harper stole home in the first inning, just the latest in an already growing list of accomplishments for the 19-year-old. However, the Nationals lost a key player when right fielder Jayson Werth broke his left wrist while attempting a sliding catch.
In other NL action, it was:
‧ Braves 7, Rockies 2
‧ Cardinals 8, Astros 1
‧ Cubs 4, Dodgers 3 (11)
‧ Mets 3, Diamondbacks 1
‧ Reds 5, Pirates 0
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