Pinch-hitter Jason Varitek singled in the go-ahead run in the ninth inning, and the Boston Red Sox got home runs from David Ortiz and Coco Crisp in a 7-6 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday.
Crisp had three hits and scored three runs, including the tiebreaker in the ninth, to help the Red Sox extend their American League East lead to 6.5 games over the idle New York Yankees. Boston has been in first place for 142 games, its longest streak since 1986.
Wearing throwback uniforms that paid tribute to the 1932 Baltimore Black Sox of the Negro Leagues, the Orioles got a home run from Kevin Millar and three hits from Tike Redman. But the new clothes couldn't prevent Baltimore from meeting a familiar fate -- it was the Orioles' 14th loss in 16 games.
Crisp led off the ninth with an infield hit off Danys Baez (0-6). He stole second and came home when Varitek lined a single to left.
Boston rookie Clay Buchholz (3-0), who pitched a no-hitter last Saturday against Baltimore in his previous appearance, threw three scoreless innings of relief for the win. He escaped a bases-loaded, none-out jam in the sixth with the score tied.
Jonathan Papelbon struck out two in a perfect ninth for his 34th save.
Red Sox starter Tim Wakefield allowed six runs and nine hits in three-and-two-thirds innings, matching his shortest outing of the season. It was the first time in 27 starts this season the knuckleballer did not receive a decision; his streak of 26 games was longest in the majors since Jack McDowell had 27 in 1993.
Baltimore ended Wakefield's run of 22 straight scoreless innings with a run in the first.
Angels 10, Indians 3
At Anaheim, California, Garret Anderson extended his streak to a club-record 11 games with at least one RBI, driving in three runs and leading Los Angeles past Cleveland in the opener of a four-game series between AL division leaders.
Anderson had a run-scoring single in the fifth inning off Paul Byrd (14-6) and a two-run homer in the eighth, breaking the previous franchise mark of 10 consecutive games with an RBI that was shared by Fred Lynn (1984) and Wally Joyner (1986).
Anderson has 21 RBIs during his streak. The three-time All-Star, who leads the majors with 56 RBIs since the All-Star break, was moved from the cleanup spot to the No. 3 hole on Thursday after right fielder Vladimir Guerrero was scratched because of inflammation in his right triceps.
Kelvim Escobar (16-7) allowed three runs and eight hits in five innings, striking out eight.
Casey Kotchman broke out of a 4-for-33 skid with two hits and three RBIs for the Angels, who increased their AL West lead over idle Seattle to eight games and matched their largest margin of the season.
Cleveland lost for the second time in 13 games, reducing its AL Central lead to six games over the Detroit Tigers.
Tigers 3, White Sox 2
At Detroit, Sean Casey and Placido Polanco hit run-scoring singles off All-Star closer Bobby Jenks in the ninth inning, leading Detroit over Chicago in Gary Sheffield's return from the disabled list.
The Tigers, who closed within three games of the AL wild card-leading New York Yankees, trailed 2-1 entering the ninth. Sheffield, who hadn't played since Aug. 21 because of an injured shoulder, went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and a walk.
Bobby Seay (3-0) pitched a perfect ninth as Detroit got its second straight win in its last at-bat over the White Sox following five straight losses to Chicago. Jenks (3-5) blew a save for the sixth time in 43 chances.
After Chad Durbin and Jason Grilli combined for seven shutout innings, the White Sox took a 2-1 lead against Fernando Rodney in the eighth on Paul Konerko's two-run double, which ended a 15-inning scoreless streak for Chicago.
Brandon Inge homered in the third inning for Detroit, his 13th of the season but first since July 21.
Mark Buehrle allowed one run and seven hits in seven innings for Chicago, which lost for the sixth time in eight games overall and the 13th time in 15 road games.
Pinch-hitter Andre Ethier connected for a go-ahead, three-run homer off Ryan Dempster in the ninth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers stunned the Chicago Cubs 7-4 on Thursday.
Alfonso Soriano hit two homers for the Cubs, including a three-run drive in the seventh that put Chicago ahead 4-2. But it wasn't enough to avoid a deflating defeat that dropped the Cubs into a first-place tie with idle Milwaukee in the National League Central. The Dodgers closed within 3.5 games of NL West-leading Arizona.
Matt Kemp's homer off reliever Bobby Howry closed the gap to 4-3 in the eighth and the Dodgers took the lead in the ninth against Dempster (2-5), who blew a save for the third time in 28 chances.
Joe Beimel (4-1) pitched one-and-two-thirds innings of hitless relief and Takashi Saito got three outs for his 37th save in 40 chances.
Cubs starter Jason Marquis retired his first 14 batters and allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings on a muggy day. Derek Lowe gave up three runs, five hits and five walks in six innings.
Cardinals 16, Pirates 4
At St. Louis, Rick Ankiel homered twice and had a career-high seven RBIs, leading the Cardinals over Pittsburgh in a game shortened to eight innings because of rain.
The pitcher-turned-outfielder hit a tiebreaking, three-run homer in the second inning for a 5-2 lead against Bryan Bullington (0-1), who made his first major league start five years after he was the No. 1 overall pick in the amateur draft. Ankiel made it 11-3 with a two-run drive in the fifth against John Grabow and added a two-run double in the sixth off Dave Davidson, also making his big league debut.
Brought up Aug. 9 in his first major league appearance since he pitched for the Cardinals in 2004, Ankiel is batting .358 with nine homers and 29 RBIs in 23 games.
St. Louis (69-68) moved within one game of NL Central co-leaders Chicago and Milwaukee, scoring its most runs since Aug. 29, 2001, against San Diego. The Cardinals had 22 hits, their highest total since April 27, 2003, at Florida.
Mike Maroth, back from a bout of elbow tendinitis, allowed two runs in one-and-two-thirds innings.
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