Beckett's Back: Goes to 8-0; Hudson's 4 Hits Lead D-Backs to 6th Straight

American League Josh Beckett (right) returned to the mound on Tuesday after a brief stint on the DL. It was like he never left, as the Red Sox ace worked over the Indians for 7 innings, allowing just 3 hits and a walk and the resultant 2 earned runs in Boston's 4-2 win at Fenway - their 5th straight. Beckett appeared to have command of all his pitches, throwing 87, striking out 7 and joining the Angels' John Lackey as the only pitchers in the majors with 8 wins. While Lackey has suffered a pair of losses, Beckett still has a zero in the "L" column. He's also down with the leaders in ERA, at 2.65 and WHIP, 0.97. If all goes well, Beckett will be on the mound again on Sunday, as the Sox host the Yankees. Gary Sheffield pounded a two-run homer, a three-run shot, singled, scored twice and drove in 5 runs as the Detroit Tigers routed the Devils Rays, 14-2, in Tampa. The win moved the Tigers closer to the AL Central leading Indians - Detroit is 1 1/2 back. Starter Jeremy Bonderman improved to 4-0, allowing only 1 earned run over 6 1/3 innings while striking out 8. Justin Morneau doubled twice, cracked his 16th home run and drove in 4 runs to lead the Twins to a 9-2 win over the visiting White Sox. The Twins and Sox are tied for 3rd in the AL Central, 5 1/2 games back, both chasing Cleveland. Other AL Scores LA Angels 4 Seattle 1 - I. Suzuki - 22-gm. hitting streak Toronto 3 NY Yankees 2 Texas 4 Oakland 0 - A's, 3-6 last 9 gms. Baltimore 6 Kansas City 2 - O's, 4 straight wins National League Orlando Hudson (right) rapped out 4 singles, drove in 4 runs and scored once over 6 at-bats, leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to an 11-5 win at Philly, their 6th straight. The D-Backs trail the Dodgers by 1/2 game and moved into 2nd place in the NL West as San Diego lost at Pittsburgh. The Phillies, meanwhile, seem incapable of handling success well. After finally exceeding the .500 mark at 26-24, they've lost two straight to Arizona, putting them in danger of falling below the even mark again as they try to avoid the sweep tonight. Carlos Delgado spanked his 2nd home run of the night in the bottom of the 12th inning to send Mets fans home happy with a dramatic 5-4 win over the Giants. Delgado's 7th homer of the season provided the winning margin after the Giants had taken a 1-run lead in the top of the inning. But in the bottom frame, Jose Reyes walked, took second on a balk by reliever Armando Benitez, was sacrificed to third and scored on Benitez's second balk. That set the stage for Delgado who send a blast into the right field stands. Brad Penny threw shut out ball for 6 1/3 innings and the LA Dodgers routed the Nationals, 10-0 at Washington. Penny didn't miss a beat, becoming the 4th National Leaguer to reach 7 wins, allowing just 4 hits and a walk. Penny has lost just once this season. The wheels are coming off for the St. Louis Cardinals, but they're rolling right along for the Rockies. Colorado won their 7th straight, an 8-3 chuckler over the struggling Cardinals who lost their 3rd straight and 9th of their last 13. Worse yet, the loss went to Braden Looper, who has been the most reliable starter for St. Louis. Looper was victimized by catcher Yorvit Torreabla's first home run of the season. Naturally, it was the bases-loaded variety. When things are going bad, they just go bad. For Colorado, they have to just keep winning as, despite their recent success, they still trail the LA Dodgers by 5 1/2 and have Arizona and San Diego in front of them in the action-packed NL West. Other NL Scores Pittsburgh 4 San Diego 1 - T. Gorzelanny (W, 6-3) Cincinnati 2 Houston 1 - Astros, 9 straight losses Milwaukee 5 Atlanta 4