Phillies Tie for 2nd Place; Yankees Win 8th in Row

Note: During interleague play, home teams are reported under their respective leagues. National League Philadelphia 8 Chi White Sox 4 - Just after the Phillies took a 4-3 lead in the 7th inning, Aaron Rowand broke the game open with a pinch hit grand slam to send the reeling White Sox to their 10th loss in their last 12 outings. The Phillies won for the 9th time in their last 12 games, sweeping the White Sox in their 3-game series in Philly. With Atlanta and the Mets both losing on Wednesday, the Phils are now tied with the Braves, 2 games behind NY in the NL East. After starting out the 2007 campaign a woeful 4-11, the Phillies have gone 31-20 since and are now contending for post-season position. With no offensive shortage - Philadelphia leads the NL in runs (334), RBI (321), and are third in home runs with 74, sporting a .263 batting average (5th) - the Phillies rank 2nd worst in ERA (4.66). Only St. Louis trails them in that category at 4.81. If the Phillies can continue playing well, they'll have another shot at the Mets, hosting them for 4 games June 29 - July 1. The Phillies swept the Mets in New York just a week ago and are now poised to make a run for the top spot in the division. LA Dodgers 9 NY Mets 1 - Helping the Phillies' push are the LA Dodgers, who completed the 3-game sweep on Wednesday with another masterwork from ace Brad Penny (right), who improved to 8-1, allowing 1 earned run on 7 hits over 7 innings. Penny didn't walk a batter and struck out 7. While the Dodgers have won 3 straight to remain tied with San Diego atop the NL West, the Mets have hit a rough patch, losing 5 straight and 10 of their last 12. Adding to the mid-season intrigue, the Mets get a day off before heading to the Bronx for a 3-game series with the red-hot Yankees beginning Friday. Other NL Scores LA Angels 6 Cincinnati 3 - V. Guerrero, 3-5, 5 RBI (58) Chi Cubs 3 Seattle 2 Toronto 7 San Francisco 4 - Giants take 2 of 3 from Blue Jays Cleveland 7 Florida 3 Oakland 7 Houston 3 Pittsburgh 8 Texas 1 - I. Snell (W, 6-4) 9 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K American League Milwaukee 3 Detroit 2 - The Brewers, winners of just their 4th game in the past 10, though still maintain a 5 1/2-game lead over the Cubs and Cardinals in the NL Central, and if either of the teams chasing them catch fire, could see their lead evaporate rather quickly. The Tigers' loss dropped them a game back of Cleveland in the AL Central race. Francisco Cordero picked up his 23rd save, which leads the majors. NY Yankees 7 Arizona 2 - The Yankees won their 8th straight and swept their 3-game series with Arizona. Alex Rodriguez whacked a 2-run homer - his MLB-best 25th - and added an RBI single to give him 66, also the best in the majors. Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui also homered as the Yanks cut the Red Sox lead to 8 1/2 in the AL East. Colorado 12 Boston 2 - It was a Shilling shelling in Beantown, as the Rockies lit up Boston's pitching. Starter Curt Schilling lasted just 5 innings, giving up 9 hits and 5 earned runs. Matt Holliday went 3-4 and scored 3 times and Todd Helton drove in 4 runs. The Rockies have gone 14-6 since May 21, but haven't made up much ground on the trokia of San Diego, Arizona and LA atop the NL West.

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They are 5 1/2 back, but have sent the Giants into the division cellar. The Giants are 7 1/2 out. San Diego 9 Tampa Bay 0 - Jake Peavy stopped the D-Rays on 3 hits over 7 innings to keep the Padres tied with the Dodgers. Peavy matches Brad Penny at 8-1 and his 8 Ks left him one behind league leader Cole Hamels' 104 strikeouts. Minnesota 6 Atlanta 0 - Pitching fanatics take note: Carlos Silva rewrote the definition of "scattering" with his 8 hit shutout of visiting Atlanta. Silva allowed leadoff hits in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 7th innings. The key was that Silva didn't walk a batter or allow an extra base hit or stolen base. Justin Morneau and Torii Hunter backed their starter with back-to-back homers. The Twins remain a threat in the AL Central, just 5 1/2 behind Cleveland. Other AL Scores Washington 9 Baltimore 6, 11 innings - F. Lopez GW triple St. Louis 7 Kansas City 3 - A. Wainwright, (W, 5-5) 8 IP, 1 H, 0 ER Interleague Scoreboard: Friday (6/8): AL 8, NL 6 Saturday (6/9): AL 10, NL 4 Sunday (6/10): AL 9, NL 5 Monday (6/11): AL 0, NL 2 Tuesday (6/12): AL: 8, NL: 6 Wednesday (6/13): AL: 6, NL: 8