American League
Oakland 3 Minnesota 4 -
Justin Morneau tied the game with his 25th homer in the 8th and
Joe Mauer singled home
Luis Castillo with the winning run as the Twins sent the A's to their 7th straight loss. Minnesota kept pace with the Tigers and Indians in the AL Central race with their 4th straight win, though they remain 6 games back. Morneau's homer gave him 76 RBI on the year.
Detroit 11 Seattle 7 - This game had it all. Five wild pitches, six doubles, 4 homers, 5 steals - including a steal of home by
Gary Sheffield - and two hit batters, one being
Ichiro Suzuki, who was forced to leave the game with a bruised thigh. Detroit starter
Justin Verlander improved to 11-3, though this was not nearly one of his better performances, allowing 4 earned on 8 hits a walk and 6 Ks over 7 innings.
Marcus Thames drove in four runs with a single and a 3-run homer, and
Magglio Ordonez hit his 14th home run and drove in 3 to give him 75 for the season. The Tigers maintained their wafer-thin 1/2-game edge on the Indians in the AL Central.
NY Yankees 7 Tampa Bay 6 - There are still signs of hope in New York, as the Yankees won and Boston lost on Sunday, allowing the Yanks to within 9 games of the runaway Red Sox.
Derek Jeter (right) hit his 9th home run - a two-run shot - in the 5th and singled home what would prove to be the winning run in the 8th. The win boosted New York over the .500 mark at 45-44 as they return home for a 4-game set with Toronto. Following that series, the Yankees play their next 17 games against Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Kansas City and Chicago, four of the five worst teams in the league. If the Yankees are ever going to make their move, this stretch - though August 5th - would be an opportune time to do so.
Kansas City 3 Cleveland 5 -
Fausto Carmona improved to 11-4, allowing 2 runs on 8 hits over 7 innings and
Joe Borowski picked up his 26th save as the Indians kept pace in the Central, 1/2-game behind Detroit. Cleveland won for the 33rd time at home, the best in the majors.
Other AL Scores
Chi White Sox 3 Baltimore 5
Toronto 2 Boston 1 - Sox, Jays split 4-game series; Toronto 10 back
Texas 5 LA Angels 4, 11 innings - Angels, only 14th home loss
National League
St. Louis 10 Philadelphia 2 -
Albert Pujols (right) socked a pair of homers and drove in 3 runs as the Cardinals avoided the sweep by handing the Phillies their 10,000th loss. Officially, the Phillies have amassed more losses than any other major league franchise, though the Braves (9,681) and Cubs (9,425) aren't far behind. The milestone may be considered one of futility, though it should be viewed in its entirety as a mark of longevity. The Phillies have been a part of major league baseball since 1883, and while they've lost plenty, they can lay claim to 8,810 wins over those 124 years... and counting. So, if the Phillies can average 90 wins a season, they'll reach the .500 mark in just 66 short years.
LA Dodgers 5 San Francisco 3 - The Dodgers completed their sweep of the Giants, winning their 11th straight in San Francisco while holding
Barry Bonds hitless and homerless. Bonds went 0-5 for the second straight night, hasn't homered in 7 games and hasn't hit in his last 20 official at-bats. Players and reporters say Bonds looks tired at the plate, that his feet and toes are swollen (steroid use symptom?) and maybe he needs some time off. Good idea, that last one. Maybe a three month vacation might coax Barry into an early retirement.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers maintained their 1-game lead over San Diego in the NL West and are 4-0 since the All -Star break, all four wins coming at the Giants' expense.
Pittsburgh 1 Atlanta 5 - For years, the Braves lived and died with starting pitching, so it should be no surprise that a relatively unknown pitcher,
Buddy Carlyle - who, at the tender age of 29, is technically a rookie - turns in a game-winning performance. Carlyle worked 8 innings, allowing just 4 hits and 1 earned without walking a batter for his third straight win and a 4-2 record overall. The Braves trial the Mets by 1 1/2 in the NL East race.
Other NL Scores
Washington 3 Florida 5 - M. Cabrera, 2 HR (21)
Cincinnati 2 NY Mets 5
Colorado 3 Milwaukee 4 - F. Cordero, S (28)
Houston 6 Chi Cubs 7 - D. Lee, 3-3, HR (7), 3 RBI (47)
San Diego 4 Arizona 0 - J. Germano (W, 6-3), 6 1/3 IP, 4 H, 0 ER
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