Associated Press
The American League Roundup …
MINNEAPOLIS ó Bobby Abreu tripled twice and scored all four times he reached base, backing Mike Mussina and igniting a New York Yankees rally past the Minnesota Twins for a 6-5 victory on Friday night.
Abreu tied his career high with those four runs, helping Mussina (8-4) overcome a four-run first inning for his seventh win in eight starts. Alex Rodriguez, Hideki Matsui and Melky Cabrera each had three hits and two RBIs for further support.
Justin Morneau began the eighth with a homer against Kyle Farnsworth, the new setup man for Mariano Rivera with Joba Chamberlain now in the rotation. But Rivera stayed perfect with his 14th save in as many tries, by pitching a scoreless ninth and striking out pinch-hitter Craig Monroe with a runner on first to end the game.
Twins starter Glen Perkins (2-2) lost his early 4-1 lead when Rodriguez doubled in Abreu to make it 5-4 Yankees with none out in the fifth. That was his last batter after 10 hits, two walks and no strikeouts.
Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel and Delmon Young hit consecutive bases-loaded singles and Mike Lamb knocked in another run with a fielder’s choice grounder in the first, but the home-team excitement ended after that.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi, assessing his aging and injury-ravaged club before the game, said this: “We’re not buried, so that’s a good thing.”
Indeed, though they began the weekend still in last place in the AL East, they’re only one hot week from joining the race.
Rays 2, White Sox 1
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. ó Cliff Floyd lined a leadoff home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, giving the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays a 2-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
Floyd’s fourth homer of the season came against Scott Linebrink (2-1). It ended a stretch in which the White Sox bullpen had not allowed an earned run in 28 innings.
A crowd of 14,679 saw the Rays win a matchup of division leaders and raise their league-best record to 33-22. Floyd homered on an 0-1 pitch and enabled Tampa Bay to overcome going only 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
Rangers 3, Athletics 1
ARLINGTON, Texas ó Kevin Millwood allowed one run through six innings in his first start in almost three weeks and rookie Brandon Boggs matched a career high with three RBIs for the Rangers.
Millwood (3-3) gave up five hits, struck out five and didn’t issue a walk in his first start since May 10 against Oakland. He was forced to leave that outing due to a strained right groin after throwing 12 pitches and recording two outs.
Indians 5, Royals 4
KANSAS CITY, Mo. ó Grady Sizemore homered twice and made a game-saving catch for the final out, and Cleveland handed the woeful Royals their 12th straight loss.
Cliff Lee (8-1) moved into a tie for the AL lead in victories despite giving up four runs and 10 hits in six innings. His ERA crept to 1.88, still good enough to lead the league.