Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS ó Ken Griffey Jr. hit a tying, two-run homer in the eighth inning Sunday to rouse the Seattle Mariners in a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins that stopped their six-game losing streak.
Jose Mijares walked Jose Lopez in front of Griffey’s 614th career homer.
Wladimir Balentien added an RBI double in that breakthrough eighth, ruining seven shutout innings by Nick Blackburn and helping the Mariners bring their record back to .500.
Angels 4, Royals 3
ANAHEIM, Calif. ó Torii Hunter made a leaping catch above the left-center field fence to rob Miguel Olivo of a tying homer in the ninth inning, and Los Angeles held off Kansas City.
Jeff Mathis delivered a two-run single during a three-run seventh inning for the Angels, who completed a three-game sweep.
Blue Jays 5, Athletics 0
OAKLAND, Calif. ó Brett Cecil yielded five hits over eight impressive innings to earn his first major league victory, Alex Rios drove in three runs and Toronto beat Oakland for its seventh win in 10 games.
Tigers 5, Indians 3
CLEVELANDó Rick Porcello extended Detroit’s streak of strong pitching, and the Tigers completed a three-game sweep of the struggling Indians.
The Indians, losers of seven of nine, have the worst record in baseball at 11-21.
Yankees 5, Orioles 3
BALTIMORE ó Johnny Damon hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning, the biggest blow in a long-ball surge that carried New York past Baltimore.
Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano also connected for the Yankees, who received a gritty pitching performance from Joba Chamberlain (2-1) to capture the decisive matchup of the three-game series.
Rangers 7, White Sox 1
CHICAGO ó Hank Blalock homered twice, and Vicente Padilla allowed one hit in seven innings.
Red Sox 4, Rays 3
BOSTON ó Jonathan Papelbon powered his way out of a ninth inning jam with three strikeouts after Jason Bay doubled home the go-ahead run in the eighth. The Red Sox took two of three from Tampa Bay, snapping a streak of six consecutive series victories by the Rays.