AMERICAN LEAGUE
Andy Pettitte out-pitched Major League Baseball All-Star Justin Duchscherer, getting just enough run support from Jason Giambi’s homer and a sacrifice fly by Alex Rodriguez, to help the New York Yankees hold off the Oakland Athletics 2-1 on Sunday for a three-game sweep.
The Yankees (53-45) won their seventh straight at home and climbed to a season-best eight games over .500. Their winning streak at Yankee Stadium is their longest since September.
PHOTO: AP
The A’s have dropped five straight, managing just nine runs in the process.
Blue Jays 9, Rays 4
In St. Petersburg, Florida, Alex Rios and Marco Scutaro homered as Toronto avoided a three-game sweep with a victory over American League East Division-leading Tampa Bay.
Scutaro hit a three-run shot off Edwin Jackson (5-7) in the fifth to put the Blue Jays ahead 6-4. Rios had a two-run homer in the third and added a run-scoring double during a three-run seventh.
Shawn Camp (3-1) threw one-and-two-third scoreless innings for the win. The Blue Jays won for the fourth time in 17 road games.
Indians 6, Mariners 2
In Seattle, Cliff Lee followed up his All-Star Game start with his second complete game of the season, scattering 11 hits in Cleveland’s victory over Seattle.
Lee became the American League’s first 13-game winner and Kelly Shoppach ended an 0-for-13 funk with a three-run homer off Carlos Silva in the fourth. Silva (4-12) left with back tightness immediately after the home run, the latest ailment for Seattle’s sick, injured and ineffective rotation.
Rangers 1, Twins 0
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Taylor Teagarden broke up Scott Baker’s perfect-game bid with a sixth-inning home run for his first Major League hit as Vicente Padilla pitched Texas past Minnesota.
The Rangers denied the Twins their fourth series sweep over the past month, handing them just their eighth defeat in 31 games. Baker (6-3) took a hard-luck loss, his first in six starts.
Other results on Sunday:
• Tigers 5, Orioles 1
• Royals 8, White Sox 7
• Angels 5, Red Sox 3
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AP, MIAMI
Jorge Cantu hit a bases-loaded single off the scoreboard with none out in the 11th inning as the Florida Marlins tightened the National League East race by beating the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 on Sunday.
Alfredo Amezaga led off the 11th with a single against Clay Condrey (2-2) and Hanley Ramirez walked on a 3-2 pitch. Jeremy Hermida bunted to Condrey, who looked to third base before throwing late to first and the in-field single loaded the bases.
Cantu singled on a 1-1 pitch and was mobbed by his teammates.
By winning two of three games in the series, the Marlins closed to within half-a-game of the Phillies and the New York Mets.
Cubs 9, Astros 0
In Houston, Texas, Ryan Dempster struck out seven in eight shutout innings to earn his first road win in two years as Chicago snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Houston.
Mike Fontenot hit a solo homer and a two-run double and Derrek Lee had three RBIs to help Chicago shake out a mini-offensive slump that bridged the All-Star Game break.
Dempster (11-4) allowed six hits, all singles, and got his first road win since June 2, 2006, at St. Louis.
Dodgers 6, Diamondbacks 5
In Phoenix, Arizona, Andre Ethier hit a go-ahead triple to highlight a five-run ninth-inning rally as Los Angeles beat Arizona.
The Dodgers took two of three from Arizona to pull even with the Diamondbacks in the National League’s West Division.
Mets 7, Reds 5, 10 innings
In Cincinnati, Ohio, third baseman Edwin Encarnacion hit one of Cincinnati’s three homers off Mike Pelfrey, then made a throwing error in the 10th inning that helped New York rally for a victory and a split of their four-game series.
The Mets have won 11 of their last 13 games, salvaging their season one month after they fired manager Willie Randolph.
Cardinals 9, Padres 5
In St. Louis, Missouri, Aaron Miles’ grand slam in the ninth inning, the first game-ending hit of his career, helped St. Louis recover from another blown save by Jason Isringhausen to wrap up a four-game sweep of San Diego.
Troy Glaus’ three-run homer off Heath Bell in the eighth gave the Cardinals a two-run lead, but the Padres rallied against Isringhausen, who blew his eighth save in 19 chances.
Other results on Sunday:
• Rockies 11, Pirates 3
• Brewers 7, Giants 4
• Nationals 15, Braves 6
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
“Please love us. Please cheer us on. We have been working hard. Do not give up on us.” Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien’s heartfelt plea echoed across the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 tournament after a historic victory. Rather than boasting, Chen was making an earnest appeal after leading Taiwan to a 4-0 victory over Japan to claim their first major international baseball title at the senior level. Chen’s decisive three-run homer in the fifth inning and his Premier12 leading .632 batting average secured him the Premier12’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) title. He was also named one of the tournament’s outstanding defensive players
WELL-AGED: Although the youngest team in the tournament, Taiwan featured several veteran stars, including Sunday’s home-run hero Chen Chieh-hsien “I will never forget today,” veteran Taiwanese pitcher Chen Kuan-yu said after Taiwan on Sunday night blanked Japan to secure their first ever gold in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 championship. Chen, who at 34 is the oldest member on the team, said Taiwan “made every difficult step to come to today’s victory. I will never forget today.” Taiwan made history when they won their first gold medal of the Premier12 tournament, beating Japan in a 4-0 shutout victory in the final at the Tokyo Dome. It was a jaw-dropping victory for many baseball commentators who went into the game with
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
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