AMERICAN LEAGUE
Jason Giambi came off the bench to hit a tying home run in the seventh inning and the winning single in the ninth for the New York Yankees to beat the Boston Red Sox 3-2 in the American League on Thursday.
Desperate to get back in the playoff race, New York salvaged the finale of a three-game series and won Boston’s final regular-season game at Yankee Stadium.
Mariano Rivera (5-5) entered a tie game in the eighth and pitched one-and-a-third hitless innings for the win, helping the Yankees overcome another poor performance by Alex Rodriguez.
Rested against lefty Jon Lester, Giambi pinch hit with two outs in the seventh and connected for a two-run homer off Hideki Okajima that tied the score 2-all.
Justin Masterson (4-4) loaded the bases in the ninth, and Giambi lined Jonathan Papelbon’s 0-2 pitch, driving in pinch-runner Brett Gardner with the winning run.
RAYS 3, BLUE JAYS 2
At St. Petersburg, Florida, Edwin Jackson took a shutout into the eighth inning, while Cliff Floyd and Willy Aybar each homered as the Rays guaranteed they will lose no worse than they win for the first time in franchise history.
Tampa Bay, 81-51 and an AL-best 49-19 at home, is 11-1-0 in series play since the All-Star break.
Jackson (11-8) gave up one run and six hits over seven-plus innings.
Floyd put Tampa Bay up 2-0 with a first-inning sacrifice fly and a solo homer in the third, and Tampa Bay took a 3-0 lead when Aybar homered off Jesse Litsch (9-8) in the sixth. Aybar, who entered in an 1-for-16 slide, had three hits in four at-bats.
ANGELS 7, RANGERS 5
At Anaheim, California, pinch-hitter Juan Rivera doubled off the wall in right-center to drive in three runs in a five-run eighth inning and help the Los Angeles Angels rally to a win over Texas.
The Angels’ Jon Garland (12-8) pitched eight innings, allowing five runs and eight hits.
Garland struck out three and walked one.
Francisco Rodriguez pitched the ninth for his 51st save in 56 chances, six saves short of Bobby Thigpen’s major league record set in 1990.
Jamey Wright (6-6) replaced starter Brandon McCarthy to start the eighth with the Rangers leading 5-2. Wright allowed two singles, two walks, and was charged with four runs.
ATHLETICS 3, TWINS 2
At Oakland, California, pinch-hitter Kurt Suzuki doubled in the winning run with one out in the ninth inning to give Oakland a win over Minnesota and back-to-back victories for first time since July 10 and July 11.
Joey Devine (4-0) pitched the eighth to pick up the victory for the A’s, who went 40 games without a winning streak. Suzuki’s double marked Oakland’s ninth walkoff hit of the season and just the 11th victory since the All-Star break for the hapless A’s.
Ryan Sweeney led off the ninth with a single off loser Craig Breslow (0-2), then moved to second on Daric Barton’s sacrifice.
Suzuki hit a 3-1 pitch from Jesse Crain off the wall in left-center.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AP, CHICAGO
Aramis Ramirez’s grand slam capped a five-run eighth inning as the Chicago Cubs rallied for a dramatic 6-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies and their sixth straight win in the National League on Thursday.
Behind a strong performance from Cole Hamels, Philadelphia had a 4-1 lead heading into the eighth. Hamels had given up just a run and five hits in seven strong innings before the Phillies’ bullpen collapsed. Pinch-hitter Mike Fontenot homered leading off the eighth to make it 4-2, and Ramirez sent the roaring 40,362 fans at Wrigley Field into a tizzy when he drove reliever Chad Durbin’s pitch into the center field bleachers to complete the comeback.
NATIONALS 11, DODGERS 2
At Washington, Cristian Guzman hit for the cycle and Elijah Dukes had two home runs, helping Washington romp over struggling Los Angeles.
The Dodgers have lost seven straight, and their nine consecutive road losses are the most since dropping 11 in a row in June 1992.
ASTROS 3, REDS 2
At Houston, Ty Wigginton homered twice off Aaron Harang and Brandon Backe was sharp into the seventh as Houston beat Cincinnati for the 10th time in 12 meetings this season.
Humberto Quintero added a solo shot to help the Astros.
Backe (9-12) conceded six hits and struck out six in six-and-two-third innings, while Harang (4-14) matched a season high with nine strikeouts, but lost for the fifth time in six decisions. His 29 homers allowed are the most by a Reds’ pitcher this season.
BRAVES 4, MARLINS 2
At Atlanta, Brian McCann hit a three-run homer and Charlie Morton finally figured out how to pitch at home as Atlanta beat slumping Florida. The Marlins are 10-15 this month.
BUMRAH WATCH: Captain Jasprit Bumrah left the SCG for scans for back spasms and although he returned to the ground, there was no word on if he would play Rishabh Pant’s blistering counterattack yesterday capped a chaotic second day of the fifth and final Test between Australia and India, with 15 wickets falling and the star bowler of the series leaving the Sydney Cricket Ground with an ambulance escort. Yet the Border-Gavaskar trophy still remains very much in the balance as India reached 141-6, holding a 145-run lead over Australia with three days remaining. “Low-scoring games like this, it just heightens the pressure within it, so long way still to go,” Australia coach Andrew McDonald said. “There’s gonna be plenty of cricket, so we’ll see what happens.” Australia were bowled out for
Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan yesterday dumped defending champions Germany out of the United Cup with world No. 2 Alexander Zverev sidelined by an arm injury barely a week away from the Australian Open. The upset in Perth sent the Kazakhs into the semi-finals of the 18-nation tournament. In Sydney, women’s world No. 2 Iga Swiatek led Poland into the last eight by winning a rematch of her 2023 French Open final against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic. Britain also progressed to the quarter-finals with Katie Boulter’s dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australia’s Olivia Gadecki enough to guarantee they won their group. The US and
HAT-TRICK PREP: World No. 1 Sabalenka clinched her first win of the season, as she aims to become the first woman in 20 years to win three Australian Opens in succession Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini and Taylor Fritz yesterday all clocked impressive wins as tennis powerhouses Italy and the US surged into the quarter-finals of the mixed-team United Cup. World No. 3 Gauff swept past Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-4, 6-2 to avenge a loss at the Paris Olympics, while Fritz took care of Borna Coric 6-3, 6-2 in searing Perth heat. That was enough to put the Americans — last year’s winners — into a last-eight clash with China today, while Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan today are to meet defending champions Germany, led by Alexander Zverev, in the other Perth quarter-final. In Sydney, the in-form
Five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek yesterday beat Elena Rybakina in straight sets to take Poland into the final of the mixed-teams United Cup with victory over Kazakhstan. Last year’s runners-up face the US today for the title in Sydney after they beat the Czech Republic in the other semi-final. “This win makes me really proud,” Swiatek said after seeing off Rybakina 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to give Poland an unassailable 2-0 lead in the tie. It was a statement of intent from the world number two with the first major of the year to start on Jan. 12. “It is perfect preparation for the
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