Cameron taken to hospital after collision
SAN DIEGO (AP) – New York Mets right fielder Mike Cameron was taken off the field on a stretcher following a frightening head-to-head collision with center fielder Carlos Beltran in the seventh inning of a 2-1 loss to the San Diego Padres on Thursday. The game was delayed for about 13 minutes after the diving crash. Cameron lay on the field and was tended to by trainers from both teams before being taken to Mercy Hospital.
Cameron broke his nose, had multiple fractures of both cheekbones and a slight concussion, Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said. Cameron underwent two CT scans and was to be hospitalized overnight. He was placed on the disabled list.
Beltran got up after a few minutes after the collision and walked off the field on his own power. He left the game with a sore left shoulder and a cut on the face.
neither player caught the ball and pinch-hitter David Ross ended up with a triple. Joe Randa drove in the go-ahead run.
Cubs 11, Cardinals 4
CHICAGO – Greg Maddux pitched his first complete game in more than a year, Derrek Lee hit two home runs and the Cubs snapped their eight-game losing streak.
Maddux (9-9) allowed 12 hits in going the distance for the first time since July 22, 2004. He won his 314th game, tying Gaylord Perry for 16th place on the all-time list.
Aramis Ramirez was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, and Corey Patterson had three hits, scored two and drove in one for the Cubs.
Cardinals starter Mark Mulder (13-6) again struggled in a day game, tying a season high with seven runs allowed on nine hits in four innings.
Diamondbacks 3, Marlins 1
MIAMI – Troy Glaus and Chad Tracy homered in Arizona’s three-run eighth, and Brandon Webb (10-8) limited Florida to four hits and a walk in eight innings.
Tracy tied it in the eighth with a leadoff shot off left-hander Valerio de los Santos (1-2), who left after allowing Luis Gonzalez’s single.
Antonio Alfonseca relieved and got Tony Clark to ground to first as Gonzalez advanced to second. Glaus followed with a towering drive into the left-field stands.
Jose Valverde pitched the ninth for his fourth save.
Giants 5, Braves 3
ATLANTA – Randy Winn hit a two-out, two-run homer in the seventh inning and San Francisco avoided a sweep in Atlanta.
One night after scoring three runs off John Smoltz in the ninth – only to lose 5-4 in the 12th – the Giants made this comeback stick.
Tim Hudson (8-7) cruised through the first six innings, striking out a season-high 10 while the Braves built a 3-1 lead. But San Francisco dealt him the loss with a three-run seventh.
Jason Schmidt (9-6) gave up eight hits and three runs in six innings to beat his original team. Tyler Walker pitched the ninth for his 20th save.
Atlanta’s Marcus Giles, who drove in the winning run Wednesday, stretched his career-best hitting streak to 15 games, falling a homer short of the cycle.
Astros 6, Nationals 3
HOUSTON – Andy Pettitte won for the sixth time in eight starts, and Brad Ausmus had a three-run double in the sixth for the Astros.
Pettitte (10-8) struck out five in eight innings and allowed four hits, his last a two-run homer to Preston Wilson in the seventh.
Ryan Drese (3-6) lost his fifth straight start for the Nationals, who have dropped five of their last six to fall three games behind Houston in the NL wild-card race.
Lance Berkman also doubled and drove in two runs for the Astros.
Jose Guillen, making his first start in five games after sitting out with a sore left shoulder, hit his 20th homer in the ninth for Washington.
A’s 5, Angels 4
OAKLAND, Calif. – Jason Kendall alertly dashed home from third base with the winning run when Los Angeles’ miffed closer Francisco Rodriguez flubbed a return throw from his catcher, and the A’s took sole possession of first in the AL West with a come-from-behind victory.
Eric Chavez hit a tying three-run homer in the seventh for the A’s, who rallied from a four-run deficit. They took two of three to stand alone in first place for the first time this season – but not even the freewheeling A’s could have predicted this finish.
Chavez was at the plate again in the ninth with two runners on and two out. After Rodriguez’s first pitch was called a ball, the right-hander stared in and nonchalantly stuck out his glove for catcher Jose Molina’s throw – but it glanced away.
Kendall sprinted home and beat the throw. The victory capped a surge of 20 wins in 23 games since the A’s trailed Los Angeles by 81/2 games on July 18.
Blue Jays 2, Tigers 1
TORONTO – Scott Downs and two relievers combined on a two-hitter and the Blue Jays handed Detroit its sixth loss in seven games.
Frank Catalanotto hit a two-run homer for the Blue Jays, who outhit the Tigers 4-2. Toronto took three of four from Detroit after losing the opener.
Downs (1-2) allowed one run on two hits. He struck out four and didn’t walk a batter in seven-plus innings for his first victory since shutting out the Chicago Cubs while he was with Montreal on Sept. 8, 2004.
Starter Jeremy Bonderman (13-8) lost his third straight start despite pitching a four-hitter for his third complete game of the season.