Major League Baseball
Phils rally in ninth to avoid sweep by Padres SAN DIEGO (AP) – Bobby Abreu hit a two-run double in the ninth inning off a suddenly shaky Trevor Hoffman, and the Philadelphia Phillies rallied past the San Diego Padres 5-4 Wednesday to avoid a three-game sweep.
Hoffman has two blown saves in his last three chances, plus one in the All-Star game last week.
Padres manager Bruce Bochy came out to get the relief ace after he allowed Abreu’s hit to right-center with none out – Hoffman’s third blown save in 28 chances. Bochy also pulled Hoffman (0-2) on Friday night after he blew the save in a game the Atlanta Braves won 15-12 in 11 innings.
Shane Victorino started the winning rally when he was hit on the right biceps on Hoffman’s first pitch. Chase Utley walked ahead of Abreu, who doubled on a 1-2 pitch. Abreu also had an RBI single in the first.
Astros 4, Cubs 2
CHICAGO – Roger Clemens outpitched Greg Maddux in a rare matchup of 300-game winners and the Houston Astros beat the Chicago Cubs.
Clemens (2-3) threw six shutout innings to earn his 343rd career victory and move into sole possession of eighth place on the career list. He allowed three hits, walked one and struck out five.
Maddux (7-11) allowed seven hits and three runs in seven innings with no walks and three strikeouts. He lost his sixth straight decision and hasn’t won since June 9. Maddux, who turned 40 in April, threw 102 pitches and remained at 325 wins.
Craig Biggio hit the 49th leadoff homer of his career – already an NL record – on Maddux’s second pitch of the game, and the Astros went up 3-0 in the sixth on a two-run double by Preston Wilson.
Clemens, less than a month from his 44th birthday, threw 85 pitches on a humid 85-degree night. Flashbulbs popped all over Wrigley Field as he delivered his first pitches in the first inning, fans figuring they may never see such a historic matchup again.
And the Rocket can still bring it when needed. When Juan Pierre singled and stole second in the sixth inning, giving the Cubs a potential rally, Clemens threw a 91 mph pitch to strike out Derrek Lee and then got Aramis Ramirez to ground out sharply to second.
Giants 7, Brewers 6
SAN FRANCISCO – Ray Durham hit a two-run single off closer Derrick Turnbow’s glove in the ninth inning to help the Giants get the win.
Durham also hit a two-run homer in the fifth. Rookie Eliezer Alfonzo hit a solo homer in the eighth for San Francisco and Barry Bonds’ pinch-hit single in the ninth started the rally.
Turnbow (4-6) blew his fourth save in his last seven appearances.
Gabe Gross hit a three-run homer, Carlos Lee hit a two-run homer and Bill Hall added a solo shot for the Brewers. Tony Gwynn Jr. had a pinch-hit double in the Milwaukee ninth for his first major league hit.
Brian Wilson (1-0) pitched one inning for his first major league victory.
Marlins 1, Nationals 0
MIAMI – Rookie Anibal Sanchez allowed one hit in seven innings and Cody Ross homered for the Marlins.
Sanchez (3-0) lowered his ERA in four starts this season to 1.46. He beat Roger Clemens in his previous outing and has allowed only three hits in his past 14 innings, all scoreless.
The Nationals’ lone hit off Sanchez was a line drive to right-center by Austin Kearns leading off the third inning.
Joe Borowski pitched the ninth for his 19th save in 21 chances.
Red Sox 1, Royals 0
BOSTON – Not since Babe Ruth was pitching for Boston had the Red Sox won a pair of home games like this.
Josh Beckett held punchless Kansas City to four hits over eight innings and Manny Ramirez homered Wednesday, leading Boston to its second consecutive 1-0 victory over the Royals.
Mariners 3, Yankees 2
NEW YORK – Ichiro Suzuki touched off Seattle’s go-ahead rally in the eighth inning with his third hit of the game and the Mariners snapped a four-game losing streak, defeating New York.
The loss ended a five-game winning streak for the Yankees, who had won nine of 10.
J.J. Putz got three outs for his 18th save in 21 tries. He blew a ninth-inning chance in the Mariners’ previous game – a 5-4 loss in 11 innings to the Yankees that, because of a long rain delay, ended around 12:40 a.m. Wednesday.
Indians 6, Angels 4
ANAHEIM, Calif. – Ben Broussard hit a two-run homer that snapped John Lackey’s scoreless string at 30 2-3 innings, and Cleveland ended Los Angeles’ eight-game winning streak.
Aaron Boone also homered and Jhonny Peralta hit a go-ahead single for Cleveland, which stopped a five-game losing streak. Paul Byrd (7-6) ended the Angels’ longest winning streak of the season in his first start against his former team since signing a two-year, $14 million contract with the Indians in December.
The right-hander allowed three runs and 10 hits in six innings. Bob Wickman worked the ninth for his 15th save.
Athletics 5, Orioles 1
BALTIMORE – Barry Zito pitched seven innings of five-hit ball, Frank Thomas homered and drove in three runs, and Oakland beat Kris Benson and Baltimore.
Milton Bradley and Eric Chavez also connected for the Athletics, who took two of three from the Orioles to improve to 5-2 since the All-Star break. Milton Bradley went 3-for-4 and is 9-for-19 in five games since returning from the disabled list.
Tigers 5, White Sox 2
DETROIT – Craig Monroe hit Detroit’s first grand slam of the season and Jeremy Bonderman allowed two runs over 7 1-3 innings to lead the Tigers to the win.
Detroit beat the defending World Series champions for just the second time in eight games.
Rangers 5, Blue Jays 4
TORONTO – Kevin Millwood earned his 10th win and Gary Matthews Jr. hit a go-ahead double in a four-run seventh inning to help Texas beat Toronto on a troubling night for the Blue Jays.
Designated hitter Shea Hillenbrand refused to sit in the dugout with his Toronto teammates after he was chastised during a team meeting. Hours before, Hillenbrand criticized the organization and said he expects to be traded.
Twins 7, Devil Rays 2
MINNEAPOLIS – Rondell White hit two home runs to lead the Twins to their sixth straight victory.
Brad Radke won his fourth straight decision for Minnesota, which has won 18 of 23 overall and 19 of the last 20 at home. Radke (8-7) allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings.
Greg Norton and Jonny Gomes both homered for the Devil Rays, who have lost a season-high six in a row. Tampa Bay has lost 11 straight to the Twins dating to 2004.
Jae Seo (0-4) allowed seven runs and 11 hits in 5 2-3 innings for the Devil Rays. Seo has lost all four of his starts since being acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 27.