Baseball roundup
Tigers extend winning streak to 7, their longest since 1993 DETROIT (AP) – Brandon Inge and Placido Polanco homered and the Detroit Tigers won their seventh straight game, beating the Minnesota Twins 5-3 Thursday for their longest winning streak since 1993.
Kenny Rogers (7-2) allowed two unearned runs, five hits and two walks while striking our four in 5 2-3 innings for his fourth consecutive victory.
Indians 6, Royals 5
CLEVELAND – Casey Blake drove in two runs and extended his career-high hitting streak to 15 games.
Ronnie Belliard also had two RBIs as the Indians won their third in a row after a six-game losing streak and handed Kansas City its sixth straight loss. The Royals have lost seven straight on the road and are 2-20 away from home.
Rangers 6, Yankees 2
NEW YORK – Vicente Padilla pitched into the seventh inning and Brad Wilkerson hit a two-run homer to lift Texas. Kevin Mench also had two hits for the Rangers, who salvaged a split of their four-game series against New York. Padilla allowed two runs in 6 2-3 innings.
Athletics 6, Mariners 3
OAKLAND, Calif. – Frank Thomas and Bobby Crosby hit two-run singles and the Athletics prepared for Barry Bonds’ arrival by finishing a three-game sweep of the Mariners.
The first Bay Bridge Series of the season begins on Friday night, with Bonds and the San Francisco Giants visiting the Coliseum for three games. Bonds has been stuck on 713 homers since May 7.
Brewers 5, Phillies 4
MILWAUKEE – Geoff Jenkins’ two-run double capped a four-run seventh inning as Milwaukee rallied past Philadelphia to complete a three-game sweep of the Phillies.
Cardinals 6, Mets 3
ST. LOUIS – Scott Spiezio started in place of Albert Pujols and had two RBIs, and Jason Marquis pitched into the eighth inning for his second consecutive strong outing to lead the Cards past the Mets.
Braves 9, Marlins 1
ATLANTA – Jeff Francoeur hit two more homers and Jorge Sosa finally earned a win, helping the Braves complete a four-game sweep of the Marlins.
Nationals 5, Cubs 3
CHICAGO – Washington gave Kerry Wood a rude welcome on his return to the mound for the Chicago Cubs.
Ryan Zimmerman, Damian Jackson and Alfonso Soriano homered off Wood (0-1), helping Ramon Ortiz get his first win since last September.
Making his first start since last July 20 and first appearance since Aug. 29, Wood lasted five innings in on a chilly 53-degree day at Wrigley Field.
He struck out two of the first three batters in an eight-pitch first inning, but then gave up the long ball to the struggling Nationals, who had been shut out in the first two games of the series.
Wood went five innings, giving up five hits, four runs with no walks and six strikeouts during a 71-pitch outing.
Ortiz (1-4), winless in his first seven starts this season, got his first victory since last Sept. 10 against the Pirates. He yielded eight hits and three runs in 5 1-3 innings. Chad Cordero pitched the ninth for his fourth save in six chances.