Associated Press
TORONTO ó J.D. Drew homered twice, Jon Lester pitched eight strong innings and Boston beat Toronto 8-1 on Thursday night to complete a three-game sweep.
Victor Martinez connected for the second straight night for the Red Sox, who have hit two or more homers in six consecutive games, and nine of 10.
The Red Sox have 33 homers in August, two shy of the team record set in 2006.
Drew hit a leadoff homer in the second, a two-run drive to almost the same spot in the third and finished with four hits. The homers, Nos. 14 and 15, came off rookie Brett Cecil.
Rangers 11, Twins 1
ARLINGTON, Texas ó Nelson Cruz homered in his return to the Texas lineup, Marlon Byrd connected twice and speedster Julio Borbon had the first of his career.
Borbon went 3-for-5 with three RBIs, and is hitting .536 (15-for-28) in seven starts since being recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City while Cruz was hurt. Michael Young and Hank Blalock both had three hits for the Rangers, who snapped a two-game skid.
Cruz was activated from the 15-day disabled list before the game after the All-Star slugger missed 15 games because of a sprained left ankle. His 26th homer leading off the sixth put the Rangers up 5-1.
Indians 11, Angels 3
CLEVELAND ó Justin Masterson pitched into the seventh inning and rookie Matt LaPorta had a career-high three RBIs as Cleveland battered Los Angeles starter John Lackey.
Orioles 8, Rays 7
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. ó Brian Roberts hit his fourth career grand slam and Nolan Reimold added a three-run shot to lead Baltimore.
Roberts’ 12th homer came on a 3-2 pitch from reliever Lance Cormier with two outs in the sixth and made it 5-1. Roberts was the first batter Cormier faced after replacing starter James Shields.
Ben Zobrist homered and had four RBIs for the Rays.
Tigers 7, Mariners 6
DETROIT ó Clete Thomas’ two-out, RBI single capped Detroit’s two-run rally in the ninth inning.
The AL Central-leading Tigers trailed 6-2 before scoring three times in the sixth and two more in the ninth.
National League
Phillies 12, D-backs 3
PHILADELPHIA ó Jayson Werth hit his fourth home run in three games, and Ryan Howard hit a three-run shot to lead Philadelphia to a three-game sweep.
Carlos Ruiz homered for the Phillies, who won their fourth straight game and eighth in nine. Werth’s two-run shot in the fifth gave the Phillies a three-run lead, and Ruiz and Howard homered off different relievers in a five-run sixth.
Philadelphia, which leads the National League with 171 home runs, have hit at least one in 10 straight games, and 22 in its previous 15.
Braves 3, Mets 2
NEW YORK ó Kenshin Kawakami outpitched Johan Santana, and Brian McCann hit a solo homer for Atlanta.
Omar Infante and former Mets outfielder Ryan Church also drove in runs for the Braves, who have won nine of 12 entering a three-game series against fellow playoff contender Florida.
Mets reliever Billy Wagner made his first appearance since Aug. 2, 2008, and struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. The former closer with 385 saves had Tommy John surgery on Sept. 10.
Kawakami (6-9) left the bases loaded in the first and wound up allowing one run and seven hits in seven innings, winning for the first time since July 8.
Reds 2, Giants 1, 10 innings
CINCINNATI ó Drew Stubbs hit his first career homer leading off the bottom of the 10th inning to end Cincinnati’s five-game losing streak.
Astros 4, Marlins 1
HOUSTON ó Houston’s Wandy Rodriguez limited Florida to four hits while pitching into the ninth inning and ending the Marlins’ streak of 10-hit games at 15.
Rockies 4, Nationals 1
WASHINGTON ó Carlos Gonzalez blooped an RBI double in the fifth that helped Colorado complete a three-game sweep.
Gonzalez’s club record-tying streak of four games with a homer ended, but he came through for the NL wild-card leaders. Troy Tulowitzki and Brad Hawpe drove in runs to back Jason Hammel (8-7), who allowed one run and three hits in seven innings.