 |
 |
 |
|
MINNEAPOLIS -- Struggling Mike Lamb lifted the Minnesota Twins past the Boston Red Sox 7-6 on Friday night with a two-run single in the ninth inning against Jonathan Papelbon, who blew his second consecutive save opportunity.
| Advertisement |
|||
| |||
Delmon Young led off the ninth with a single, and advanced on a sacrifice by Matt Tolbert. Adam Everett popped out, Young stole third without a throw, and Carlos Gomez walked and moved up on a steal.
Then Lamb, who entered the game after second baseman Brendan Harris left with a tight right hamstring, hit a 1-2 pitch from Papelbon (2-2) to win it.
Lamb, in his first season with the Twins, entered the game batting just .207. Jesse Crain (1-1) pitched a scoreless ninth, negating a big hit by Mike Lowell in the fifth.
Two perfect innings by reliever Hideki Okajima preceded Papelbon after a rough start by Jon Lester, who gave up eight hits and five runs -- three earned.
He was locked with Minnesota's Boof Bonser in what sure wasn't a pitching duel. Lester labored through 5 1/3 innings, Bonser through four-plus.
The Twins led 5-2 in the fifth inning when Dustin Pedroia reached on a single that resulted from a routine groundball to second baseman Harris, who hesitated on his throw and was too late. Full story
White Sox 4, Mariners 2
SEATTLE -- Jose Contreras pitched seven sharp innings, Paul Konerko hit a two-run double and the Chicago White Sox beat the slumping Seattle Mariners.
Contreras (3-3) gave up one run and six hits after allowing 10 runs combined in his previous two starts. The White Sox won for just the third time in 10 games.
Bobby Jenks allowed a solo home run to rookie Wladimir Balentien in the ninth but still got his seventh save in nine chances.
Seattle slugger Richie Sexson went 0-for-4 hours after Major League Baseball suspended him six games for charging the mound Thursday and throwing his helmet at Texas' Kason Gabbard. Sexson is appealing the suspension.
Rangers 4, Athletics 0
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Scott Feldman and three relievers combined for Texas' third consecutive shutout and Brandon Boggs drove in three runs to help the Rangers beat the Oakland Athletics.
Boggs recovered from an early hard crash into the wall to go 3-for-4 with a homer as Texas ended the A's four-game winning streak.
Feldman (1-1) pitched six innings, stretching Texas' scoreless streak to 28 consecutive innings. Jamey Wright then tossed a perfect seventh to make it 29, the second-longest streak in franchise history, before Joaquin Benoit and C.J. Wilson -- the normal eighth- and ninth-inning guys -- finished it off.
The last time a major league team had three consecutive shutouts was Florida in August 2005. Minnesota was the last American League team to accomplish that feat, in July 2004.
Orioles 7, Royals 4
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Aubrey Huff and Melvin Mora homered, Steve Trachsel earned his first victory since April 4 and the Baltimore Orioles beat Kansas City for their 11th straight victory over the Royals.
Huff, who has hit safely in 18 of his past 20 games, hit a three-run homer with two out in the fifth to snap a 2-2 tie. Huff's sixth homer came after the Royals intentionally walked Nick Markakis. Freddie Bynum led off the inning with a single.
Mora hit a two-out homer in the third with Bynum aboard after a double.
Trachsel (2-4), who was winless in his last five starts, gave up two runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings. He lasted just three innings in each of his previous two starts, allowing 11 runs and 12 hits with seven walks in six innings.
