American League roundup

[April 10, 2009]  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Carlos Silva loitered around Seattle's clubhouse for a bit, his postgame shower still on hold more than an hour after his night came to an early end.

Silva insisted he felt fine on the mound, but this was an ominous start to the season after his disastrous performance in 2008.

Justin Morneau homered and drove in three runs, Jason Kubel hit the go-ahead RBI double in the fifth inning and the Minnesota Twins beat Silva and the Mariners 6-5 on Wednesday.

Manager Don Wakamatsu tried to point out the positives, but he wasn't happy with Silva's pitch selection over five innings, or the location on the changeups to Morneau and Denard Span that went for two-run homers.

"If he throws those down, it's a different story," Wakamatsu said. "He came out and competed. We have to be somewhat pleased."

The Mariners started strong with a homer by Ken Griffey Jr. and a 6-1 victory on opening night that prompted a mini-celebration in the clubhouse, but problems from last year have already resurfaced in the past two games. Minnesota's three-run rally Tuesday against new closer Brandon Morrow served as a reminder of the team record of 31 blown saves set last season.

Then Silva, that $48 million, four-year contract still weighing heavily on his broad shoulders despite the 35 pounds he shed while doing yoga and changing his diet during the winter, fell behind 2-0 after the first inning and 4-2 after two.

Twins starter Kevin Slowey, who rebounded from some rough stretches to complete six innings for the victory, gave Seattle the lead back with a three-run fourth.

But Silva (0-1), who went 4-15 with a 6.46 ERA in his first season with the Mariners, quickly lost it. Morneau hustled into second base with a headfirst dive to finish a two-out RBI double that tied it at 5 in the fifth. Kubel followed with a double that scooted down the right-field line to drive in Morneau and put Minnesota back in front.

"I felt great," Silva said. "Besides the two changeups, I don't take anything back. The sinker was working really well. The two homers with two changes are the only two I'd take away. I got a lot of ground balls. The first one cut a little bit, but the second one was a really good pitch. He just got it. I have a lot of confidence in my changeup."

Russell Branyan and Jose Lopez hit long home runs and Yuniesky Betancourt went 3-for-4 for Seattle, but Slowey (1-0) retired the last seven batters he faced and struck out five without a walk. Slowey gave up five runs and nine hits. Craig Breslow and Jesse Crain held the lead for Joe Nathan, who notched his first save.

The Mariners had one hit over the final five innings.

"That was something special," Nathan said. "For him to get through six innings is unbelievable. He was obviously battling out there with not his best control, but that shows you what kind of pitcher he is even when he doesn't have his best stuff."

Athletics 6, Angels 4

At Anaheim, Calif., pinch-hitter Nomar Garciaparra, Mark Ellis and Matt Holliday hit RBI singles with two outs in the ninth inning off new Angels closer Brian Fuentes.

Oakland trailed 4-0 before scoring three runs in the eighth and three more in the ninth. A two-out trickler by Kurt Suzuki that went for an infield hit led to the final rally.

Fuentes (0-1) signed with Los Angeles after Francisco Rodriguez, who posted a record 62 saves last year, left the Angels and joined the New York Mets.

Rookie reliever Andrew Bailey (1-0) earned his first major league victory with a hitless eighth inning and Brad Ziegler finished for his second save.

Orioles 7, Yankees 5

At Baltimore, Koji Uehara won his major league debut as the Orioles beat New York for the second straight time to open the year.

A standout in Japan for 10 seasons, the 34-year-old righty gave up one run over five innings. George Sherrill retired Hideki Matsui -- a former teammate of Uehara's -- for his first save.

Nick Markakis went 3-for-3 with a homer and three RBIs. Chien-Ming Wang (0-1) was tagged for seven runs in 3 2-3 innings in his first start since injuring his foot last June.

Rays 7, Red Sox 2

At Boston, Scott Kazmir pitched six solid innings and gave AL champion Tampa Bay its first win of the season.

Carlos Pena hit a two-run homer after striking out in his first five at-bats this season and Evan Longoria also homered. Grant Balfour got a save, preserving the victory for Kazmir (1-0).

Jon Lester (0-1), who lost Game 7 of the ALCS to Tampa Bay, had won 16 straight regular-season decisions at Fenway Park.

Tigers 5, Blue Jays 1

At Toronto, Brandon Inge became the first Detroit player in more than a half-century to homer in the first three games of the season.

Miguel Cabrera homered twice and is 7-for-10 with two walks this year. Zach Miner (1-0) got the win and Jesse Litsch (0-1) took the loss.

Royals 2, White Sox 0

At Chicago, Zack Greinke pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning and Kansas City's bullpen protected the lead.

Greinke (1-0) struck out seven and walked three, and improved to 1-6 lifetime at U.S. Cellular Field. Juan Cruz and Joakim Soria retired all nine batters in the Royals' first victory of the season. Soria got a save, a day after reliever Kyle Farnsworth gave up a late, go-ahead home run.

Gavin Floyd (0-1) struck out nine in seven innings.

Rangers 8, Indians 5

At Arlington, Texas, Nelson Cruz hit two solo homers and 20-year-old rookie Elvis Andrus hit his first big league home run to lead the Rangers.

Vicente Padilla (1-0) pitched Texas to its first 2-0 start since 2000.

Ben Francisco homered for the Indians, who have been outscored 17-6 by Texas in the series.

Cruz led off the second inning with a home run off Fausto Carmona (0-1).

[Associated Press; By DAVE CAMPBELL]

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