American League roundup

[May 18, 2009]  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- Andy Sonnanstine wound up with a bit more work than usual. After a lineup gaffe cost Tampa Bay its designated hitter, the Rays starter was forced to bat in the bottom of the first.

That's not quite the way he saw it.

"I took it as an opportunity," he said. "That was one of the craziest games I've ever been a part of."

When it was all over, Sonnanstine and the Rays had a win -- their third in a row over the sinking Cleveland Indians. Sonnanstine rove in a run with an RBI double in the fourth on the way to a 7-5 win Sunday.

"I messed up, and the players picked me up," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

His lineup card had two players listed as the third baseman. Because Ben Zobrist played the position in the top of the inning, Evan Longoria, whom Maddon meant to DH, was left on the bench.

No big deal.

"I was laughing," Longoria said of Sonnanstine's hit. "It was great."

On the mound, Sonnanstine (2-4) gave up five runs and seven hits in 5 2-3 innings to help send Cleveland to its eighth loss in 11 games.

The Rays scored five times in the fourth to take a 7-3 lead. Jason Bartlett hit an RBI single and Michel Hernandez added a three-run double. Hernandez came home when Sonnanstine doubled to left against rookie David Huff (0-1). Troy Percival pitched the ninth for his sixth save, but not before more wackiness.

There was a brief scrum in the bottom of the eighth after Kerry Wood's first two pitches went behind and in tight to B.J. Upton. Catcher Victor Martinez, who got out of the way of a high-and-inside pitch earlier in the series, got into a yelling match with the Rays' bench before both dugouts emptied.

In the top half of the inning, the Rays may have gotten a big break when it appeared the umpires blew the call on Ryan Garko's deep drive to left with one out. It was ruled that Crawford caught the fly after it first hit his glove while jumping at the wall. TV replays indicated the ball went off the padding just below the home-run line before the left fielder got to it.

"We had just a little bit of everything," Crawford said. "One of those games that, who's watching it on TV would be happy with the entertainment."

Yankees 3, Twins 2, 10 innings

Johnny Damon homered in the 10th inning, giving the Yankees their third straight comeback win over on a game-ending hit.

Alex Rodriguez homered in the seventh to start New York's rally from a two-run deficit, as the Yankees extended their winning streak to a season-best five games.

With one out, Damon drove a full-count pitch from Jesse Crain (2-2) into the second deck of right-field stands. The last time New York had three consecutive walk-off wins was August 27-29, 1972.

Alfredo Aceves (2-0) pitched a perfect 10th.

Mariners 3, Red Sox 2

At Seattle, Franklin Gutierrez singled under the glove of third baseman Mike Lowell to score Ronny Cedeno with two outs in the ninth.

Ramon Ramirez (4-1), who had allowed one run in 20 1-3 innings coming in, intentionally walked Ichiro Suzuki before Gutierrez finally ended the game.

David Aardsma (1-1) won in relief for Seattle.

Tigers 11, Athletics 7

At Detroit, Ramon Santiago and Curtis Granderson each hit three-run homers, and the Tigers overcame a six-run deficit to finish a three-game sweep of the A's.

Santiago, who also had an RBI triple among his four hits and scored three runs, put Detroit ahead 8-6 with his homer off Santiago Casilla.

Trevor Cahill (2-3) took the loss, allowing seven runs in 2 1-3 innings for the A's. Zach Miner (3-1) won, and the teams each used five pitchers in the game.

Blue Jays 8, White Sox 2

At Toronto, Roy Halladay won his fifth straight start, Adam Lind hit one of three Toronto homers and the Blue Jays won their AL-leading 26th game.

Halladay (8-1) surpassed Kansas City right-hander Zack Greinke for the major league lead in wins.

Gavin Floyd (2-4) allowed six runs and seven hits in five innings, walked two and struck out four for Chicago.

Rangers 3, Angels 0

At Arlington, Texas, Scott Feldman and three relievers combined on a five-hitter and David Murphy hit a sacrifice fly that helped the Rangers to their seventh straight win.

Ian Kinsler and Marlon Byrd also had RBI doubles for the Rangers, who have their longest streak since winning nine straight from May 20-31, 2005. Texas has won 13 of 15 and leads the Angels by 4 1/2 games in the division, and moved nine games over .500 (23-14) for the first time since June 1, 2005.

Jered Weaver (3-2) pitched eight innings for the loss.

Jason Jennings (1-1) pitched the seventh for the win. Darren O'Day got the final four outs in his first major league save opportunity.

Royals 7, Orioles 4

At Kansas City, Mo., John Buck's RBI triple off Jim Johnson (2-2) snapped an eighth-inning tie, and the Royals overcame four errors.

Jose Cruz (3-0), the fourth Royals pitcher, retired all six batters he faced for his 11th straight win. He has not lost since June 9, 2007, when he was with Arizona.

The four errors were the most for Kansas City since a four-error game against Detroit on July 16, 2005.

[Associated Press]

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