ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Carl Crawford hit a three-run homer and Cliff Floyd added a pair of run-scoring singles, helping the Tampa Bay Rays stop Ervin Santana from becoming the AL’s first seven-game winner with an 8-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.
Santana departed with a 5-4 lead with one runner on and two outs in the sixth inning, but the game quickly shifted when Justin Speier (0-3) entered and gave up a double to Akinori Iwamura and Crawford’s third homer of the season.
B.J. Upton doubled for the third consecutive hit off the Angels reliever. He took third base on a wild pitch and scored on another wild pitch by Speier, who struggled for the second time in three days against the Rays.
Evan Longoria’s two-run, ninth-inning homer off Speier gave Tampa Bay a 2-0 win in the series opener Friday night. The Rays won by the same score Saturday, holding the Angels to a total of four hits in the two losses.
J.P. Howell (2-0) pitched three scoreless innings in relief of Andy Sonnanstine to get the victory. Troy Percival worked the ninth for his ninth save in 10 opportunities.
Royals 4, Orioles 0
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Brian Bannister allowed two singles in eight innings and the Royals ended their 12-game skid against the Orioles.
It was Kansas City’s first victory over Baltimore since July 25, 2006.
Bannister struck out five and walked two to end a personal four-game losing streak. He did not allow a runner to reach second. Joakim Soria tossed a perfect ninth to finish Kansas City’s fourth shutout of the year.
Bannister was 0-4 with an 8.02 ERA and had allowed 33 hits in 21 1/3 innings over his previous four starts. He held the Orioles to one hit — a Guillermo Quiroz line drive single to right in the third — in the first six innings and quickly erased him when Luis Hernandez grounded into a double play.
The only other hit Bannister (4-4) allowed was a two-out Luke Scott single in the seventh.
Brian Burres (3-4) allowed four runs and nine hits in six-plus innings for the Orioles.
Athletics 12, Rangers 6
ARLINGTON, Texas — Emil Brown hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs to help the Athletics beat Texas, ending the Rangers’ season-best five-game winning streak Sunday.
Frank Thomas drove in two runs to give him 1,695 RBI, tying him with Cal Ripken for 21st all-time.
Ian Kinsler had three hits for the Rangers, who had won nine of their previous 11.
With the game tied at 6, Bobby Crosby led off the seventh with a double, then stopped at third on Mark Ellis’ single. Rangers reliever Franklyn German’s pickoff attempt had Ellis in a rundown between first and second, but when Crosby broke for the plate, Rangers first baseman Frank Catalanotto threw late to catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia as Crosby scored to put the A’s in front.
German (1-1) gave up two runs and three hits in 2/3 inning to suffer the loss.
Santiago Casilla (2-0) allowed two hits in 1 1/3 innings for the victory.
Twins 9, Red Sox 8
MINNEAPOLIS — Craig Monroe went 2-for-4 with two of light-hitting Minnesota’s three home runs and four RBI, and the Twins hung on for a victory over the Red Sox.
Joe Nathan gave up two runs in the ninth, but won a showdown with pinch-hitter Manny Ramirez by getting him to ground out to shortstop with the tying run on second base to pick up his 12th save in as many chances.
Monroe had his third career multihomer game and Adam Everett also went deep during an atypically brutal start for Tim Wakefield (3-2) in the Metrodome. Nick Blackburn (3-2) earned the victory.
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