NEW YORK — Cliff Pennington hit a go-ahead single in the sixth inning after a key error by backup shortstop Eduardo Nunez and the Oakland Athletics bounced back to avoid a sweep, edging New York 5-4 Sunday and stopping the Yankees' seven-game winning streak. A day after their stunning 14-inning loss, the A's held on to at least maintain their 2½-game lead for the second AL wild-card spot over the Angels, who played later. The Yankees kept their one-game lead in the AL East because Baltimore lost in Boston. Despite the defeat, the Yankees have to like their chances to win the division — their final 10 games are against three teams with records below .500. Red Sox 2, Orioles 1: Cody Ross doubled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, Andrew Bailey escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth and the Red Sox ended Baltimore's six-game winning streak. The Orioles began the day one game behind the first-place New York Yankees in the AL East and two games ahead of Oakland for the top wild-card spot in the league. Boston stopped its four-game losing streak after Dustin Pedroia led off the eighth with a double against Luis Ayala (5-5) and Ross followed with his tiebreaking hit. A double by Jim Thome helped Baltimore load the bases with one out in the ninth. But Bailey got Manny Machado on a forceout at home and struck out pinch-hitter Ryan Flaherty to finish it. Angels 4, White Sox 1: Jered Weaver kept the Angels within striking distance in the AL wild-card chase, posting his league-leading 19th victory with a decision over the struggling White Sox. The White Sox lost their fifth in a row and led Detroit by a half-game in the AL Central. The Tigers lost the opener of their day-night doubleheader against Minnesota. Albert Pujols reached the 100-RBI mark for the 11th time in 12 big league seasons with a two-run double as the Angels remained 2½ games behind Oakland for the second wild-card spot. Kendrys Morales hit a two-run homer that helped the Angels complete a three-game sweep. Weaver (19-4) established a career high for wins. Twins 10, Tigers 4: Joe Mauer drove in four runs and the Minnesota Twins rallied against Max Scherzer, handing the contending Tigers in the opener of a day-night doubleheader. The Tigers remained one-half game behind the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox. After leaving his previous start with shoulder weakness, Scherzer (16-7) pitched five shutout innings with a fastball that topped out at 93 mph, a bit slower than usual. But he couldn't get an out in the sixth, hurt by a dropped fly ball, and ended up allowing three runs. Indians 15, Royals 4: Carlos Santana hit two homers and drove in five runs as the Indians routed Kansas City in their highest-scoring game of the season. Santana connected for a two-run shot in the sixth inning off Jake Odorizzi, who lost in his major league debut. Santana added his team-leading 18th homer, a three-run drive during a seven-run ninth. The loss officially eliminated the Royals from playoff contention and assured them of another losing record. Kansas City has not made the postseason since winning the 1985 World Series, the longest active playoff drought in the majors. Rays 3, Blue Jays 0: B.J. Upton hit his eighth home run in 14 games and Jeremy Hellickson won for the first time in more than a month to help the Rays beat the Blue Jays. It was the fifth straight win for the Rays, who remained 3½ games behind the Oakland Athletics in the race for the AL's second wild-card spot. Rangers 3, Mariners 2: Ryan Dempster allowed two runs and six hits over six-plus innings and Mike Napoli and Geovany Soto homered to lead the Rangers over the Mariners and preserve a four-game lead over the Oakland A's in the AL West. — Agencies
