The
New York Yankees
strengthened their position at the top of the American League East and gained revenge for Friday's defeat by their city rivals the
Mets
with a 4-3 win on Saturday night.
All four Yankees runs came in the seventh inning, Raul Ibanez levelling the match with a three-run homer before Eric Chavez also went yard.
And there was a further boost as nearest pursuers the
Baltimore Orioles
were beaten 3-1 by the
Washington Nationals
. Edwin Jackson pitched into the seventh inning and gave up just one hit and Adam LaRoche homered for the Nats, who lead the National League East ahead of the Mets.
The
Atlanta Braves
missed the chance to go second in the division when they were beaten 8-4 by the
Boston Red Sox
, whose in-form rookie Will Middlebrooks hit a solo homer and an RBI double.
The
Chicago White Sox
closed to within half a game of AL Central leaders the Cleveland Indians thanks to an 8-6 victory over the
Milwaukee Brewers
.
Dayan Viciedo piled up four runs including a two-run long ball as the Sox produced a performance in stark contrast to Friday's 10-inning 1-0 defeat.
The
Indians
went down 8-1 to the
Houston Astros
, Dallas Kuechel pitching a complete-game win in front of his parents in only his second Major League start.
The NL Central's leading pair, the
Cincinnati Reds
and the
Pittsburgh Pirates
, both enjoyed comfortable wins after strong showings by their pitchers.
Cincy's Johnny Cueto struck out nine in seven innings of three-hit ball and also drove in two runs in a 6-0 win over the
Minnesota Twins
.
Brad Lincoln allowed only two hits in six innings in Pittsburgh's 4-1 triumph over the
Detroit Tigers
, which was powered by Andrew McCutcheon's three-run homer.
The third-placed
St Louis Cardinals
beat the
Kansas City Royals
8-2 to remain three games behind the Reds.
The
Los Angeles Dodgers
and the
San Francisco Giants
kept up their momentum in the NL West, the Dodgers beating city rivals the
Angels
3-1 while San Francisco edged the
Oakland Athletics
9-8. Brandon Belt homered and drove in three runs in a game which lasted over four hours and saw 12 pitchers throw 385 pitches.
AL West leaders the
Texas Rangers
failed to take advantage of the Angels' defeat as they went down 11-7 to the
Colorado Rockies
, with four runs coming from back-to-back singles by Tyler Colvin and Chris Nelson in the third.
Elsewhere, the
Philadelphia Phillies
beat the
Tampa Bay Rays
7-6 on a walk-off homer by Jim Thome. The two sides' game on Friday night was rained off, meaning they will play a double-header on Sunday.
The
Toronto Blue Jays
hammered the
Miami Marlins
7-1, the
Seattle Mariners
won 5-1 against the
San Diego Padres
and the
Arizona Diamondbacks
overcame the
Chicago Cubs
10-5.
sports@thenational.ae
Follow us
