NEW YORK, 14 June 2003 — After being held hitless by six Houston pitchers a day earlier, the New York Yankees amassed 12 hits and a bunch of runs in a 6-5 win over the Astros in Inter-league play on Thursday.

They were responding to a challenge from manager Joe Torre, who, after Wednesday’s debacle, said, “Hopefully we wake up tomorrow morning and we can do something about it.”

Braves 4 Athletics 2

In Oakland, Gary Sheffield and Andruw Jones each took reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito deep as the Atlanta Braves defeated the A’s 4-2. It was the third straight home loss for Zito (7-5), who was 11-1 in Oakland in 2002. Shane Reynolds (5-1) tossed 6 2/3 innings of six-hit ball for the win, his fourth straight.

Blue Jays 5 Pirates 4

In Toronto, former NBA player Mark Hendrickson (5-5) went six innings to notch his first win in a month as the Blue Jays outlasted the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 to complete a three-game sweep.

Padres 9 Indians 4

In Cleveland, the San Diego Padres strung together four and five-run innings in a 9-4 humbling of the Indians. Mark Loretta sacrificed and singled to plate three San Diego runs. Rondell White and Ryan Klesko added solo homers.

Reds 2 Devil Rays 1

In St. Petersburg, Austin Kearns had a hand in both Reds runs as Cincinnati edged the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2-1, giving them a sweep of the three-game series.

Twins 15 Rockies 3

In Minneapolis, A.J. Pierzynski belted a first-inning grand slam homer and then added a three-run shot in the seventh to plate seven runs as the Minnesota Twins crushed the Colorado Rockies 15-3.

Mets 11 Rangers 0

In Arlington, Texas, on the day they handed general manager Steve Phillips his walking papers, the New York Mets put it all together in an 11-0 drubbing of the Rangers.

Giants 8 White Sox 4

In Chicago, Barry Bonds homered in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 4-4 and then Rich Aurilia belted a grand slam as the San Francisco Giants rallied to down the White Sox 8-4.

Dodgers 3 Tigers 2

In Detroit, a nearly two-hour rain delay did not dampen the Dodgers spirits, Los Angeles ekeing out a 3-2 win over the lowly Tigers, losers of seven straight games and a total of 47 over the season.

Orioles 6 Cubs 1

In a game in Baltimore twice delayed by rain, the Orioles plated three first-inning runs and coasted to a 6-1 victory over the Sammy Sosa-less Chicago Cubs.

Cardinals 8 Red Sox 7 (13 innings)

In a wild one in Boston, Jim Edmonds’s three-run homer in the top of the 13th inning proved to be the game-winner as the St. Louis Cardinals edged the Red Sox 8-7.

Mariners 1 Expos 0

In Seattle, Ryan Franklin (5-4) tossed eight innings of four-hit ball as the Mariners edged the Montreal Expos 1-0. Claudio Vargas (3-3) was the unlucky loser, a fourth-inning Bret Boone homer proving to be his undoing.

Brewers 6 Marlins 5

In Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Brewers got home runs from NL leader Richie Sexson as well as from Eric Young and Wes Helms to snap a four-game losing skid as they edged the Florida Marlins 6-5 in Thursday’s lone National League game.

Mets Fire GM Steve Phillips

In Flushing, New York, Steve Phillips’ reprieve didn’t last too long. After surviving the firing of manager Bobby Valentine last October, Phillips was fired as general manager of the New York Mets on Thursday.

Matt Williams Retires: Report

In Phoenix, Arizona, Matt Williams, the last of the original Arizona Diamondbacks and a five-time All-Star, told the Arizona Republic on Thursday that he has retired after 17 seasons in the major leagues.

The Diamondbacks designated the third baseman for assignment on June 1 to make room on the roster for Shea Hillenbrand, who was acquired from the Boston Red Sox for righthander Byung-Hyun Kim.