NEW YORK, 31 August 2004 — Tim Wakefield tossed a three-hitter over eight innings to inspire the Boston Red Sox to their sixth straight victory, a 6-1 defeat of the Detroit Tigers in the American League Sunday.
The Red Sox completed a four-game series sweep with the win at Fenway Park, their 12th in 13 outings. Boston now trails the first place New York Yankees by 4 1/2 games in the East Division.
Boston outscored Detroit 20-6 in the series and Wakefield delivered another excellent performance by a Red Sox starter.
Wakefield (11-7) allowed one run while striking out seven batters and walking one before Curtis Leskanic completed the three-hitter. Mark Bellhorn homered for the Red Sox, who broke open the game with four runs in the fifth. Manny Ramirez drove in two runs and Kevin Millar added two hits and an RBI to the Boston attack.
In Toronto, Carlos Delgado’s homer sparked a five-run seventh inning which lifted the Blue Jays to a 6-4 win over the New York Yankees.
Miguel Batista (10-10) allowed two runs on seven hits over seven innings for the victory in a game delayed by an hour at the start by a power failure.
In Cleveland, Scott Elarton pitched a two-hit shutout as the Indians blanked the Chicago White Sox 9-0. Casey Blake homered twice while Ronnie Belliard and Travis Hafner had one apiece.
In Arlington, Melvin Mora notched four RBI to help the Baltimore Orioles snap a 12-game losing streak with a 7-6 victory over the Texas Rangers. Rafael Palmeiro had two hits and drove in a run for Baltimore.
In Anaheim, Adam Kennedy smacked a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to earn the Angels a 4-2 decision over the Minnesota Twins.
In Seattle, Ichiro Suzuki homered, scored three runs and had three hits as the Mariners edged the Kansas City Royals 5-4.
In Oakland, Billy McMillon’s three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning gave the Athletics a 9-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
Pujols Boosts Cards, Giants Delight for Bonds
Albert Pujols cracked his 40th home run of the season and reached 100 RBI for the fourth straight year to help the St. Louis Cardinals blank the host Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 in the National League Sunday.
The Cardinals completed a three-game sweep of the series and improved to 86-44 on the season. St. Louis has five more wins than any other team in the major leagues and a 15-game lead on the Chicago Cubs atop the Central Division.
Pittsburgh has lost nine of its last 12 outings and gone 1-7 in consecutive weekend series against the Cardinals.
Pujols also added his first triple of the season while becoming only the fourth player in major league history to start his career with four consecutive 100 RBI seasons.
In Atlanta, Barry Bonds stroked two homers, taking his career tally to 696, and drove in six runs to propel the San Francisco Giants to a 9-5 triumph over the Braves.
In Montreal, Ryan Klesko and Khalil Greene thumped two-run homers as the San Diego Padres crushed the Expos 11-3. David Wells (9-7) gave up three runs on eight hits over seven innings for the win, his seventh straight road decision.
In New York, Robin Ventura grabbed his 17th career grand slam to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers past the Mets 10-2. Ventura has now tied Jimmy Foxx and Ted Williams for fourth place on the all-time grand slam list.
In Cincinnati, Adam Dunn clubbed his 39th homer of the season as the Reds defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-2.
In Philadelphia, Cory Lidle pitched a four-hit shutout and also homered to power the Phillies to a 10-0 rout of the struggling Milwaukee Brewers.
In Chicago, Jeff Bagwell and Jeff Kent both had three hits and an RBI to pace a 16-hit attack as the Houston Astros overcame the Cubs 10-3.
Lance Berkman homered for the Astros and Orlando Palmeiro had two hits, scored two runs and drove in two more. Carlos Hernandez (1-1) allowed three runs on six hits over 5 2/3 innings for the win.
In Miami, AJ Burnett struck out 14 batters in eight innings as the Florida Marlins beat the Colorado Rockies 8-4.
Burnett (5-6) allowed one run on five hits with two walks for the victory. Mike Lowell and Miguel Cabrera homered for the Marlins while Paul Lo Duca had three hits and two RBI. Luis Gonzalez drove in two runs for Colorado. Shawn Estes (13-6) gave up eight runs on 10 hits in five innings to take the loss.
