Minneapolis ? Rick Reed didn’t let an incessant cough and flu-like symptoms deter him from what he knew needed to be done.

Reed delivered a gritty performance, pitching a complete-game shutout and Doug Mientkiewicz homered twice as the Minnesota Twins beat the Baltimore Orioles 6-0 Tuesday night.

Twins centerfielder Torii Hunter makes a diving catch during the Minnesota-Baltimore game. The Twins beat the Orioles 6-0 Tuesday in Minneapolis.

“It was tough,” Reed said, coughing into his shirt. “I couldn’t stop coughing. I’m just glad I was able to give our bullpen a rest. I’ve wanted to (go the distance) since April, it just took until August to do it.”

Reed (10-6) struck out four and walked one in his sixth career shutout and first of the season.

He has rebounded from a poor midseason stretch in May and June when he won just one game in nine starts. He has won four of his last five starts since a no-decision against Texas July 12.

“Rick Reed picked us up big time,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. “We asked him if he was OK several times during the game, he told me, ‘sit the bullpen down, I got it.”‘

Mientkiewicz had three hits and drove in three runs. David Ortiz also homered and added a two-run double in Minnesota’s four-run fourth inning.

Scott Erickson (5-11) was equally strong early, holding the AL Central leaders hitless for three innings.

The Twins got to Erickson in the fourth. Jacque Jones walked to lead off the inning and Cristian Guzman had a bloop single, extending his hitting streak to 11 games.

Ortiz followed with a two-run double down the right-field line, and Mientkiewicz hit his seventh homer of the season and his first since July 24.

“I play first base, so I have to hit,” Mientkiewicz said. “That’s the bottom line.”

Indians 9, Devil Rays 5

St. Petersburg, Fla. Karim Garcia hit his second career grand slam during a seven-run fifth inning as Cleveland beat Tampa Bay.

Garcia made it 8-2 when he hit the first pitch off Tanyon Sturtze (1-13) into the right-field seats.

Lee Stevens had walked on a close 3-2 pitch with two outs before Garcia connected for his first slam since Sept. 23, 1998.

C.C. Sabathia (8-9) gave up three runs and six hits over seven innings. Mark Wohlers got two outs for his fifth save.

White Sox 12, Rangers 3

Arlington, Texas Jose Valentin homered twice, including his sixth career grand slam, and drove in six runs to power Chicago past Texas.

It was the 11th multihomer game for the switch-hitter, who homered from both sides of the plate in the same game for the third time. Valentin’s matched a career high for RBIs.

Gary Glover (5-5) worked eight innings, a career high, allowing three runs on five hits.

Joaquin Benoit (2-2) took the loss.

Mariners 10, Red Sox 3

Seattle Ichiro Suzuki drove in three runs and scored once, and Desi Relaford was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle as Seattle beat Boston.

Relaford drove in two runs and scored twice while filling in for injured shortstop Carlos Guillen. Guillen sat out for the third straight game with a strained left thigh muscle.

The Red Sox fell five games behind New York in the AL East.

Joel Pineiro (12-4) won his second straight decision.

Athletics 5, Blue Jays 4

Oakland, Calif. Eric Chavez broke a tie with a two-run single in the seventh, and Barry Zito rebounded from consecutive losses for his 16th victory as Oakland beat Toronto.

After losing two straight for the first time all season, Zito (16-5) pitched eight innings of four-hit ball, striking out seven and allowing just one earned run.

With another dominant outing in the Coliseum, where he has lost just once since June 2001, Zito joined Boston’s Pedro Martinez and Derek Lowe for the AL lead in victories.