Toronto ? Not even a poor outing by their starting pitcher could derail the Devil Rays.

Tampa Bay extended its franchise-record winning streak to 12 games Tuesday night, beating the Toronto Blue Jays, 5-1, behind homers from Julio Lugo and Carl Crawford.

Devil Rays starter Chad Gaudin was lifted after walking four in the first inning, but four relievers went the rest of the way for a three-hitter.

The Devil Rays (33-34) started the season 3-19, but they’re a major-league-best 23-6 in their last 29 games. Tampa Bay has the longest winning streak in the majors since Arizona won 12 straight June 18-30 last season.

“At the beginning of the season it was terrible. We were just Tampa Bay,” Lugo said. “Now everybody is calling us the stinging Rays.”

Gaudin got just two outs — the Devil Rays turned a double play in the first. Travis Harper (2-0) got Chris Woodward to fly out to end the threat.

Manager Lou Piniella said Gaudin didn’t want to come out, even after a second visit to the mound.

“When I went out to Gaudin the second time he said, ‘I can get him out, Skip,'” Piniella said. “I said, ‘It’s the second visit.’ He didn’t know the second-visit rule. I started to laugh.”

Harper allowed two hits in four scoreless innings. Trever Miller got the last out of the fifth, Jorge Sosa gave up a run in two innings, and Lance Carter pitched two perfect innings to end it.

Howie Clark homered off Sosa in the seventh, ending a scoreless streak by Tampa Bay’s bullpen at 241/3 innings.

Crawford said Tampa Bay’s bullpen had improved.

Tampa Bay's Julio Lugo connects for a home run against Toronto. The Devil Rays defeated the Blue Jays, 5-1, Tuesday night in Toronto.

“From a player’s standpoint, it’s gone from a sense of being nervous to knowing that the job is going to get done,” Crawford said.

Toronto fell 10 games below .500 for the fourth time this season. The Blue Jays are missing injured sluggers Carlos Delgado and Vernon Wells. Toronto starter Pat Hentgen (2-7) lost his fifth straight decision.

Angels 6, Athletics 1

Anaheim, Calif. — Bartolo Colon took a shutout into the eighth inning, five of his teammates drove in runs against Tim Hudson, and Anaheim beat Oakland for its fifth straight victory over the Athletics. The win, coupled with Texas’ 10-2 triumph over Seattle, left the Angels a half-game behind the Rangers in the AL West and dropped Oakland a game off the pace. The Athletics, out of first place for the first time since June 8, have lost seven of eight following an eight-game winning streak.

Yankees 10, Orioles 4

Baltimore — Alex Rodriguez passed Joe DiMaggio on the career home run list, connecting twice and driving in five runs in New York’s victory over Baltimore. Mike Mussina (8-4) overcame a rocky start to win his seventh straight decision. In his first game since leaving a June 11 outing because of a groin injury, he lasted just five innings.

Rodriguez had his 35th multihomer game. He hit a three-run shot off Matt Riley in the first inning and a two-run drive against Rodrigo Lopez in the seventh to help the Yankees improve to 7-0 against Baltimore this season. A-Rod’s first home run was his 362nd, moving him past DiMaggio into 60th place on the career list. Rodriguez has 18 homers this season, including four in his last seven games.

Derek Jeter also homered for the Yankees, who received 13 walks.

White Sox 11, Indians 9, 10 innings

Chicago — Jose Valentin hit a game-ending two-run homer and drove in five runs, and Frank Thomas hit a three-run homer, helping Chicago beat Cleveland after nearly squandering an eight-run lead. Jose Jimenez (1-5) hit Thomas to lead off the 10th inning and one out later, Valentin homered to right.

Chicago reliever Shingo Takatsu (4-0) pitched the last two innings and retired the first five batters he faced. Ronnie Belliard singled in the 10th to end Takatsu’s streak of batters retired at 29.

Red Sox 9, Twins 2

Boston — Nomar Garciaparra hit a grand slam for his first homer of the season, backing Curt Schilling and leading Boston over Minnesota. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez hit solo homers, and Ortiz also doubled in a run to give him a league-leading 65 RBIs. Garciaparra missed Boston’s first 57 games and was activated June 9 after recovering from tendinitis in his right Achilles. He entered with a .265 batting average in nine games with one double, two triples and three RBIs.

Rangers 10, Mariners 2

Arlington, Texas — Ryan Drese pitched eight solid innings, and Rod Barajas homered in his third straight game, helping Texas beat Seattle. Drese (4-4) allowed four hits while matching his longest outing in 51 career starts. He struck out three and walked two. David Dellucci snapped a 1-for-35 slump with two hits, including an RBI double that started the scoring in the Rangers’ six-run sixth. The Rangers won their fourth straight