Cleveland — Johan Santana wasn't quite himself. He didn't have his typical fastball, curve or changeup. For one of the rare times in the past year, Minnesota's ace actually looked like he could be beaten.
But as usual, he wasn't.
Santana won his 16th straight decision, pitching six strong innings as the Twins won their fifth straight, 3-2 over the Cleveland Indians on Friday night.
The 2004 AL Cy Young Award winner, Santana (3-0) remained unbeaten since July 11 of last season, a stretch of 20 starts that included two postseason outings against New York. He allowed two runs and six hits.
"Good pitchers find a way to win," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said, "and that's what he did."
In improving to 5-0 in his career against Cleveland and outdueling Jake Westbrook (0-3), Santana became the first pitcher to win 16 straight decisions since Roger Clemens, who did it for the Yankees in 2001.
Santana settled down after allowing two runs -- on solo homers to Victor Martinez and Ryan Ludwick -- in the second inning. The left-hander walked none and struck out 10 before turning it over to Minnesota's bullpen in the seventh.
Of all the mind-boggling numbers Santana has posted in the past year, one stands out: He's 21-2 in his last 25 starts. Although he gets little publicity playing for the mid-market Twins, there's no debate that he's the AL's best pitcher.
"I know he's got some long streak going where he hasn't lost a game," Ludwick said. "He won the Cy Young last season, that says he's pretty good. He left a couple of pitches up to Vic and me, but then he turned himself around. The guy's a good pitcher."
Minnesota's Johan Santana delivers against Cleveland. Santana and the Twins defeated the Indians, 3-2, Friday night in Cleveland.
Orioles 8, Yankees 1
Baltimore -- Bruce Chen pitched a four-hitter, and Miguel Tejada and Sammy Sosa hit successive homers to spark a seven-run sixth inning that carried Baltimore past New York.
Tejada and Sosa each had two hits and three RBIs, and Brian Roberts went 3-for-5 to lift his batting average to .429. The Orioles are 3-1 against New York this season; last year they started 0-7 against the Yankees and finished 5-14.
Chen and Carl Pavano were locked in a pitcher's duel before Tejada and Sosa connected to put the Orioles up 3-1. After an error by second baseman Rey Sanchez, Luis Matos and Roberts hit two-out RBI singles, and Tejada drew a bases-loaded walk from Felix Rodriguez.
Rangers 4, Blue Jays 2
Arlington, Texas -- Ryan Drese pitched eight strong innings, and Michael Young homered and drove in three runs as Texas beat Toronto. Drese (1-1) allowed two runs and six hits to earn the second victory by a Texas starter this season. He struck out one and didn't issue a walk.
Drese had his sinker working, getting 14 ground-ball outs and retiring 13 in a row from the third through the seventh.
Francisco Cordero recorded three outs, two on strikeouts, for his fourth save in six chances.
Red Sox 10, Devil Rays 0
Boston -- David Wells pitched seven sharp innings in his first Fenway Park start for the Red Sox, and David Ortiz hit a grand slam to lead Boston over Tampa Bay.
A day after a scuffle between New York Yankees outfielder Gary Sheffield and a fan in the right-field stands at Fenway, the mood was decidedly lighter for the visiting Devil Rays. The Red Sox broke the game open with seven runs in the second on Mark Bellhorn's two-run double, Manny Ramirez's bases-loaded walk and Ortiz's line drive into the right-field seats.
White Sox 6, Mariners 4
Chicago -- Jon Garland retired his first 19 batters and allowed just two hits in seven innings, pitching Chicago past Seattle. Garland, Chicago's No. 5 starter, lost his bid for a perfect game when he walked Jeremy Reed on a 3-2 pitch with one out in the seventh. Adrian Beltre followed with a single up the middle on a 1-2 pitch for Seattle's first hit.
Angels 6, Athletics 1
Oakland, Calif. -- Bartolo Colon pitched seven impressive innings and outdueled Athletics ace Barry Zito to lead Los Angeles over Oakland. Darin Erstad singled in the go-ahead run in the seventh and Steve Finley hit a solo homer in the eighth for the Angels.
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.