New York ? Mike Mussina’s bright yellow T-shirt hardly seemed appropriate. Written across the chest was “Chico’s Bail Bonds,” sponsor of the most famous fictional Little League team in Hollywood history.

Funny, because these days the New York Yankees don’t resemble the Bad News Bears at all. Not anymore, at least.

Mussina won his third straight start, Alex Rodriguez recorded a big hit with the bases loaded, and the suddenly surging Yankees polished off a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs with a 6-3 victory Sunday.

Gary Sheffield, Hideki Matsui and Robinson Cano each added an RBI single for New York, which improved to 6-0 on its 13-game homestand following a 3-9 road trip.

“A good team always bounces back,” reliever Tom Gordon said. “To me, we just had a couple of bumps in the road.”

Next up is a four-game set against Tampa Bay, which has the worst record in the AL. But the Yankees, up and down all season, know they can’t afford to relax.

“I’m not anointing this club,” manager Joe Torre said. “I think we have to constantly prove ourselves – to ourselves.”

Jeromy Burnitz homered, and Todd Walker drove in two runs for the slumping Cubs, who have lost four in a row and six of seven. They dropped to 0-7 at Yankee Stadium, having been swept by New York in the World Series in 1932 and 1938.

The Yankees took advantage of Chicago’s depleted pitching staff, outscoring the Cubs 23-10 in the series. Chicago has given up 55 runs in its last six losses.

“A rough series for us,” Burnitz said.

Coming off a five-hit shutout of Pittsburgh that began the winning streak, Mussina (8-4) gave up two runs and five hits in 61â3 innings. He walked off the mound to a standing ovation from a Father’s Day sellout crowd of 55,060.

Chicago Cubs shorstop Neifi Perez and the New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez, right, look for the umpire's call as Rodriguez safely steals second base. New York beat Chicago, 6-3, Sunday in New York.

“You’re not going to go out there every day with your best stuff. Today was a lot of work,” Mussina said. “I’m just glad we got it going in the right direction. This time, hopefully we can keep it in the right direction.”

Tanyon Sturtze escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh by getting Neifi Perez to ground into a 1-2-3 double play. With the sacks full again in the eighth, defensive replacement Tino Martinez made a diving play at first base on Walker’s RBI groundout.

Gordon then struck out Michael Barrett to end the inning and preserve a 6-3 lead. Mariano Rivera got three outs for his 16th save in 18 chances. He has converted 16 consecutive opportunities.

Indians 3, D’backs 2

Cleveland – Jake Westbrook pitched eight strong innings, and the Indians extended their winning streak to nine games with a victory over the Diamondbacks.

The Indians completed their third straight series sweep and improved to 6-0 on a 12-game homestand. They are 20-7 since May 21.

Brewers 5, Blue Jays 2

Toronto – Carlos Lee drove in his NL-leading 60th run, and Chris Capuano and three relievers combined on a seven-hitter to lead the Brewers over the Blue Jays.

The Brewers went 3-6 on their road trip, but ended it with two wins after calling a players-only meeting Friday night.

Orioles 4, Rockies 2

Baltimore – Rafael Palmeiro hit his 560th career home run to give Baltimore a sixth-inning lead, and the Orioles shook off the Rockies.

Rookie Hayden Penn (2-0) allowed two runs and five hits in 62â3 innings for the Orioles.

Padres 5, Twins 1

Minneapolis – Damian Jackson hit a tiebreaking three-run double in the seventh inning, and Darrell May outpitched AL Cy Young winner Johan Santana to help the Padres beat the Twins.

Red Sox 8, Pirates 0

Boston – Matt Clement gave up three hits in seven innings, Jay Payton hit a two-run homer, and the Red Sox beat the Pirates.

David Ortiz hit a two-run triple, and Bill Mueller and Kevin Millar each drove in two runs.

Tigers 10, Giants 8 (10)

Detroit – Placido Polanco homered with one out in the bottom of the 10th inning, and Chris Shelton hit a tying two-run shot in the ninth, leading the Tigers over the Giants.

Rondell White also homered for the Tigers, who took two of three from the Giants. Todd Linden and Lance Niekro hit home runs for San Francisco.

Nationals 8, Rangers 2

Arlington, Texas – Travis Hughes struck out three of the five batters he faced for his first major-league win, Brad Wilkerson drove in four runs, and the Nationals avoided a three-game series sweep against Rangers.

Washington never trailed after four straight singles provided a 2-0 lead in the first.

Cardinals 8, Devil Rays 5

St. Petersburg, Fla. – John Mabry drove in four runs, and Albert Pujols had three hits and two RBIs, leading the Cardinals over the Devil Rays.

Jeff Suppan (6-6) allowed five runs and seven hits in 62â3 innings for his first win in 11 starts against the Devil Rays.

Athletics 5, Phillies 2

Oakland, Calif. – Joe Blanton pitched effectively into the eighth inning, and Eric Chavez homered, leading Oakland over Philadelphia.

Blanton (3-6) won for the third time in four starts, and Adam Melhuse drove in two runs as the A’s won their fifth in seven games.

Mariners 11, Mets 5

Seattle – Tom Glavine lasted just 21â3 innings in his shortest start in two years, and Seattle completed a three-game sweep of New York.

Richie Sexson hit his 15th homer, a two-run shot in the first.

Marlins 7, Angels 5

Anaheim, Calif. – Jeff Conine homered and drove in four runs, and Florida bounced back from consecutive extra-inning losses to beat Los Angeles and avoid a three-game sweep.

Al Leiter (3-6), pitching in place of Josh Beckett, allowed two runs, five hits and five walks over six innings.

White Sox 4, Dodgers 3

Chicago – Aaron Rowand singled in two runs off reliever Duaner Sanchez in the eighth inning, helping the White Sox beat the Dodgers for their fourth straight victory

Cliff Politte (5-0) pitched a scoreless eighth to get the win. Dustin Hermanson pitched the ninth for his 16th save.