Blue Jays 6, Red Sox 1

Toronto – Frank Thomas hit three home runs to lift the Toronto Blue Jays over the Boston Red Sox on Monday night, raising his total to 512 and tying Ernie Banks and Eddie Mathews for 18th all-time.

Dustin McGowan (11-9) pitched a five-hitter, struck out nine and walked none, sending the AL East leaders to their third loss in four games. Boston’s lead over New York in the division was cut to 31â2 games after the Yankees beat Baltimore – the smallest deficit since before play on April 22.

Thomas homered twice off knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (16-11), then hit his third against reliever Kyle Snyder.

Yankees 8, Orioles 5

New York – Hideki Matsui broke out of a slump with a go-ahead homer, and Phil Hughes won his second straight start with help from a bullpen that escaped two bases-loaded jams.

Alex Rodriguez tied his career high of 142 RBIs, Doug Mientkiewicz hit a two-run single, Robinson Cano had an RBI double, Jorge Posada got three hits, and Bobby Abreu drove in two runs.

Indians 6, Tigers 5, 11 innings

Cleveland – Casey Blake homered with one out in the 11th inning to give the Indians a come-from-behind win over the Tigers, who slid 51â2 games back in the AL Central.

Blake’s homer, which came on a 1-2 pitch, lowered the Indians’ magic number to seven and inched them closer to their first postseason appearance since 2001.

Twins 5, Rangers 4

Minneapolis – Ian Kinsler misplayed Jason Bartlett’s popup with two outs in the ninth inning, allowing Lew Ford to score the winning run as the Twins rallied to beat the Rangers.

Michael Cuddyer opened the inning by driving a 2-2 pitch from Joaquin Benoit (7-4) into the left field seats to tie the game. Ford then walked and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Brian Buscher. After Nick Punto struck out, Bartlett hit a popup behind second base that hit the glove of the backpedaling Kinsler.

Joe Mauer homered for the Twins, who ended a four-game losing streak but were eliminated from playoff contention after the wild card-leading Yankees beat Baltimore.

Mariners 4, Athletics 0

Oakland, Calif. – Jose Lopez hit a three-run homer, and Miguel Batista outpitched All-Star Dan Haren to end a five-start winless stretch as the Mariners beat the Athletics.