Mariano Rivera pitched himself in and out of trouble Saturday, escaping a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the ninth inning and preserving a 2-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox. After Mike Mussina (11-6) pitched six shutout innings, Rivera took over in the ninth with a 2-0 lead. The Red Sox quickly scored a run and were poised to get more, but Rivera struck out Coco Crisp, got Jason Varitek on a popup and fanned Julio Lugo for his 23rd save. The Yankees won after losing the first two games of the series to Boston. Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner, two of New York's three healthy outfielders, each drove in a run and made a nice play in the field. Justin Masterson (4-3) hit three batters, threw a wild pitch and walked two, but managed to hold the Yankees in check in his six innings. The rookie right-hander allowed six hits in his first appearance against New York. Rays 3, Royals 0: At St. Petersburg, Florida, Andy Sonnanstine pitched seven strong innings, Ben Zobrist homered again and Tampa Bay blanked Kansas City for its sixth straight win. In other games it was: White Sox 6, Athletics 1; Twins 9, Indians 6; Rangers 5, Orioles 3; Blue Jays 7, Angels 5; Mariners 3, Tigers 2. Cards edge Cubs Rick Ankiel slapped a two-run, two-out single to right field in the bottom of the ninth inning to cap a three-run rally and lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-4 win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday. The win brought the Cardinals (50-39) to within 2 1/2 games of the first-place Cubs (52-36) in the National League Central. St. Louis rallied against Chicago closer Kerry Wood (4-2), who blew his fifth save of the season in 27 chances. Ankiel also homered in the sixth, when St. Louis rallied to tie it at 2. St. Louis reliever Kyle McClellan (1-3) picked up his first major league victory in relief. Elsewhere it was: Brewers 2, Pirates 1; Astros 6, Braves 1; Reds 3, Nationals 2; Mets 9, Phillies 4; Padres 4, Diamondbacks 2; Rockies 12, Marlins 6; Giants 5, Dodgers 2.
