Fans react as a bat from Tampa Bay Rays' Jose Molina flies into the stands near third base during the sixth inning of their American League baseball game against the Toronto Blue Jays in St. Petersburg, Florida, Wednesday. — Reuters OAKLAND, California — Chris Carter hit a two-run homer to cap a five-run sixth inning and Oakland overcame a shaky outing by rookie Dan Straily to win 9-8. George Kottaras homered and Yoenis Cespedes added a two-run single for the A's, who won the final two games of the series against their division rivals after losing the opener. Oakland improved to 17-8 since the All-Star break. Kendrys Morales hit two of the Angels' five home runs. Four were off Straily, the right-hander who was making only his second career start. Zack Greinke walked five in five innings, remaining winless since his trade from Milwaukee to the Angels. Pat Neshek (1-0) recorded one out in the sixth for his first win with the A's. Ryan Cook, the sixth Oakland pitcher, gave up two runs in the ninth before locking down his 12th save. The A's beat the Angels for the seventh time this season. Indians 6, Twins 2: Justin Masterson pitched seven strong innings and Shin-Soo Choo went 4-for-4 as Cleveland ended an 11-game losing streak. The Indians avoided tying the 1931 franchise record for consecutive losses. Cleveland, which was outscored 95-36 in the streak, won for the first time since July 26. Masterson (8-10) allowed two runs and three hits in seven innings. His only mistake came when Alexi Casilla hit his first home run of the season — a two-run shot in the fifth. Orioles 9, Mariners 2: Steve Johnson struck out nine over six innings in his first major league start and Matt Wieters tied a career high with five RBIs as Baltimore swept the three-game series. Nick Markakis and Mark Reynolds homered and Adam Jones had three hits for the Orioles, who have won five straight and eight of 10. It was Baltimore's 60th victory of the season, compared to 69 all last year. The Orioles built a 7-0 lead by the fourth inning against former teammate Kevin Millwood (4-10) and cruised to the finish in their sixth sweep of 2012. Johnson (1-0) gave up two runs, five hits and two walks in his second big-league appearance. The 24-year-old was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to sub for Tommy Hunter, who was scratched because he threw in the bullpen Tuesday night in anticipation of entering a game that lasted 14 innings. Johnson is the son of former Orioles pitcher Dave Johnson, who now works for the team's TV network. Steve Johnson's debut as a starter came exactly 23 years after his father made his first career start in Baltimore, a complete-game win against Minnesota. Kyle Seager hit his team-high 13th homer, the second in two nights, and finished with three hits in the Mariners' fourth straight defeat. Rays 3, Blue Jays 2: Alex Cobb pitched seven solid innings for Tampa Bay. The Rays clinched their 16th consecutive home series win over Toronto by winning the first two games of the three-game set. The longest such streak in AL history is 19, held by the New York Yankees against the St. Louis Browns from 1946-51. Royals 2, White Sox 1: Jeremy Guthrie picked up his first victory since late May, scattering five hits over eight innings for Kansas City. In other games it was: Texas 10, Boston 9; and NY Yankees 12, Detroit 8. — Agencies
