Chicago, IL (My Sportsbook) - Torii Hunter and Corey Koskie each belted two- run homers in the first inning, as the Minnesota Twins handled the Chicago White Sox, 8-2, in the opener of a three-game set at U.S. Cellular Field. With the victory, the Twins clinched their third consecutive AL Central title, the first time they have done that in club history. Carlos Silva picked up the mound win, yielding two runs on seven hits in seven innings. The righty walked one and did not strike out a batter, as the Twins won for the 11th time in their last 13 contests. Minnesota hit four home runs on the night, and had five different players contribute multiple hits.

Final Score: Toronto 6, New York 3

Bronx, NY (My Sportsbook) - Gustavo Chacin pitched seven-plus innings of solid ball to pick up a win in his major league debut, as the Toronto Blue Jays held on for a 6-3 win over the New York Yankees in the opener of a three- game set at Yankee Stadium. Chacin, who was a combined 18-2 between Double-A and Triple-A this season, allowed just three runs on four hits. He struck out two and walked three, tossing 98 pitches with 63 going for a strike. Russ Adams led off the game with a homer and drove in three runs in the win. The Yankees lead in the American League East remained at 4 1/2 games after the Red Sox lost to the Baltimore Orioles, 9-6.

Final Score: Baltimore 9, Boston 6

Boston, MA (My Sportsbook) - B.J. Surhoff hit a grand slam during a five-run inning and the Baltimore Orioles held on to beat Boston, 9-6, in the opener of a four-game series at Fenway Park. Javy Lopez drove in a pair of runs and scored once for the Orioles, who have won four of their last five games. Melvin Mora homered and scored three runs in the victory. David Ortiz hit a two-run homer and Manny Ramirez drove in a pair of runs with a double for the Red Sox, who have lost three straight. The wild-card leading Red Sox remained 4 1/2 games behind first-place New York in the AL East. The Yankees lost to Toronto, 6-3.

Final Score: Anaheim 5, Seattle 2

Anaheim, CA (My Sportsbook) - Dallas McPherson went 3-for-3 with an RBI in his first major league start, helping Anaheim to a 5-2 win over Seattle at Angel Stadium. John Lackey held the Mariners to two runs on 10 hits over six solid innings to pick up his fourth victory in six decisions. He struck out 10 and did not walk a batter. The win moved the Angels to within 2 1/2 games of Oakland for first place in the AL West while narrowing Boston's lead in the wild card race to 4 1/2 games. The Red Sox dropped a 9-6 decision to the Orioles. Angels star outfielder Vladimir Guerrero left the game in the first inning after he was beaned on the back of the head by a Ryan Franklin fastball. Ichiro Suzuki finished 2-for-4 with a run scored for Seattle to get within 19 hits of George Sisler's all-time record of 257 with 12 games left to play.

Final Score: Detroit 3, Cleveland 1

Detroit, MI (My Sportsbook) - Mike Maroth tossed 6 2/3 innings of shutout ball, leading the Detroit Tigers to a 3-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the opener of a three-game series at Comerica Park. Dmitri Young and Brandon Inge homered to provide the offense for the Tigers, who stopped a brief two-game slide. Craig Monroe finished 3-for-4 for Detroit. Coco Crisp and Ben Broussard each posted two hits for Cleveland, which has dropped seven of nine.

Final Score: Kansas City 6, Tampa Bay 3

St. Petersburg, FL (My Sportsbook) - Calvin Pickering smacked a tie-breaking two-run homer in the eighth inning on the way to a 6-3 victory for the Kansas City Royals over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the opener of a three-game set at Tropicana Field. Brian Anderson tossed 7 2/3 solid innings to win his third straight decision. Pickering finished 2-for-2 with three RBI and a pair of runs scored to help the Royals to their third win in four games. Aubrey Huff had a two-run homer for the Devil Rays, who were playing their first home game in 17 days, thanks to postponements caused by Hurricane Frances.