UP
With their 5-0 win over the Red Sox, the Blue Jays moved into second place in the AL East. “Guys are taking a lot of pride in this, trying to finish ahead of the Red Sox,” winning pitcher Shaun Marcum said. The Red Sox have come in second behind the Yankees for eight straight seasons.
UP
The Diamondbacks finally beat Jason Schmidt. Since May 21, 2003, the Giants ace had been 11-0 with a 2.93 ERA in 16 starts vs. Arizona. He again started on a roll, retiring the first 10 before Eric Byrnes’ solo homer and Conor Jackson’s three-run shot put Arizona up for good.
UP
Jim Edmonds, who had been out with head-aches, nausea, dizziness and blurred vision due to post-concussion syndrome, hit a three-run, pinch-hit homer in his first at-bat since Aug. 26. Edmonds’ blast helped St. Louis erase a 5-2 deficit to San Diego in the fourth, but . . .
THREE DOWN
DOWN
. . . the Cardinals still lost their sixth in a row and saw their lead in the N.L. Central cut to 2 1/2 games over the Astros, who beat the Phillies 5-4. St. Louis led by seven games before its skid, but its magic number remained at five for the third straight game.
DOWN
Mets lefty Tom Glavine was inconsistent in a postseason tuneup, giving up eight hits and four runs in six innings for his first defeat since Aug. 16. “I just want to have better command than I did tonight,” he said. “There isn’t a whole lot more to work on.”
DOWN
The Yankees’ big night at the plate was overshadowed by postgame news about Randy Johnson’s back. The team announced that Johnson will miss his final regular-season start because of back spasms. “Get it taken care of and get ready for the postseason,” Johnson said.
