He may be hitting just .134, but Red Sox slugger David Ortiz showed what he can do when he is right. In the third inning, Ortiz clubbed a grand slam over the Green Monster off the Rangers’ Luis Mendoza.
Chipper Jones hit two home runs for the second straight night as the Braves beat former teammate Andruw Jones and the Dodgers 6-1. His three-run shot off Derek Lowe in the fifth broke the game open.
Indians’ lefty Cliff Lee dominated the Twins, giving up only two hits and a walk in eight shutout innings with eight strikeouts in a 4-0 victory in Minnesota. He improved to 3-0 with a 0.40 ERA.
THREE DOWN
The Yankees’ Phil Hughes and LaTroy Hawkins combined to make a sixth-inning mess, giving up seven runs on seven hits to the Orioles in an 8-2 loss. Nick Markakis had two of the hits, including an RBI single.
The Astros’ Chris Sampson made the Rockies’ bats look energized. The 29-year-old righty had a short night, allowing six runs on six hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning in an 11-5 loss.
Reds catcher Paul Bako had a career-best nine-game hitting streak snapped, going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Representing the tying run, he struck out looking to end a 5-2 loss to Milwaukee.
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EDITED BY MIKE PANKOW AND DANIEL ELLMAN
