Indians down Yankees to stop 9-game skid

CLEVELAND: Justin Masterson handled New York’s power-packed lineup for 6 2-3 innings and Michael Brantley hit a three-run homer as the Cleveland Indians snapped a nine-game skid with a 3-1 win over the Yankees on Saturday night. It’s the second time this month that Masterson (10-11) has busted a long losing streak for the Indians. On Aug. 8, he beat Minnesota and stopped Cleveland’s 11-game slide, one loss shy of the club record.
Brantley homered in the first inning off Hiroki Kuroda (12-9), and the Indians, who were in playoff contention in late July, held on to win for just the fifth time in 27 games. Cleveland is 5-18 in August.
Orioles 8 Blue Jays 2: In Baltimore, J.J. Hardy homered and scored three runs, rookie Steve Johnson allowed four hits over six innings and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays 8-2 to equal their win total of last season.
Hardy, Adam Jones and Matt Wieters each had two RBIs for the Orioles, who have won 14 of 20 since Aug. 3. Baltimore (69-57) is in the thick of the AL wild-card chase and only four games out of first place in the AL East after going 69-93 in 2011.
Johnson (2-0) gave up two runs, struck out seven and walked two in his second big-league start. The right-hander has 23 strikeouts over 17 innings in five appearances.
Toronto lost its seventh straight.
Tigers 5 Angels 3: In Detroit, Jhonny Peralta hit a two-run double, part of a three-run eighth inning that sent the Detroit Tigers to a 5-3 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday night.
The Tigers trailed 3-0 before scoring twice in the sixth and taking the lead in their last at-bat. With men on first and third, Peralta hit a line drive just fair down the left-field line off Garrett Richards (3-3). Alex Avila then added an RBI single.
Octavio Dotel (4-2) threw two scoreless innings for the win. Jose Valverde pitched a perfect ninth for his 26th save in 30 chances.
Vernon Wells homered for the Angels, who had won four straight.
Rangers 9 Twins 3: In Arlington, Texas: Ian Kinsler hit a leadoff home run and Mitch Moreland launched a 463-foot shot, sending Ryan Dempster and the Texas Rangers past the Minnesota Twins 9-3 Saturday for their fourth straight win.
Kinsler homered in the first, hit a bases-loaded triple in the third inning that made it 9-0 and also singled.
Dempster allowed two runs in six innings and improved to 3-1 since he was acquired from the Cubs on July 31. He was 5-5 with Chicago.
Brian Duensing (3-9) gave up a career-worst nine runs in 2 1-3 innings as the Twins lost their fifth in a row.
Justin Morneau went 4 for 4 with a home run for Minnesota, which has dropped 14 of 16 overall.