BALTIMORE -- Rajai Davis' grand slam was the only Oakland hit in an eight-run eighth inning, and the Athletics topped the six-run barrier for the first time in 41 games, beating the Baltimore Orioles 11-2 Friday night.
The victory ended Oakland's four-game skid and extended Baltimore's season-high losing streak to seven games.
The A's led 3-2 before pulling away in the eighth. After three Baltimore pitchers combined to issue six walks and hit a batter, the fourth pitcher of the inning, Randor Bierd, yielded Davis' first career grand slam.
Davis had entered earlier in the eighth as a pinch runner for Jack Cust.
The big inning enabled Oakland to avoid tying a franchise record for consecutive games without scoring more than six runs. The Philadelphia Athletics went 41 straight games without scoring more than a half-dozen runs from Sept. 23, 1915 to May 20, 1916, and the 1916 A's matched the mark from June 29-Aug. 8.
Hours before the game, the Orioles announced that manager Dave Trembley would return in 2009. The timing was curious, given that Baltimore had dropped 11 of 12 to sink deeper into the AL East cellar, but club president Andy MacPhail called it a "demonstration of support." Full story
Indians 9, Royals 3
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Victor Martinez reached base four times in his return to catching, helping the Cleveland Indians beat the Kansas City Royals for their 10th straight road win.
The Indians had been bringing Martinez along slowly after the two-time All-Star catcher had elbow surgery on June 13. He was activated from the disabled list on Aug. 31 and had struggled at the plate, going 3-for-15 in five games.
Martinez got a lift in Wednesday's 9-3 win over the Chicago White Sox, hitting his first homer in nearly a year, and finally got the nod behind the plate against the Royals. Though he didn't face any long throws in the field, Martinez was sharp at the plate with two singles, driving in a run in the fifth inning. He finished 2-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored.
The Indians scored two runs in the second inning and poured it on in the fifth, getting six more on seven straight singles to help Cleveland match the fourth-longest road winning streak in franchise history. The Indians have won five straight and 13 of 18 overall, but are still 10 ½ games behind Chicago in the AL Central.
