ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Yu Darvish came oh, so close again.
The Japanese ace fell one out shy of a no-hitter for the second time Friday night, giving up only a ninth-inning single to David Ortiz in the Texas Rangers’ 8-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox.
Rookie second baseman Rougned Odor, positioned in shallow right field, made a diving attempt but the ball was out of his reach. If the Rangers had not shifted their infield - a standard practice against Ortiz - it probably would have been a routine grounder to second.
Darvish lost a perfect-game bid with two outs in the ninth inning last season against Houston. This time, he bent his knees and put his glove on his hips after the base hit. Texas manager Ron Washington then made a slow walk to the mound, with the 45,392 in attendance cheering and chanting “Yuuuuuu!”
Darvish (3-1) struck out 12 and walked two while throwing 126 pitches.
Boston starter Clay Buchholz (2-3) allowed six runs and 10 hits over 4 1-3 innings.
ANGELS 4, BLUE JAYS 3
TORONTO (AP) - Raul Ibanez hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the ninth inning, Mike Trout connected for a solo homer and the Angels won their fifth straight game in Toronto.
Erick Aybar had three hits and scored twice, including the decisive run in the ninth, as the Angels won for the eighth time in nine meetings with the Blue Jays and halted Toronto’s season-long winning streak at five games.
Aybar tripled off Brett Cecil (0-3) to begin the ninth and Trout reached safely when first baseman Edwin Encarnacion couldn’t find the bag after taking the throw on Trout’s infield grounder. Albert Pujols was intentionally walked to load the bases for Ibanez.
Joe Smith (2-0) got the win despite giving up a tying home run to Jose Reyes in the eighth and Ernesto Frieri finished for his fourth save in six chances.
ORIOLES 4, ASTROS 3
BALTIMORE (AP) - Steve Pearce and Manny Machado homered, and the Orioles won a season-high fourth consecutive game.
Baltimore (19-14) is five games over .500 for the first time this season. Meanwhile, the Astros have lost six of seven.
Orioles starter Wei-Yin Chen (4-2) allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings. Tommy Hunter allowed a run in the ninth before finishing for his 11th save in 12 chances.
Pearce went deep for his third homer in four games. Machado hit his first home run since returning from offseason knee surgery on May 1. Orioles outfielder Nick Markakis went 3 for 4 and extended his hitting streak to 16 games.
Chris Carter hit his fifth home run of the season for the Astros. Jerome Williams (1-2) got the loss.
TWINS 2, TIGERS 1
DETROIT (AP) - Phil Hughes pitched seven scoreless innings, and the Twins beat Justin Verlander for the first time in over four years.
Kurt Suzuki hit a two-run single off Verlander (4-2) in the seventh. Hughes (4-1) allowed eight hits in his fourth consecutive win.
Hughes threw 86 pitches, and then gave way to the bullpen. Casey Fien pitched the eighth, and Glen Perkins allowed a run in the ninth but held on for his ninth save in 10 chances.
Verlander allowed two runs and seven hits in seven innings. He struck out five and walked two.
The start of the game was delayed 27 minutes by rain.
The injury-plagued Twins snapped a three-game losing streak. Star first baseman Joe Mauer sat out a fifth straight game. He’s been dealing with back spasms.
INDIANS 6, RAYS 3
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - Mike Aviles hit a three-run homer during a five-run seventh inning, Corey Kluber went 6 2-3 effective innings, and the Indians stopped a seven-game road losing streak.
Cleveland also got solo homers from Asdrubal Cabrera and Michael Brantley. Kluber (3-3) allowed two runs and nine hits with nine strikeouts.
Jake Odorizzi struck out a career-high 11 and gave up five hits in five shutout innings for the Rays, who have lost six straight at home.
Brantley homered off Joel Peralta (1-3) before Yan Gomes hit an RBI single and Aviles had his three-run shot against Brandon Gomes as the Indians went ahead 6-2 in the seventh.
Cody Allen got one out for his first save.
ROYALS 6, MARINERS 1
SEATTLE (AP) - Jason Vargas pitched seven scoreless innings and Kansas City had 16 singles in the victory.
Vargas (3-1), who pitched for the Mariners for four seasons from 2009 to 2012, allowed three hits and walked none. He is 3-1 with a 1.59 ERA in four career starts against his former team.
Salvador Perez, Eric Gordon and Eric Hosmer had three hits apiece for the Royals.
The Mariners have two runs and 10 hits over the past three games.
Brandon Maurer (1-1) pitched 7 1-3 innings for Seattle, but was charged with six runs, four earned, and 14 hits.
INTERLEAGUE
WHITE SOX 9, DIAMONDBACKS 3
CHICAGO (AP) - Alexei Ramirez hit a grand slam in Chicago’s seven-run fourth inning, and Jose Abreu hit his major league-leading 13th homer to lead the White Sox to the win.
Abreu was the designated hitter because of a nagging left ankle injury. He went 3 for 4 and leads the AL with 37 RBIs.
Tyler Flowers also homered for the White Sox, who pounded out 15 hits.
Chicago right-hander Andre Rienzo (3-0) allowed three runs and four hits in 5 2-3 innings.
Arizona’s Brandon McCarthy (1-6) allowed nine hits and seven runs - all in the fourth inning.
Gerardo Parra hit a two-run homer in the third for the Diamondbacks.
ATHLETICS 8, NATIONALS 0
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Oakland’s Tommy Milone tossed eight innings of two-hit ball for his first win of the season.
Brandon Moss homered and finished with three RBIs, and Yoenis Cespedes and John Jaso each hit a solo shot to back Milone’s gem. The left-hander struck out seven and walked three.
Milone (1-3) left after 108 pitches, and Fernando Rodriguez tossed a scoreless ninth in his first appearance in the majors since October 2012 after rehabbing from elbow ligament replacement surgery.
Moss and Cespedes connected on consecutive pitches in the fifth as the AL West-leading A’s foiled Doug Fister’s season debut. Fister (0-1) allowed nine hits and seven runs in 4 1-3 innings.
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