ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - Evan Longoria hit a go-ahead homer and the Tampa Bay Rays beat New York 5-2 on Tuesday night to drop the struggling Yankees into a tie for first place in the AL East.
Coupled with Baltimore's 12-0 win at Toronto, the Yankees fell into a tie for the division lead with the surging Orioles after sitting atop the standings by themselves for 84 consecutive days - New York's longest streak since 2004.
Desmond Jennings and B.J. Upton also homered for the third-place Rays, who pulled within 1½ games of the Orioles and Yankees. Tampa Bay trailed by 10½ games at the end of play on July 18.
Longoria hit a two-run shot off Freddy Garcia (7-6), wiping out a 2-1 deficit in the third inning. Jennings and Upton delivered back-to-back solo shots in the fifth, giving Alex Cobb (9-8) and Tampa Bay's bullpen all the offensive support they'd need against the Yankees' sputtering lineup.
ORIOLES 12, BLUE JAYS 0
TORONTO (AP) - Mark Reynolds hit a three-run homer, Zach Britton pitched seven innings to win his fourth straight start and the Orioles moved into a first-place tie in the AL East with a victory over the Blue Jays.
Baltimore's third consecutive victory coupled with the Yankees' loss at Tampa Bay gave the Orioles a share of first place in September for the first time since 1997.
Reynolds went 3 for 4 with four RBIs as the Orioles pounded out a season-high 18 hits.
Recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to face the Blue Jays, Britton (5-1) allowed four hits and improved to 4-0 with a 0.94 ERA in four starts since his last loss on Aug. 1 against New York. The left-hander struck out eight and walked two, one intentional.
Carlos Villanueva (7-5) lost for the fifth time in seven starts, allowing a season-high six runs and seven hits in 6 2-3 innings.
TWINS 18, WHITE SOX 9
CHICAGO (AP) - Chris Parmelee hit a three-run homer to cap a 10-run fifth inning and the Minnesota Twins routed the Chicago White Sox 18-9 on Tuesday night.
The Twins also batted around in a seven-run second against rookie Jose Quintana (5-4), but first-place Chicago remained one game ahead of Detroit in the AL Central.
Minnesota pecked away methodically with 17 hits - only three went for extra bases.
Parmalee drove in four runs while Ryan Doumit had three hits and three RBIs. Doumit hit a solo homer in the seventh and scored three times.
Chicago outfielder Dewayne Wise pitched a scoreless ninth for the White Sox, who had a franchise-record 10 doubles - five in a four-run eighth.
Scott Diamond (11-6) made his first start for Minnesota since Aug. 28. He settled down after the rough first inning to hold the White Sox to four runs and seven hits over five innings.
INDIANS 3, TIGERS 2
DETROIT (AP) - Justin Masterson pitched six solid innings, and the Indians beat Detroit for their second straight victory over the playoff-chasing Tigers.
Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run homer for Detroit, but the Tigers missed another opportunity against a struggling team. Masterson (11-12) allowed two runs and four hits. He walked one and struck out four.
Four relievers finished, with Chris Perez pitching a perfect ninth for his 34th save in 38 chances.
Rick Porcello (9-11) allowed three runs and eight hits in 5 2-3 innings.
The Indians had lost 29 of 35 before taking the first two games of this series.
ROYALS 6, RANGERS 3
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Jeremy Guthrie pitched seven strong innings and the Royals got home runs from Alex Gordon and Johnny Giavotella in a victory over Texas.
Gordon broke a 2-all tie in the fifth with a two-run shot off Matt Harrison (15-9), the third home run he has allowed to a left-handed hitter this season.
Harrison allowed five runs, three earned, and eight hits. The Royals scored a pair of unearned runs in the third after an error by second baseman Ian Kinsler.
Guthrie (4-3) held the Rangers to two runs and five hits. He went 3-9 with Colorado before the Royals acquired him in a July 20 trade for Jonathan Sanchez.