The Progress-Index from Petersburg, Virginia • B4

CYAN MAGENTA BLACK BASEBALL LOCAL B4 The Progress-Index, Petersburg, Va. Sunday, September 24, 2006 AMERICAN LEAGUE Saturday's Games Chicago White Sox 11, Seattle 7 L.A. Angels 6, Oakland 2 Toronto 5, Boston 3 Minnesota 8, Baltimore 5 Detroit 15, Kansas City 4 Tampa Bay 8, N.Y. Yankees 0 Cleveland 6, Texas 3 Sunday's Games Boston (Snyder 4-4) at Toronto (Chacin 8-3), 1:07 p.m. N.Y.

Yankees (Mussina 14-6) at Tampa Bay (Stokes 0-0), 1:15 p.m. Minnesota (Garza 2-5) at Baltimore (Loewen 6-5), 1:35 p.m. Cleveland (Westbrook 13-10) at Texas (Millwood 16-10), 2:05 p.m. Seattle (Feierabend 0-0) at Chicago White Sox (Garcia 15-9), 2:05 p.m. Detroit (Verlander 16-9) at Kansas City (R.Hernandez 6-9), 2:10 p.m.

L.A. Angels (E.Santana 14-8) at Oakland (Haren 14-12), 4:05 p.m. AMERICAN LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE Saturday's Games N.Y. Mets 12, Washington 6 Philadelphia 8, Florida 6 Chicago Cubs 11, Cincinnati 4 Houston 7, St. Louis 4 Milwaukee 10, San Francisco 8 Colorado 10, Atlanta 9 Pittsburgh at San Diego, 10:05 p.m.

Arizona at L.A. Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. Sunday's Games Washington (Armas 8-12) at N.Y. Mets (Trachsel 15-7), 1:10 p.m. Chicago Cubs (Mateo 1-3) at Cincinnati (Harang 14-11), 1:15 p.m.

Florida (Olsen 12-8) at Philadelphia (Moyer 3-2), 1:35 p.m. San Francisco (Cain 13-10) at Milwaukee (Sheets 5-7), 2:05 p.m. Atlanta (James 10-4) at Colorado (Morillo 0-0), 3:05 p.m. Pittsburgh (McLeary 1-0) at San Diego (Hensley 10-11), 4:05 p.m. Arizona (L.Hernandez 12-13) at L.A.

Dodgers (Kuo 1-5), 4:10 p.m. St. Louis (Weaver 4-4) at Houston (Clemens 7-5), 8:05 p.m. East East PLPROGINDEXPAGES B04 I 092406 00:07 I MEDEIROSJO I PIPROGINDEX DAILY 4 092406 Pet GB L10 Str Home Away Intr Pet GB L10 Str Home Away Intr x-NewYork 93 61 .604 z-5-5 L-l 47-28 46-33 10-8 x-NewYork 93 61 .604 z-4-6 W-l 50-29 43-32 6-9 Boston 83 72 .535 IOV2 z-6-4 L-l 45-31 38-41 16-2 Philadelphia 81 73 .526 12 z-8-2 W-4 40-39 41-34 5-13 Toronto 81 73 .526 12 6-4 W-l 48-31 33-42 9-9 Florida 76 79 .490 UV2 3-7 L-2 40-35 36-44 9-9 Baltimore 68 87 .439 2512 5-5 L-l 40-40 28-47 9-9 Atlanta 75 80 .484 I8V2 z-6-4 L-2 36-39 39-41 5-10 Tampa Bay 59 95 .383 34 2-8 W-l 40-39 19-56 11-7 Washington 67 87 .435 26 z-5-5 L-l 39-36 28-51 7-11 Central Central Pet GB LIO Str Home Away Intr Pet GB LIO Str Home Away Intr Detroit 93 62 .600 6-4 W-2 45-30 48-32 15-3 St. Louis 80 73 .523 z-4-6 L-4 46-27 34-46 5-10 Minnesota 91 63 .591 IV2 6-4 W-l 50-24 41-39 16-2 Houston 76 78 .494 W2 z-6-4 W-4 43-37 33-41 7-11 Chicago 86 69 .555 7 z-3-7 W-l 48-32 38-37 14-4 Cincinnati 75 79 .487 5 3-7 L-l 40-39 35-40 6-9 Cleveland 71 83 .461 2IV2 3-7 W-l 38-36 33-47 8-10 Milwaukee 72 83 .465 9 z-7-3 W-4 47-33 25-50 6-9 Kansas City 58 96 .377 3412 z-4-6 L-5 34-46 24-50 10-8 Pittsburgh 65 89 .422 15 z-7-3 L-2 41-34 24-55 3-12 West Chicago 63 92 .406 18 5-5 W-l 33-43 30-49 4-11 Pet GB LIO Str Home Away Intr West Oakland 90 64 .584 z-8-2 L-l 49-31 41-33 8-10 Pet GB LIO Str Home Away Intr Los Angeles 83 71 .539 7 z-6-4 W-l 40-34 43-37 7-11 San Diego 81 72 .529 z-7-3 W-2 41-38 40-34 7-8 Texas 78 77 .503 I2V2 z-5-5 L-l 39-41 39-36 7-11 Los Angeles 81 73 .526 V2 z-5-5 W-2 48-31 33-42 5-10 Seattle 75 80 .484 15 6-4 L-l 41-34 34-46 14-4 San Francisco 75 79 .487 6V2 2-8 L-3 42-33 33-46 8-7 Colorado 73 82 .471 9 5-5 W-2 43-34 30-48 11-4 Arizona 72 81 .471 9 4-6 L-2 38-39 34-42 4-11 x-clinched division Orioles pick Norfolk for AAA affiliate the Orioles' in-state affiliates in Bowie, Frederick and Del-marva.

Norfolk had been the New York Mets' Triple-A affiliate for 38 seasons. Before spending four years in Ottawa, the Orioles had an 42-year relationship with Rochester. The Orioles felt they were operating at a disadvantage in Ottawa, which was often plagued by cold weather for the first month of the season. The Lynx also received very little fan support. Washington Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson covers his face as he lays on the ground after colliding with teammate Austin Kearns while trying to catch a pop up hit by New York Mets batter David Wright during the eighth inning Saturday.

Johnson was carried off the field. Wright blast lifts Mets over Nats Nathan reacts after getting his the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday. Saturday. "We wondered why we would get a little thin in Triple-A. Now, I think it's going to be a lot easier to sign some six-year guys (minor league free agents) that will come to a stadium like Norfolk and be in the good weather." Best of all, players called up to the big league club won't have to deal with visa issues when crossing the border to come to Baltimore.

Tides president Ken Young heads an investment group that this summer purchased hit consecutive homers, and A.J. Burnett pitched seven strong innings to lead Toronto over Boston, which was eliminated from playoff contention. Overbay extended his hitting streak to 13 games with his career-high 20th home run, a solo shot off Devern Han-sack (0-1) in the fourth. Glaus gave Toronto a 2-1 lead with his 36th homer. Vernon Wells hit an RBI triple and Glaus added a sacrifice fly Dustin Pedroia hit a leadoff homer for the Red Sox and David Ortiz had an RBI single.

Manny Ramirez pinch-hit and walked in the seventh his first appearance in 13 games. Ramirez has missed 22 of the last 31 games with a sore knee. Boston manager Terry Fran-cona was ejected in the sixth after arguing a call at second base. It was the first ejection for any Red Sox player, coach or manager this season. Burnett (9-8) allowed two runs and six hits.

He struck out eight. Justin Speier escaped a jam in the eighth and B.J. Ryan earned his 35th save in 39 chances. Tigers 15, Royals 4 Curtis Granderson homered, tripled and drove in three runs in a 10-run first inning to help the Tigers rout the Royals. The Tigers reduced their magic number to one for clinching their first playoff berth since 1987.

Detroit, which lost an AL-record 119 games in 2003, maintained its iy2-game lead in the AL Central over Minnesota. Left-hander Kenny Rogers (17-6) held the Royals to five hits and one run over eight innings. Rogers struck out three and walked one. Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe 34th save in a game against Robert Fick. John Maine (6-5) got the win despite throwing 110 pitches in five innings.

He surrendered four runs and three hits, struck out seven, walked five and hit two batters. Alfonso Soriano hit his 46th homer for the Nationals. Michael O'Connor (3-8) yielded six runs and eight hits in 4 2-3 innings. Shawn Green led off the fifth with a double and scored on a single by Lastings Milledge. Chris Woodward's double put men at second and third, and after pinch-hitter Jose Valentin struck out, Reyes and Endy Chavez followed with consecutive RBI singles to bring the Mets within 4-3.

O'Connor got Lo Duca to fly out, but Wright followed with his 25th homer to give New York a 6-4 lead. Julio Franco and Green followed with singles off Ryan Wagner before Milledge flied to left to end the inning after the Mets had eight hits by seven players. Soriano homered in the seventh, but the Mets answered with Woodward's RBI single and a two-run double by Reyes to make it 9-5. Lo Duca hit his fifth homer of the season in the eighth before Franco and Milledge added run-scoring doubles. Maine, hoping a strong start could help land him a postseason role, cruised through the first three innings before needing 68 pitches to get through the next two.

With two outs in the fourth, Ryan Zimmerman doubled into the right-field corner for Washington's first hit. Maine then threw a wild pitch, hit Kearns with another, and walked Jose Vidro and Brian Schneider to force in a run. Felipe Lopez singled with one out in the fifth before Maine again lost control. He walked Johnson, then plunked Soriano to load the bases. Maine struck out Zimmerman, but then walked Kearns to force in another run before Vidro singled in a pair to give the Nationals a 4-0 lead.

The Mets had two hits in the first but didn't score in part because of a brilliant double play started by Nationals catcher Schneider. With speedy Reyes at first, Schneider ran back to make a diving catch of Chavez's fouled bunt attempt, then made a long throw to second to nail Reyes. BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS BALTIMORE The Baltimore Orioles' top farm club is coming back to America. The Orioles' have ended their affiliation with Ottawa, and next season will house their Triple-A farm club in Norfolk, Va. Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo, who managed in Norfolk in 1986, likes the idea of having the Triple-A club about 240 miles away "I think it's a tremendous move for us," Perlozzo said Title must wait for now BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS OAKLAND, Calif.

Juan Rivera hit a go-ahead, three-run double in the sixth, John Lackey pitched seven strong innings and the Los Angeles Angels prevented Oakland from winning the AL West on Saturday with a 6-2 victory over the Athletics. Oakland's magic number to clinch its first division title since 2003 remained at two, so the As could still do it at home with a win in Sunday's series finale. They lead Los Angeles by seven games with eight to go, including the final four of the season against the Angels in Anaheim. Dan Haren takes the ball for the As on Sunday against fellow 14-game winner Ervin Santana. Lackey (12-11) allowed two runs and four hits to beat Joe Blanton (16-12).

The As had their four-game winning streak snapped with only their second loss in 10 games. Twins 8, Orioles 5 Torii Hunter hit his 29th homer, Rondell White had four hits and Minnesota took advantage of some sloppy defense in a victory over Baltimore. The outcome eliminated Boston from postseason contention and enabled the Twins to reduce their magic number for clinching a playoff spot to three. Any combination of Minnesota wins and Chicago White Sox losses totaling three will ensure the Twins no worse than a wild-card berth. Minnesota could also get in as the AL Central winners.

The Twins remained IV2 games behind first-place Detroit, which beat Kansas City Justin Morneau got his 126th RBI and Matt Guerrier (1-0) pitched 1 1-3 innings to earn his first win in 89 career appearances. Joe Nathan, the seventh Minnesota pitcher, got three outs for his 34th save. Erik Bedard (15-10) allowed a career-high 12 hits and three earned runs in 4 2-3 innings. White Sox 11, Mariners 7 Paul Konerko hit a go-ahead homer in a five-run eighth inning and Chicago rallied after a long rain delay to beat Seattle, maintaining its faint playoff hopes. Konerko hit the third pitch from reliever Joel Pineiro (8-13) for a two-run homer, his 33rd, to put the White Sox ahead 8-7 after Jim Thome drew a leadoff walk against George Sherrill.

Rookie knuckleballer Charlie Haeger (1-1) relieved struggling Chicago starter Mark Buehrle and didn't allow a hit for 3 1-3 innings in his first major league win. Blue Jays 5, Red Sox 3 Lyle Overbay and Troy Glaus Patton nets FROM STAFF REPORTS Lindsey Patton posted four goals and added an assist as Prince George rolled past Cosby 6-1 in field hockey action Friday Gina Simpson and Katy Cash scored in the non-district match. Sidney Garcia tacked on an assist for Prince George, which moved to 6-1 this season. Prince George 3 3 6 Cosby 1 0 1 Dodgers in wild card chase BY BRIAN MAHONEY AP SPORTS WRITER NEW YORK David Wright's three-run homer capped a six-run fifth inning, and the New York Mets rallied past the Washington Nationals 12-6 on Saturday. Paul Lo Duca also homered and Wright finished with three hits and three runs for the Mets, who erased a four-run deficit to snap a three-game losing streak.

Jose Reyes drove in three runs and reached base five times with a two-run double, an RBI single, another single and a pair of walks. The Mets broke open the game with three runs in the seventh and three more in the eighth. Wright tripled in the latter on a play when Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson was injured after colliding with right fielder Austin Kearns while chasing a ball. Johnson was immobilized and carted off the field with what looked like a leg injury. He and Kearns also appeared to bang heads, though Kearns walked around and seemed ready to keep playing before being replaced by George Lombard.

Johnson was replaced by BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PHILADELPHIA Carlos Ruiz and Jeff Conine each drove in three runs, Jon Lieber pitched seven solid innings and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Florida Marlins 8-6 Saturday to continue their playoff push. The Phillies (81-73) have won nine of 11. They began the day a half-game behind Los Angeles in the NL wild-card standings. Jimmy Rollins hit his 23rd homer, Shane Victorino and Chase Utley each went 4-for-5 and Ryan Howard drew two more intentional walks for 33 on the season. Howard, who leads the majors with 58 homers, was 1-for-2.

Lieber (9-10) allowed two runs and seven hits for his fifth win in six decisions. Hanley Ramirez, Joe Bor-chard and Miguel Olivo homered for Florida, but the Marlins' playoff hopes are fading following their eighth loss in 11 games. The Phillies scored three runs in the first against Brian Moehler (7-10). Cubs 11, Reds 4 Carlos Zambrano hit his sixth homer, tying the Cubs' record for a pitcher, and Aramis Ramirez had a two-run shot Saturday night that sparked Chicago to an 11-4 victory over the bumbling Cincinnati Reds. The Cubs took advantage of six errors by the Reds, their worst defensive game in 35 years.

Cincinnati led the NL wild-card race for 46 consecu Phillies catch Royals left-hander Mark Redman (10-10) retired only one of the 10 batters he faced, allowing nine runs, before being replaced by Scott Dohm-ann. Devil Rays 8, Yankees 0 Ty Wigginton and B.J. Upton homered for the Devil Rays, spoiling Randy Johnson's bid to become the American League's third 18-game winner. J.P Howell (1-3) allowed three hits in seven scoreless innings for his first major league victory since last Sept. 26, when he pitched five innings for Kansas City in a combined 5-0 shutout at Minnesota.

Rocco Baldelli doubled to drive in two runs against Johnson (17-11) in the third and Wigginton hit his 22nd homer for a 3-0 lead in the fourth. Upton's two-run shot in the sixth was his first in 42 games since being recalled from Triple-A Durham. Indians 6, Rangers 3 Jhonny Peralta homered and drove in three runs to help Cleveland beat the Rangers. Victor Martinez keyed a four-run third with a two-run double for the Indians, who won for only the sixth time in their last 20 games. Trailing 6-1, Texas loaded the bases with two outs in the sixth, but reliever Matt Miller (1-0) got Gerald Laird to ground out.

Rafael Betancourt got three outs for his second save in five chances. Carlos Lee homered and Mark Teixeira had four hits for the Rangers. Texas starter Vicente Padilla (14-10) gave up six runs and eight hits in five innings. and two kills for Dinwiddie. Dinwiddie 8 13 10 Thomas Dale 25 25 25 Records Dinwiddie 0-2 Central District, 1-3; Thomas Dale 3-0, 8-0.

Girls volleyball West End Christian 3, Appomattox Regional 0 The Crusaders took the first game in extra play, then went on for the non-league victory Appomattox Regional25 14 20 West End Christian. .27 25 25 tive days before unraveling in the last month. Ramirez hit a two-run homer in the first inning off Kyle Lohse (2-5) that was his 36th of the season, matching his career high. Ramirez has 20 homers since the All-Star break. Zambrano (16-6) gave up four runs in seven innings while matching his career high for victories.

The hard-swinging pitcher also started a five-run rally in the fourth with a notable homer. Astros 7, Cardinals 4 Luke Scott hit two home runs, including a three-run shot in the ninth inning to give Houston a 7-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday night. The Astros kept their slim wild-card hopes alive as they crept to within five games of the Dodgers, who played the Diamondbacks later Saturday night. St Louis lost its fourth straight and has dropped eight of its last nine on the road.

The Cardinals magic number remained at five. Tyler Johnson (0-4) walked Morgan Ensberg to lead off the ninth. Lance Berkman then singled before Scott homered to right. He has 10 homers and 35 RBI in 46 starts since being recalled from Triple-A Round Rock on July 13. Brewers 10, Giants 8 Barry Bonds hit his 734th career home run to break Hank Aaron's NL record, but the Milwaukee Brewers rallied past San Francisco 10-8 Saturday night for their third con secutive win over the struggling Giants.

Bonds hit a solo shot off Chris Capuano over the right-center fence in the third inning, just out of the reach of outfielders Brady Clark and Corey Hart. Bonds, who hit No. 733 and drove in a season-high six runs Friday night, is 21 homers shy of Aaron's career mark of 755. It was Bonds' 26th home run this season and again it came in the same city where Aaron started and ended his major league career. The Brewers scored twice in the eighth to break an 8-all tie and win their fourth straight game overall.

Tony Graffanino singled with one out and stole second. Prince Fielder struck out, but Bill Hall lined an RBI double down the right-field line. Rockies 10, Braves 9 Kaz Matsui hit a two-run triple in a six-run third inning and Jeff Francis became the win-ningest lefty in Rockies history during Colorado's 10-9 victory over the Atlanta Braves. With temperatures dipping into the mid-40s, Francis (13-11) struggled with his control but still earned his 30th win for Colorado, surpassing Brian Bohanon's team mark for lefthanders. Francis gave up at least one run in four of his five innings, allowing nine hits and five runs overall.

He worked out of a bases-loaded, none-out jam in the fifth by getting Jeff Francoeur to roll into a 5-4-3 double play. four goals in Royals victory PG Lindsey Patton 4, Gina Simpson, Katy Cash Elise Rowsell Saves Christa Brown (PG) Christina Siewic (C) Heather Hlavaty (C) 0. Boys volleyball Thomas Dale 3, Dinwiddie 0 Caleb Scholze had four kills and three blocks as the Knights claimed a Central District match over the Generals. Michael Blankenbecler added nine assists and three blocks in the triumph. Justin Clay had four blocks.