—
BALTIMORE — C.J. Wilson took a two-hitter into the ninth inning and had a career-high 12 strikeouts to carry the Texas Rangers past the Baltimore Orioles 2-0 on Friday night.
Wilson (12-5) retired 16 straight batters until Brian Roberts led off the ninth with a double. Before that, the only two hits against the left-hander were by Julio Lugo — a first-inning single and a double in the third.
Rangers manager Ron Washington pulled Wilson with two outs in the ninth and Roberts on third. Neftali Feliz retired pinch-hitter Luke Scott on a foul pop for his 30th save, the first for Texas in August.
Mitch Moreland homered and Josh Hamilton had two hits and an RBI for the Rangers, who snapped a four-game losing streak.
Phillies 1, Nationals 0
PHILADELPHIA — Roy Halladay pitched seven shutout innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 1-0 victory over the Washington Nationals on Friday night.
The Phillies (69-52), who have won 13 of 17 games, are 2 1/2 games behind the Braves in the NL East.
Halladay (16-8) won his sixth straight while allowing eight hits, striking out five and walking three, matching a season high. It was the ninth time this season he hasn’t allowed a run and the 25th time in 26 starts he has pitched six or more innings.
The Phillies, who managed just four hits, scored their lone run off Jason Marquis (0-6) in the third inning on Raul Ibanezs RBI double.
Mets 7, Pirates 2
PITTSBURGH — David Wright and Jose Reyes each had three of the Mets’ slump-ending 15 hits, Mike Pelfrey pitched eight innings and New York assured the Pittsburgh Pirates of their record-extending 18th consecutive losing season, winning 7-2 on Friday night.
Chris Carter homered and drove in two runs a night after the Mets were limited to three hits during a 3-2 loss in Houston, causing Mets manager Jerry Manuel to call his offense “pathetic.”
Think how Manuel would feel if he managed the Pirates, whose 82nd loss — they’ve won 40 times — guaranteed them of extending the longest streak of consecutive losing seasons in major American pro sports history.
The Pirates, who fell behind 3-0 in the first and 5-1 in the third, are on pace to lose 109 games, only three off their modern-era record of 112 during a 154-game season in 1952. They’ve dropped 11 of 12, scoring more than two runs only twice in any of those defeats.
Mariners 6, Yankees 0
NEW YORK — Felix Hernandez nearly became the first pitcher in more than 25 years to throw four straight complete games against the New York Yankees, and Russell Branyan hit a pair of homers off A.J. Burnett and drove in four runs to lift the Seattle Mariners to a 6-0 victory Friday night.
Hat slightly askew as usual, Hernandez kept New York off-kilter for eight innings, allowing four hits and striking out 11. He was lifted after 117 pitches for Garrett Olson, who pitched a perfect ninth to help Seattle win its third in a row and improve to 7-3 under interim manager Daren Brown.
Blue Jays 16, Red Sox 2
BOSTON — Lyle Overbay hit two homers and drove in a career-high seven runs as the Toronto Blue Jays battered Boston Red Sox starter Jon Lester en route to a 16-2 victory on Friday night.
It was the ninth multi-homer game of Overbay’s career and second this season. He was 4-for-5.
Overbay’s second homer — his 15th of the season — chased Lester (13-8) after 2-plus innings. He surrendered eight hits, three walks and nine runs. His previous low point came against Tampa Bay last season when gave up eight runs in 4 1-3 innings.
Jose Bautista hit his major league-leading 38th homer in the seventh. John McDonald also homered for the Blue Jays. John Buck, activated from the disabled list prior to the game, was 4-for-5 with two RBI and four runs.
It was the most runs given up by the Red Sox this season.
