Fresh off the disabled list, the pitcher stifles Baltimore.
By The Associated Press

NEW YORK – The New York Yankees have found their fifth starter.

Jose Contreras made a rousing return from the disabled list, shutting down the Baltimore Orioles on three hits over seven innings in New York’s 7-0 victory Sunday.

Jorge Posada hit a three-run homer in the first and Derek Jeter added a two-run single for the Yankees, who cruised to an easy win after dropping the first two of the four-game series.

Out since June 7 with a strained right shoulder, Contreras replaced a struggling Jeff Weaver in the starting rotation and picked up right where he left off before he was hurt.

After struggling as a reliever early this season, Contreras moved into the rotation in late May with impressive results. He won twice in two starts, at Detroit and Cincinnati, and now is 3-0 with a 0.86 ERA as a big league starter – with 17 strikeouts in 21 innings.

Contreras, who signed a $27 million, three-year contract with the Yankees after defecting from Cuba last year, walked one and struck out five. The performance left Weaver’s role in limbo and little doubt about who manager Joe Torre will turn to down the stretch in addition to starters Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina, Andy Pettitte and David Wells.

Athletics 17, Blue Jays 2

TORONTO – Ramon Hernandez and Miguel Tejada each hit grand slams – the first time the Athletics have connected for two in their 103-year history, and Oakland routed the Toronto Blue Jays 17-2 on Sunday.

Hernandez hit his second career slam, giving Oakland a 4-0 lead off Kelvim Escobar (9-8) in the first. Tejada’s sixth career slam made it 12-2 off Josh Towers in the sixth.

Billy McMillon and Jose Guillen hit back-to-back homers off Towers in the seventh, giving Oakland a 16-2 lead.

McMillon drove in a career-high five runs for the A’s, who reached a season high in runs and hits (19). The 17 runs are the most Oakland has ever scored against Toronto.

Indians 7, Devil Rays 5

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Ryan Ludwick hit a pair of run-scoring singles as the Cleveland Indians handed the Tampa Bay Devil Rays their fifth straight loss, 7-5 Sunday.

Ludwick is 15-for-39 (.385) with four homers in his last 11 games. He drove in five runs in the Indians’ three-game sweep of Tampa Bay.

Jake Westbrook (6-7) gave up four runs and nine hits over five innings. David Riske pitched the ninth for his third save in eight opportunities.

The Indians are 13-6 since Aug. 6. Marlon Anderson and Aubrey Huff drove in two runs each for Tampa Bay, which has allowed 36 runs during its five-game skid.

Rangers 5, White Sox 0

CHICAGO – John Thomson threw a four-hitter to win his fifth straight decision and Hank Blalock hit a two-run homer Sunday as the Texas Rangers avoided a four-game sweep with a 5-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Thomson (12-10) didn’t allow a runner to reach second until there were two outs in the ninth when Magglio Ordonez moved Carlos Lee over with his second hit. Thomson threw 107 pitches – 77 for strikes – in his third complete game of the season. His last came May 18 in a 5-1 win over the New York Yankees. He struck out six and walked one.

The five straight wins are a career high for Thomson, who hasn’t lost since July 22 at Baltimore – seven starts.

The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for Chicago, which remained a game up on Kansas City in the AL Central. The Royals lost 8-1 to the Minnesota Twins, who moved within 11/2 games of the White Sox.

Twins 8, Royals 1

MINNEAPOLIS – Johan Santana struck out 10 batters for the second straight game, and the Minnesota Twins broke loose after an injury to Kevin Appier on Sunday for an 8-1 win over the Kansas City Royals, salvaging a split of their four-game series.

Minnesota, which does not play the Royals again this season, moved within 11/2 games of first-place Chicago in the AL Central, while Kansas City stayed a game back. The White Sox lost 5-0 to Texas.

Santana (8-3), who has become the Twins’ ace with a 1.25 ERA over five starts in August, tied his season high for strikeouts. He gave up six hits and two walks in six innings, but allowed only one run on Desi Relaford’s second-inning homer.

Matthew LeCroy had three RBI singles for the Twins, each scoring Shannon Stewart.

Tigers 10, Angels 9

DETROIT – Brandon Inge hit a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning off Troy Percival and the Detroit Tigers ended their 11-game losing streak, beating the Anaheim Angels 10-9 Sunday.

Carlos Pena opened the ninth with an infield hit and two outs later, Inge connected on a full-count pitch. The rally enabled the Tigers to stop a 14-game skid against Anaheim.

Detroit had been in danger of dropping 12 in a row overall for the first time since 1996.

Garret Anderson hit his 27th homer and drove in five runs for the Angels. His two-run single in the eighth put Anaheim ahead.