MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Joe Mauer had a career-high five hits and Francisco Liriano threw seven sharp innings to help the Minnesota Twins beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-2 Tuesday night.

Liriano allowed two runs and five hits. He struck out eight for the Twins, who have won six straight, 14 of 15 and 16 of 18. They are 12-2 in interleague play.

Liriano (8-1), who moved into the Minnesota rotation May 15, has won six of seven starts. His ERA is 1.76 and opponents are hitting .170 against the 22-year-old over that span.

Minnesota, 26-10 at the Metrodome, has won nine straight at home, holding each opponent to less than four runs, the first time the team has done that since it relocated from Washington in 1961. The team ERA in those games is 1.39.

Derek Lowe (6-4) allowed six runs in the second inning and lost for the first time since May 16. He was 5-0 with two no-decisions in his previous seven starts.

The Twins loaded the bases with one out in the second and Lowe hit Jason Bartlett to make it 1-0. Luis Castillo then hit a two-run single and Nick Punto followed with a triple to drive in two more runs. Mauer added a run-scoring single.

Mauer has at least four hits in a game four times this season. He went 5-for-5 against the Dodgers to raise his batting average to .389, tops in baseball.

Lowe allowed a season-high nine earned runs and 12 hits in 5 1-3 innings in his shortest outing since opening day. His ERA increased from 2.90 to 3.49. Lowe, who was coming off a complete game win against Seattle on Thursday, dropped to 0-2 with an 8.04 ERA and three saves in 11 career appearances in the Metrodome.

Liriano kept the Dodgers’ hitters off balance all night by mixing 96 mph fastballs with changeups and a nasty slider.

His first pitch was hit by Rafael Furcal for a single, but Liriano struck out two of the next three batters. He also struck out two of the three batters he faced in the second inning.

Nomar Garciaparra extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a fourth-inning home run for Los Angeles, which entered the night a half-game ahead of San Diego in the NL West.

Jeff Kent homered in the seventh for the Dodgers.

Notes: The Dodgers placed RHP Brett Tomko on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 24 with a left oblique strain. … Minnesota’s Justin Morneau has hit safely in 17 of 18 games, batting .403 (29-for-72) in that stretch. … Castillo knocked his own helmet off when a foul ball went off the plate and hit the underside of his brim. He hit a two-run single on the next pitch. … Los Angeles has lost 14 straight games in American League ballparks. … Garciaparra has reached base in 47 of his last 48 games.

AP-ES-06-27-06 2251EDT