By The Associated Press

NEW YORK – Alex Rodriguez turned boos to cheers with a two-run homer in the 12th inning, rallying the New York Yankees to a 4-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.

After Marcus Giles put Atlanta ahead with a solo shot in the top half, Rodriguez finally delivered the big hit those demanding Yankees fans have been clamoring for all month.

Jorge Sosa (2-10) walked Jason Giambi with one out. Rodriguez, mired in a 2-for-20 slump, then drove a 3-1 pitch way over the left-field fence for his 16th home run. The 2005 AL MVP clapped his hands and blew a kiss to the sky on his way to first, then tossed his helmet high in the air as he neared the plate for a warm greeting from teammates.

Ron Villone (1-1) escaped a bases-loaded jam in the top of the 12th to keep New York within one. Jason Giambi homered earlier for the Yankees, and Rodriguez finished with three RBIs.

Tigers 5, Astros 0

DETROIT – Justin Verlander pitched three-hit ball for eight innings and the surging Detroit Tigers took advantage of several defensive miscues by the Houston Astros in a 5-0 victory Wednesday.

The Tigers, who own the best record in baseball, have won six straight and 17 of their last 20 games. Houston has lost six of seven, its worst slump since dropping six in a row from May 5-10.

Twins 6, Dodgers 3

MINNEAPOLIS – Johan Santana pitched seven shutout innings and Torii Hunter hit a grand slam to lead the Minnesota Twins to their seventh straight victory, 6-3 over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.

Joe Mauer went 2-for-3 with a walk to improve his major league-best batting average to .392. The 23-year-old catcher, Minnesota’s designated hitter Wednesday, went 11-for-13 in the three-game series and had hits in eight consecutive at-bats before grounding out in the second inning. He is batting .484 (46-for-95) in June.

Blue Jays 6, Nationals 1

TORONTO – Ted Lilly pitched six shutout innings to win his third consecutive start and Frank Catalanotto drove in three runs to help the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Washington Nationals 6-1 on Wednesday night.

Reed Johnson added a two-run triple for Toronto (43-34).

Ryan Zimmerman drove in the only run of the game for Washington (33-46) with an eight-inning double off reliever Scott Downs, ending a streak of 19 consecutive scoreless innings by the Blue Jays.

Orioles 7, Phillies 4

BALTIMORE – Erik Bedard pitched five-hit ball to extend his run of scoreless innings to 16, and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Philadelphia Phillies 7-4 Wednesday in the first game of a split doubleheader.

Ramon Hernandez and Brian Roberts homered for the Orioles, who have won three of four. It was Roberts’ first homer since Aug. 30; he had a career-high 18 last season, 15 by the All-Star break.

Reds 7, Royals 2

CINCINNATI – Ken Griffey Jr. hit the last of Cincinnati’s four homers Wednesday night, and Aaron Harang shut down a Kansas City offense that had been on a surge, leading the Reds to a 7-2 victory over the Royals.

The Reds hit their first three homers off Scott Elarton (3-9) during a five-run third inning that set the tone and helped Cincinnati snap a four-game losing streak at home. The Reds are 18-20 at Great American Ball Park.

Devil Rays 3, Marlins 1

MIAMI – Casey Fossum pitched five strong innings to help the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Florida 3-1 on Wednesday night, ending the Marlins’ eight-game home winning streak. Fossum (3-3) allowed one run and three hits. He walked five and struck out two to beat Florida for the first time. Brian Meadows pitched the ninth for his third save.

Cubs 6, Brewers 3

CHICAGO – Derrek Lee homered for the first time in almost three months and Ronny Cedeno hit an RBI bloop double during a five-run eighth inning that rallied the Chicago Cubs past the Milwaukee Brewers 6-3 Wednesday.

Lee, who came off the disabled list Sunday after missing 59 games with a broken wrist, hit his first homer since April 8, a two-run shot off Dan Kolb (2-2) that tied the game and started the comeback.

Cardnals 5, Indians 4

ST. LOUIS – Jhonny Peralta’s throwing error, one of two by the Cleveland Indians in the ninth inning, handed the St. Louis Cardinals a 5-4 victory on Wednesday night that ended an eight-game losing streak.

Catcher Kelly Shoppach, who had entered in a double switch in the eighth, dropped So Taguchi’s pop fly just in front of home plate to start the inning for a two-base error.

and Aaron Miles’ RBI double off Bob Wickman (1-3) with one out tied the score. Miles was on third on David Eckstein’s routine two-out grounder, a throw in the dirt by Peralta that eluded first baseman Victor Martinez.