Tigers finally flash their teeth

Ordonez's 2 homers, 6 RBIs fuel blowout

Despite appearances, Johnny Damon didn't have to hop the fence to retrieve Richie Sexson's home run in the eighth inning of the Yankees' win. (ray stubblebine/Reuters)

Before the season, there was conjecture the Detroit Tigers might score 1,000 runs this year. But instead of blasting off, Detroit slumped its way to the bottom of the AL Central.

But now, nearly two months into the season, the Tigers finally seem to be roaring.

Magglio Ordoñez, the defending AL batting champion, homered twice and drove in six runs to help the hosts blow out Minnesota, 19-3, giving a sellout crowd a good excuse to leave early and check out the Pistons' and Red Wings' home playoff games.

Ordoñez hit a two-run shot to deep left field in the first and drove in two runners with a third-inning double that gave Detroit the lead for good. He added another two-run shot to left during a six-run fourth. The Tigers have scored 58 runs in the first five games of this homestand since returning from a 1-5 road trip.

Twins righthander Boof Bonser (2-6) had his shortest outing of the season, lasting just three batters into the fourth. He gave up the Tigers' first nine runs and remained winless in five May starts.

Bonser was pulled after the first three men reached base in the fourth, but relievers Brian Bass and Juan Rincon didn't fare any better. Bass gave up seven runs in 1 1/3 innings and Rincon allowed three more in the next 2 2/3.

Detroit scored six runs in the fourth and seven in the fifth. Gary Sheffield had a two-run single in the fifth and finished with his first three-RBI game of the season. Placido Polanco was 4 for 5 and scored four times.

Pirates 5, Cubs 4 - Jason Bay hit a two-run homer before winning it in the 14th inning with a single against a drawn-in outfield as host Pittsburgh came back after squandering a two-run lead to beat Chicago. The Pirates tied it at 4 in the ninth on Luis Rivas's sacrifice fly against Cubs closer Kerry Wood.

Rays 11, Orioles 4 - Evan Longoria homered twice and had six RBIs to lead Tampa Bay past visiting Baltimore.

Carlos Peña added three RBIs for the Rays, who are 21-9 since April 22, and improved to a franchise-best nine games over .500 (29-20).

Angels 2, White Sox 0 - Jered Weaver (4-5) pitched three-hit ball over eight innings and Vladimir Guerrero hit a solo home run as Los Angeles won in Chicago.

Francisco Rodriguez pitched a perfect ninth for his major league-leading 21st save in 22 chances.

Indians 5, Rangers 2 - Cliff Lee (7-1) gave up two runs in 6 2/3 innings and Ben Francisco, robbed of a three-run homer by an umpire's blown call Friday night, hit a three-run homer to help host Cleveland snap its seven-game losing streak.

Braves 3, Diamondbacks 1 - Jeff Francoeur hit a game-ending, two-run homer off Chad Qualls in the ninth inning as Atlanta overcame a sparkling 10-strikeout performance by Randy Johnson to beat visiting Arizona.

Yankees 12, Mariners 6 - Jason Giambi hit a three-run homer and Bobby Abreu added a two-run shot as New York pummeled visiting Seattle for its first four-game winning streak this season.

Astros 4, Phillies 3 - Houston's Carlos Lee drove in three runs, and Darin Erstad, his defensive replacement in left, threw out Pedro Feliz at the plate to complete a victory over visiting Philadelphia.

Blue Jays 6, Royals 0 - Jesse Litsch (6-1) allowed seven hits in his first career complete game and Brad Wilkerson hit a grand slam as host Toronto extended Kansas City's losing streak to six.

Mets 9, Rockies 2 - David Wright hit his ninth homer and Carlos Beltran had a three-run double as part of a five-run first as New York won in Denver to end a five-game skid.

Reds 7, Padres 2 - Joey Votto's three-run homer, his 10th of the year, was enough to carry Cincinnati to a win in San Diego, which tumbled to its 14th loss in 20 games.

Cardinals 4, Dodgers 0 - Kyle Lohse (4-2) pitched six scoreless innings to lead St. Louis to a victory in Los Angeles.

Brewers 5, Nationals 2 - Corey Hart and Mike Cameron homered to help Milwaukee win in Washington.

The game between San Francisco and Florida was postponed because of rain and was rescheduled as a doubleheader today.