Nats' Strasburg beats Orioles with arm, bat

Express delivery: Cincinnati's Brandon Phillips forces out New York's Chris Stewart during the Reds' 5-2 win over the Yankees on Sunday. AP

WASHINGTON — Stephen Strasburg took a swing and looked in amazement as the baseball carried over the left-field wall.

If Strasburg's first major league homer came as a surprise, his performance on the mound did not. With Strasburg leading the way, the Washington Nationals beat the Baltimore Orioles 9-3 Sunday to avert a three-game sweep.

In addition to his 2-for-2 performance at the plate, Strasburg (4-1) struck out eight in five innings before being lifted by manager Davey Johnson, who said the pitcher mentioned tightness in his biceps.

"I don't care who it was, if I find out they have tightness, they're out," Johnson said. "I talked to him later in the game. He said it relaxed a bit and was a lot better. I'm not as concerned when it's in the biceps."

Strasburg sent an 0-2 pitch from Chen Wei-yin, the former Chunichi Dragon, into the Baltimore bullpen in the fourth inning to put the Nationals ahead 5-3. After dusting off his home run trot and returning to the dugout, he responded to a curtain call by waving to the crowd of 41,918.

"Shocking, that's for sure," Strasburg said of his clout. "I feel like in (batting practice) I have to swing a lot harder to hit it out. I just somehow ran into one."

Known more for his pitching than his hitting, Strasburg excelled at both. The right-hander allowed three runs, one earned, four hits and a walk in his first career appearance against Baltimore. He retired the last 10 batters he faced.

Tigers 4, Pirates 3

In Detroit, Max Scherzer struck out 15 — the most by a Tigers pitcher in 40 years — and the hosts rallied with three runs in the seventh inning to beat Pittsburgh.

Mickey Lolich had 15 Ks for Detroit in 1972 and set the club record of 16 in 1969.

Marlins 5, Indians 3

In Cleveland, Josh Johnson twice worked out of jams to earn his second straight win and help Miami win an interleague series against the Indians.

Red Sox 5, Phillies 1

In Philadelphia, Josh Beckett pitched 7? strong innings and Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a three-run homer to lead Boston over the hosts.

Braves 2, Rays 0

In St. Petersburg, Florida, Tim Hudson scattered four hits over 7? innings and David Ross homered to lead Atlanta over Tampa Bay.

Brewers 16, Twins 4

In Milwaukee, Jonathan Lucroy homered twice and had a career-high seven RBIs, and Zack Greinke pitched six strong innings to lead the Brewers over Minnesota.

Milwaukee's Norichika Aoki had a pinch-hit single in the seventh and scored.

Padres 3, Angels 2 (13)

In San Diego, pitcher Clayton Richard scored the winning run from first base on an error with two outs in the 13th inning to lift the Padres over Los Angeles.

Rangers 6, Astros 1

In Houston, Colby Lewis allowed four hits in eight-plus innings and drove in two runs, and Texas took a five-run lead in the first inning before coasting to the win over the Astros.

Mets 6, Blue Jays 5

In Toronto, Mike Baxter had three hits and came within a home run of the cycle, and Dillon Gee won for the first time in four starts.

Reds 5, Yankees 2

In New York, Johnny Cueto pitched effectively into the eighth inning, Ryan Ludwick delivered two big hits and Cincinnati closed its extended trip to the Big Apple with a win.

Athletics 6, Giants 2

In San Francisco, Collin Cowgill drove in the go-ahead runs and scored in a home plate collision with pitcher Tim Lincecum as Oakland snapped an 11-game skid in San Francisco.

Mariners 6, Rockies 4

In Denver, Jesus Montero and Justin Smoak hit back-to-back home runs, Blake Beavan tied a season-high with seven strikeouts and Seattle beat Colorado to complete a three-game sweep.

The Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki hit a double, the 500th of his career, in four at-bats and scored once.

Diamondbacks 2, Royals 0

In Kansas City, Wade Miley pitched seven sharp innings and John McDonald drove in the first run with a bunt single to lead Arizona over the hosts.

White Sox 6, Cubs 0

In Chicago, Jake Peavy pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning and Adam Dunn hit his 14th homer to help the White Sox complete a three-game sweep of their crosstown rivals.

White Sox outfielder Kosuke Fukudome went 1-for-4 and is now batting .175.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Dodgers 6, Cardinals 5

In Los Angeles, pinch hitter Scott Van Slyke connected for his first major league homer, a go-ahead, three-run shot in the seventh inning against his father's former team, and the Dodgers rallied to beat St. Louis.

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