Garciaparra Leads Red Sox to Another Win

Nomar Garciaparra has shown his muscle in May.

Garciaparra hit his fourth homer in three games and Brian Rose won his third consecutive start to lead the Boston Red Sox to a 4-2 win over the Indians on Sunday and a three-game sweep at Cleveland.

Garciaparra, who didn’t hit a homer in April when he missed six games because of an injured hamstring, has 10 this month, along with 34 runs batted in.

“For a while, [my offense] hasn’t been what I wanted,” Garciaparra said. “But the last couple of days, it has been there.”

Rose (3-0) had a perfect game through five innings. Tom Gordon got the last three outs for his 10th save, extending his major-league record to 53 in a row.

Garciaparra hit a three-run homer in the third, lining a 1-and-0 pitch from Dwight Gooden (2-2) into the left-field bleachers for a 3-0 lead. The 437-foot shot was his second three-run homer of the series.

“I did entertain the thought of walking Nomar there,” Indian Manager Mike Hargrove said. “But it is tough to give an intentional walk in the third inning. If it had been late in the game, I likely would have.”

On Saturday, Garciaparra’s three-run homer in the four-run eighth inning helped the Red Sox rally to a 4-2 win. Friday, he hit hit two solo shots in Boston’s five-homer assault and 12-5 win.

Cleveland has lost three in a row for the first time.

New York 8, Toronto --Derek Jeter had three hits and three RBIs and the Yankees scored eight runs off former teammate David Wells at Toronto.

Jeter, who went eight for 12 with six RBIs in the three-game sweep that gave the Yankees a five-game winning streak, hit a two-run single in the second inning and an RBI single in the sixth. Jeter has reached base in all 48 games he has played.

Wells (5-5), who has been mired in a slump since the Yankees beat him April 23, gave up five earned runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings.

Wells, who went 18-4 for the Yankees last year, was traded to the Blue Jays before the season in a four-player deal that sent Roger Clemens to the Yankees.

Hideki Irabu (2-3), who needed a good outing to keep his spot in the rotation, ended a personal three-game losing streak. Irabu gave up three runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Detroit 3, Chicago --One day after their manager accused them of lackadaisical play, the Tigers responded with a hard-fought win at Detroit.

The win was just the sixth for the Tigers in their last 19 games and came a day after Larry Parrish criticized his players for a lethargic approach after a 7-1 loss to the White Sox.

Rookie Gabe Kapler took Parrish’s words to heart, responding with a homer and a double in his first career three-hit game.

“We all understood the message he was trying to get across, and that was how lucky we are to be playing this game and how we really can’t take anything for granted out there on the field,” Kapler said.

Oakland 11, Baltimore --Matt Stairs tripled and doubled to drive in four runs and John Jaha hit a two-run homer at Oakland as the Athletics broke out of an offensive drought.

Oakland, which entered with a major-league low .238 batting average, shelled Scott Erickson (1-7) for seven runs and eight hits, knocking him out after 2 2/3 innings.

Tampa Bay 15, Seattle --The Devil Rays hit four home runs at Seattle, including Jose Canseco’s 19th, and ended a seven-game losing streak.

All nine Tampa Bay starters had a hit and scored a run. Wade Boggs was the only starter without an RBI.

Tampa Bay roughed up Ken Cloude (3-2) for eight hits and seven runs in three-plus innings. Cloude has been hit hard in all four starts this yea--giving up 22 earned runs in 14 innings.