Vernon Wells hits 2 of Toronto's 4 homers, Blue Jays beat Rangers 8-5

If he keeps pounding the Rangers like this, Vernon Wells won't be welcome back in Texas this winter.

Wells hit two home runs, Adam Lind and John Buck also connected and the Toronto Blue Jays beat Texas 8-5 on Tuesday night for their seventh consecutive victory over the Rangers.

Wells has gone deep in three straight games and is batting .448 (13 for 29) with eight homers and 16 RBIs in eight games against his hometown team this year.

"I've got some people upset at home," said Wells, who lives near Arlington in the off-season.

Right now, Rangers fans are just upset that their first-place team is stumbling badly in September. Texas, which began the day with a seven-game lead in the AL West over Oakland, has lost five straight and nine of 12.

"It seems like every time we get a ball up in the zone against these guys, they don't miss it," Rangers manager Ron Washington said.

Vladimir Guerrero replied with a two-run shot for Texas, which has lost 12 of 17 in Toronto.

For Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston, the victory was the 900th of his career. Gaston led Toronto to consecutive World Series titles in 1992 and 1993 but intends to retire after the season.

"He's done a lot in this game and for this city," Wells said. "The guys in here want to finish strong and have him go out the right way."

The Blue Jays lead the majors with 215 home runs this season, including a major league-high 119 at home. Toronto has gone deep in nine straight games, hitting 20 homers during that span. They have hit three or more home runs in a game 33 times, the most in baseball.

Wells hit two solo homers to left, one in the fourth inning and another in the seventh, giving him 27 on the season. The first was a towering shot into the fourth deck, the second was a liner into the corner. It was his third multihomer game of the season and the 21st of his career.

Buck hit a solo shot to right in the second, his 17th, and Lind hit a two-run drive off the restaurant in centre field in the seventh, his 20th.

The crowd of 10,518 was Toronto's second-smallest of the season. The Blue Jays drew 10,314 on April 19 against Kansas City.

Shaun Marcum (12-7) allowed three runs and six hits in seven innings to win for the first time since Aug. 16 at Oakland and match his career high for wins. Marcum, who walked two and struck out eight, went 12-6 in 2007.

"I wouldn't say he was electric but he was tricky," Buck said. "He was changing speeds on his changeup. He was locating his fastball down low and away. After that he'd throw a good cutter and follow it up with three different speeds off his changeup."

Marcum had elbow ligament replacement surgery in Sept. 2008 and did not pitch last season.

"He's been able to prove that he's back from his injury and continues to get better," Wells said. "It's been a pleasure to watch."

Elsewhere in the AL, it was: Baltimore 6, N.Y. Yankees 2; Detroit 9, Chicago White Sox 1; Tampa Bay 14, Boston 5; Minnesota 10, Kansas City 3; Cleveland 6, L.A. Angels 1; and Seattle 7, Oakland 5.

At Toronto, Jason Frasor worked the eighth and Kevin Gregg got two outs for his 31st save in 36 chances after Shawn Camp gave up a two-run single to Andres Blanco in the ninth.

"We waited till the end of the game to battle, but the home runs that we gave up came back to haunt us," Washington said.

Texas right-hander Scott Feldman (6-10) was activated from the 15-day disabled list before the game to pitch in place of injured lefty Cliff Lee (back). Feldman, who had been sidelined with a sore right knee, started for the first time since July 24.

Lee recently got a cortisone shot in his back after going 0-3 with an 8.28 ERA in his last five starts, and won't start again until this weekend when the Rangers host the New York Yankees. He threw a bullpen session before Tuesday's game, which Washington said "went well."

Toronto got to Feldman in the second on Buck's homer. The ball struck a metal bar above the outfield wall and bounced back onto the field, and Buck initially stopped at second. Gaston argued and the umpires huddled before heading off for a video review. After about 2 minutes, crew chief Tom Hallion came out and indicated it was a home run.

Texas answered in the fourth on Guerrero's two-run shot to left, his 26th.

Toronto tied it in the bottom half on Wells' first homer, then reclaimed the lead and chased Feldman in the fifth on Jose Bautista's two-run double.

Feldman lost his fourth straight decision, allowing four runs and seven hits in 4 2-3 innings. His only walk was intentional, and he struck out four.

"(Toronto is) playing pretty good right now and they're really making us pay for the mistakes we're making," Feldman said.

Rays 14, Red Sox 5

At Boston, Evan Longoria hit one of five Tampa Bay home runs and David Price pitched the Rays past the Boston Red Sox 14-5 on Tuesday night to gain a game in the AL East race.

The Rays snapped a three-game skid and cut New York's division lead to 1½ games.

---

At New York, Jake Arrieta pitched efficiently into the seventh inning, Adam Jones had a two-run single in a three-run first and Baltimore denied nemesis CC Sabathia his 20th victory by beating the Yankees.

---

At Minneapolis, Jim Thome hit another towering homer, Delmon Young drove in four runs and the Twins beat Kansas City to take their largest AL Central lead in 10 days.

---

At Detroit, Justin Verlander allowed five hits over seven innings and the Tigers ended Chicago's seven-game winning streak.

Three players — White Sox starter Freddy Garcia (back), Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera (shoulder) and White Sox designated hitter Manny Ramirez (hand) — left the game with injuries, while Chicago's Gordon Beckham (hand) was a late scratch from the lineup.

---

Mariners 7, Athletics 5

At Oakland, Calif., Doug Fister won for the second time in nearly four months, Adam Moore homered and the Seattle Mariners broke out of a long scoring slump to beat the Athletics.

---

Indians 6, Angels, 1

At Anaheim, Calif., Lou Marson hit a grand slam in the sixth inning and Justin Masterson pitched seven solid innings as Cleveland downed the L.A. Angels.