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BOSTON - Ryan Rupe found his control and a knack for pitching in the rain in the minors. That came in handy Friday night.
Rupe, the former Devil Rays starter, pitched six strong innings in his debut with Boston, striking out four and walking none despite gamelong showers as the Red Sox beat the Houston Astros 4-3.
"It's been that way in Pawtucket and it's been awful. I think we saw the sun two days," he said of his stay at Triple A.
So the 1-hour, 25-minute delay before the game didn't bother him. But the rain and wind nearly deprived Johnny Damon of his sixth-inning homer that broke a tie at 3.
"I hit that ball good enough to go into the upper deck in a couple of stadiums and it barely got out there," Damon said.
His shot off Ricky Stone hit the top of the low rightfield wall and bounced onto the field. He hustled to third as Richard Hidalgo fired to the infield, but first-base umpire Terry Craft gave the home run signal.
Rupe allowed one earned run and eight hits in six innings after being called up from Pawtucket, where he was 4-1 with a 2.72 ERA after a poor spring training. The Red Sox claimed him on waivers Nov.27 from Tampa Bay.
"It was a disaster," he said of his training camp. "I didn't deserve to make the team."
He fit right in Friday.
"He didn't walk anybody and he made some pitches when he had to," Houston's Jeff Bagwell said. "You're going to be successful when you do that."
BLUE JAYS 5, CUBS 1: Kelvim Escobar struck out a season-high 10 and nearly pitched his second straight shutout as host Toronto won its fifth in a row. Reed Johnson, Chris Woodward and Greg Myers homered for the Blue Jays, eight games over .500 for the first time since May 1, 2001.
ROYALS 6, GIANTS 1: Michael Tucker and Desi Relaford hit two-run homers, leading the Royals in San Francisco's first game in Kansas City. Barry Bonds failed to homer for the first time in five games, going 2-for-4 with two singles in the stadium where his father was MVP of the 1973 All-Star Game.
DODGERS 4, INDIANS 3 (10): Jolbert Cabrera came back to haunt his former team, hitting a run-scoring double in the 10th to lift visiting Los Angeles in the first meeting between the teams in 83 years. Dodgers outfielder Shawn Green's run-scoring double tied it at 3 in the seventh.
ATHLETICS 8, EXPOS 4: Ramon Hernandez hit a three-run homer and tied a career high with four RBIs, and Mark Mulder remained unbeaten at home for Oakland, which stopped a two-game skid.
TWINS 3, D'BACKS 1: Torii Hunter's two-run, tiebreaking single in the sixth lifted Johan Santana and host Minnesota. Junior Spivey's sacrifice fly accounted for Arizona's run.
ROCKIES 7, TIGERS 2: Chris Stynes hit a two-run single and Mark Sweeney followed with a three-run homer in a six-run sixth as Colorado handed host Detroit its eighth straight loss.
MARLINS 8, RANGERS 0: Ivan Rodriguez had a run-scoring single and scored twice in his first game as an opposing player at Texas and caught Florida's third shutout of the season.
ORIOLES 7, BREWERS 2: Jay Gibbons hit two homers, including his first career grand slam, and Sidney Ponson won his fifth straight start for host Baltimore.
WHITE SOX 5, PADRES 3: Magglio Ordonez, Frank Thomas and Armando Rios homered for host Chicago.
REDS 15, PHILLIES 1: Adam Dunn hit his 21st home run and bowled over Philadelphia catcher Mike Lieberthal as host Cincinnati pulled away, then charged the mound and touched off a brawl.
Dunn went after reliever Carlos Silva, who threw two inside fastballs the next time he came to bat after his shoulder-down hit on Lieberthal while trying to score.
Dunn, a football player at Texas, dropped his bat, tightened his batting glove and headed for the mound. Lieberthal dived and tackled Dunn from behind as the slugger reached the mound.
Silva glanced a punch off the side of Dunn's head as he lay on the ground.
Dunn and Sean Casey were ejected for the Reds. Silva, manager Larry Bowa and closer Jose Mesa also were ejected.