OAKLAND, Calif. - Power hitting from a backup catcher. Strong pitching from a spot starter who hadn't won in three months. Fine defense from a club not known for its glove work.
The Athletics are finding many unusual ways to make their usual second-half surge.
Adam Melhuse hit a three-run homer and John Halama pitched into the seventh as the A's won their sixth straight, sweeping the Baltimore Orioles with a 6-4 victory Thursday.
With slumping Seattle's loss to Tampa Bay, Oakland increased its lead atop the West to two games. Until Wednesday night the A's hadn't been alone in first place since April 12, but with another late-season streak from the majors' best postbreak club the past four years, Oakland is setting the pace again.
"We're playing great baseball," said Halama, who won for the first time since May 8. "We're riding a high right now, and if we can continue to ride this high and put some space between us and Seattle, we're going to be in great shape.
"I'm sure Seattle is reading the scoreboard or looking at the newspaper, and they know we're playing good baseball."
Scott Hatteberg homered and Mark Ellis added a run-scoring triple, and both players made several of Oakland's string of good defensive plays. The A's cruised to their 10th win in 12 games and sixth straight over the Orioles, who lost their fifth in a row.
Oakland had a four-run first, with runs from unlikely sources. Shortly after Hatteberg hit the first leadoff homer of his career, Melhuse hit his fourth homer of the season against Rodrigo Lopez.
Melhuse, a seldom-used backup to All-Star Ramon Hernandez, has a hit in all five of his games in August, including a similar homer against Toronto last week.
ROYALS 6, RANGERS 5 (11): Mike Sweeney singled in the winning run to help host Kansas City regain first place in the Central.
Alex Rodriguez homered twice for Texas to tie San Francisco's Barry Bonds for the major-league lead at 39. Rodriguez's homer to lead off the ninth tied it at 5 off of Mike MacDougal, who blew a save for the eighth time in 34 chances.
Joe Randa led off the bottom of the 11th with a single off Erasmo Ramirez and Sweeney punched the ball up the middle to give Kansas City a three-game sweep. The Royals lead by .0005 percentage points over the White Sox.
YANKEES 7, WHITE SOX 5: Chicago scored two in the first, and another blowout in the Bronx seemed possible. Then New York beat up on rookie Neal Cotts for five runs in the bottom half, and Mike Mussina finally quieted those White Sox bats.
"After what happened the last two nights, it was a big deal to win this game," Mussina said after pitching New York past Chicago to prevent a three-game sweep.
New York, pummeled by a combined 24-4 the first two games, headed to Boston for a weekend series with a 41/2-game lead in the East.
TWINS 6, ANGELS 1: Jacque Jones hit a two-run homer, leading Kyle Lohse and visiting Minnesota. Matthew LeCroy and Luis Rivas also drove in two each for the Twins, who moved within 11/2 of the Central lead.
INDIANS 8, TIGERS 3: Rookie Jody Gerut homered twice and drove in a career-high five, powering visiting Cleveland.
