Berkman's single lifts Cardinals over Brewers in 11th  —  MILWAUKEE — Lance Berkman singled in Matt Holliday with two out in the 11th inning and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-7 on Tuesday in a matchup of NL Central contenders that turned testy as the night wore on.

Renteria's grand slam propels Reds to win over Astros  —  HOUSTON — Edgar Renteria hit a grand slam in Cincinnati's five-run fifth inning and Homer Bailey pitched eight solid innings to lead the Reds to a 5-1 win over the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.  —  Chris Heisey and Ramon Hernandez …

Angels' Santana beats Twins 5-1 with eight-hitter  —  ANAHEIM, Calif.—Ervin Santana followed up his no-hitter with an eight-hitter and the Los Angeles Angels got home runs from Torii Hunter and rookie Mark Trumbo on Tuesday night in a 4-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.

Ankiel's grand slam leads Nationals over Braves  —  WASHINGTON — Rick Ankiel kept up his sudden power surge, hitting a grand slam off Derek Lowe that sent the Washington Nationals over the Atlanta Braves 9-3 Tuesday night for their fourth straight win.  —  The Nationals have their longest …

Bedard excited to pitch in first pennant race  —  BOSTON — Take one look at the Major League Baseball map and you realize that Erik Bedard's old home could not be any further from his new one.  But the lefty feels like he's traveled even further than that in the standings, and that's what makes him most enthused about the move.

Saltalamacchia dives home for winning run in 9th  —  BOSTON—Pinch-runner Jarrod Saltalamacchia dived across home plate to score the winning run on Jacoby Ellsbury's single in the ninth inning and the Boston Red Sox beat the Cleveland Indians 3-2 on a rainy Tuesday night.

Mark Teixeira powers Yankees to win  —  CHICAGO - Mark Teixeira set a major league record by homering from both sides of the plate for the 12th time and Phil Hughes pitched six innings to send the New York Yankees to their fifth straight victory, 6-0 over the fading Chicago White Sox in a game called after 6 1-2 innings because of rain.

Red Sox not ruling out Buchholz return this year  —  BOSTON — The Red Sox have confirmed that pitcher Clay Buchholz has a stress fracture of the L2 vertebra in his lower back, but a return this season has not been ruled out and the injury is not career threatening.

Paul Goldschmidt powers D-backs past Giants  —  SAN FRANCISCO - Paul Goldschmidt hit his first career homer, a two-run shot off Tim Lincecum that helped the Arizona Diamondbacks move into a tie for first place in the NL West with the Giants by beating San Francisco 6-1 on Tuesday night.

Dodgers slip past Padres 1-0  —  SAN DIEGO - Hiroki Kuroda pitched seven shutout innings and Matt Kemp had two hits and drove in the only run and the Los Angeles Dodgers shut out the San Diego Padres 1-0 on Tuesday.  —  Kuroda (7-13) snapped a four-game losing streak, allowing four hits while striking out eight and walking two.

Rangers Designate Arthur Rhodes For Assignment  —  The Rangers designated Arthur Rhodes for assignment, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter).  The move creates roster space for newly-acquired right-hander Mike Adams.  —  Rhodes, 41, has a 4.81 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 24 1/3 innings this year.

Yankees consider calling up Montero soon  —  CHICAGO — According to Yankees GM Brian Cashman, there is a chance Jesus Montero could be in pinstripes before the rosters expand Sept. 1.  —  Asked if the right-handed hitting catcher, who Cashman refused to part with for Ubaldo Jimenez at the trade deadline …

Street's great adventure, plus other Rox news ‘n’ notes  —  Rockies pitcher Huston Street hangs his head after giving up the game-tying two-run homerun to Phillies center fielder John Mayberry.  —  Huston Street pitched the ninth inning tonight and, well, you know what that means.  Yep.

Ryan's hustle leads to unique basepath jaunt  —  Shortstop motors to third thanks to heads-up play on infield single  —  SEATTLE — Mariners shortstop Brendan Ryan caught the A's napping in the first inning Tuesday night with one of the more unusual baserunning plays imaginable, as he wound up at third base on an infield single.

Baseball's Weight Problem  —  On-Deck Routines Hurt Hitters' Bat Speed; Giving Up Doughnuts  —  Just before game time, Detroit Tigers clubhouse manager Jim Schmakel makes sure a long, dirt-stained canvas bag is unloaded in the on-deck circle.  —  Among other things, it holds a 10-ounce …

MLB Power Rankings: Orioles On Top, Giants At Bottom  —  This week's power rankings are based on conversations that each team's general manager had leading into the trade deadline.  These are actual transcriptions.  And though there's not really a good way to rank them …

Florida Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez leaves game after injuring his left shoulder  —  Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez just left the game after injuring his left shoulder while diving in an effort to catch Angel Pagan's single in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Soriano Hits Two of Cubs' Six Homers  —  PITTSBURGH (AP) — Alfonso Soriano hit two of the Cubs' season-high six home runs and the Cubs had a season-best 23 hits in an 11-6 victory over the fading Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.  —  Soriano hit solo shots in the third inning off Kevin Correia …