Orioles 7, Yankees 1 — “How soon can we get Pettitte out of the courtroom and into the Bronx?” Of the 10 SPs with at least 4 starts who have yet to top a 50 Game Score, two are Yankees.

Freddy Garcia will skip a start, at least. Phil Hughes had some positives tonight — 6 Ks and 1 walk in 5.2 IP — but he was hurt by a pair of Oriole HRs and by his inability to finish off Matt Wieters with 2 strikes to close out the 6th. He clipped Wieters with his 100th pitch and was lifted; that runner and two more would come in before the inning ended.

• Hughes has allowed 7 HRs in 21.2 IP, at least 1 in each of his 5 starts.
• Long time comin’: Baltimore beat New York for the first time in five tries this year. And Brian Matusz won for the first time since last D-Day, ending a 12-decision losing streak. Matusz allowed only Curtis Granderson‘s 9th HR — a bomb that gave the Yanks a brief lead — in notching his second straight quality start; he had none in his previous 15 starts.

Blue Jays 8, Rangers 7: Francisco Cordero blew a save in the top of the 9th, on a trio of 2-out hits. But Brett Lawrie led off the bottom half with a screamer that skipped off and over the wall for the second game-winning HR of his young career.

• Texas has split their last 10 games. ‘Course, they won 8 straight before that.
• Keep ’em in the yard: The Rangers are 1-4 when they fail to homer, but 9-1 when they hit exactly one.
• Toronto is 14-8 against Texas since 2010.

A’s 5, Red Sox 3 — Rookie of the night: Jarrod Parker (1 run in 6.2 IP against baseball’s top offense) has allowed 2 runs over 13 IP in 2 starts since being called up from AAA, where he had a 2.18 ERA in 4 starts. The 23-year-old Parker was part of the offseason package for Trevor Cahill, who also won tonight.

• Oakland closer Grant Balfour retired just one of the four men he faced, allowing 2 runs and departing with the tying runs on base. Balfour has gotten just 1 out in his last 2 games, allowing 5 hits. He does not have good numbers against Boston.

Tigers 9, Royals 3 — There are over 100 active SPs with at least 500 career IP, and Luke Hochevar began tonight with the worst ERA+, 81. Then he surrendered 9 runs on 12 hits and 3 walks in 4 IP, his second “disaster start” this year (more runs than IP). If there’s any positive in his season line so far, it’s that none of the 32 hits off him in 25.2 IP has left the yard.

KC’s long-term failure to develop or sign quality starters has been well documented, but to recap: In the 12 years from 2000-11, the Royals had:

• just 22 qualifying pitcher-seasons; the other AL teams averaged 34.
• just 10 qualifying seasons with an ERA+ over 100; the other AL teams averaged 24.
• just 5 seasons of 4+ WAR; the other AL teams averaged 12.
• only 1 season of 5+ WAR; the other AL teams averaged 5.

Rays 3, Mariners 1 — Seventh time this year that a team won while getting 3 hits or less. Matt Joyce did most of Tampa’s damage with his 6th HR and 3rd triple. Seattle had 9 hits, but only 1 walk, and they scored only on a solo HR.

•  The year’s first “4-0-4-0” was also the first 4-hit game in the career of Jesus Montero, lifting his BA to .294. On the down side, he’s drawn just 2 walk against 18 Ks.

Dodgers-Rockies — Dee Gordon improved his OBP and his SLG, leading off the game with his first career HR. Two hits later, Andre Ethier crookified that number with a 3-run shot. Did I mention they’re in Coors Field?

• Ted Lilly is 3-0, 1.38, and has allowed 13 hits in 26 IP. He did finally allow his first HR, after averaging 30 for the past 2 years.
• There are two active players with the last name Ellis, and they’re both regulars for the Dodgers who had big games tonight.

White Sox 7, Indians 2 — Converted reliever Chris Sale is now 3-1, 2.81 in five starts.

• Running totals for Ubaldo Jimenez at this writing: 20 walks, 14 Ks. No pitcher since 1995 has had a qualifying ERA+ over 100 with more walks than whiffs.
• Cleveland’s #1-5 hitters went 0-20.

Cardinals 10, Pirates 7 –STL (15-8) is the only team over .500 in the NL Central. Pittsburgh’s 4 errors contributed to 3 unearned runs.

• Jon Jay has 24 hits in 15 starts.

Angels 4, Twins 0 — Who had Jerome Williams tossing the Angels’ first shutout? His last scoreless game of 7+ IP was in 2005.

• Francisco Liriano (5.1 IP, 4 R, 10 baserunners, 2 HRs) somehow managed to avoid a fifth straight start of 5+ ER. But that doesn’t make 0-4, 9.97 look a whole lot better.
• After 14 games, Albert Pujols finally ended his RBI drought … with a groundout.
• Last July 29, the Twins’ record was 50-56. They finished in a 13-43 swoon, which has grown to 19-60 counting this season.
• On the bright side, this was their first shutout loss.

Marlins 2, Giants 1: Matt Cain (8 IP, 2 R) fell to 1-2 with a 2.35 ERA; his only win was the 1-hit shutout. SF got the tying run to 3rd with no outs in the 8th and loaded the bases with 1 out, but Buster Posey‘s double play ended that.

• Posey is 4-19 with RISP this year, with 2 RBI and 2 GIDP.
• Ricky Nolasco allowed a run on 7 hits in 7.1 IP, with a walk and just one strikeout. In 105 prior starts of 6+ IP, he never had less than 2 Ks. Nolasco’s K rate peaked at 9.5 SO/9 in 2009, but has fallen to 8.4, 6.5 and now 5.0 through 5 starts.

Padres 2, Brewers 0: Mark Kotsay‘s pinch-hit 2-run HR off Francisco Rodriguez broke up a scoreless game in the 8th. Milwaukee managed just 3 singles off Edinson Volquez and two relievers.

• In 14 games this year, K-Rod has had just 2 clean innings. His WHIP sits at 1.62.