Tigers Rough Up Dickey

Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey gave up six home runs to Detroit Thursday night at Arlington, Texas, tying the post-1900 major league record in the Rangers’ 10-6 loss to the Tigers.

The only major league pitcher to give up more homers was Charlie Sweeney of the St. Louis Maroons, who yielded seven at the Detroit Wolverines in an American Assn. game on June 12, 1886.

Magglio Ordonez and Chris Shelton both homered twice for the Tigers, who hit seven in all and raised their total to a major league-leading 14 in three games. Dickey gave up eight hits, only two of which weren’t homers, and seven runs.

Brandon Inge started the power show on the game’s second pitch, and Ordonez hit another in the first inning.

Shelton homered leading off the second and hit another in the fourth, raising his season total to four. Craig Monroe and Marcus Thames hit back-to-back homers later in the inning, and Ranger Manager Buck Showalter finally pulled Dickey with Texas trailing, 7-0.

It was the sixth time a big league pitcher has given up six homers, the fourth time in the American League. The previous pitcher to do it was Boston’s Tim Wakefield -- another knuckleballer -- against Detroit on Aug. 8, 2004. That was the first time a major league pitcher gave up six homers since the Philadelphia Athletics’ George Caster in 1940.

Tampa Bay 2, Baltimore 0 -- Mark Hendrickson pitched a three-hitter at Baltimore, and the Devil Rays won their first game for rookie Manager Joe Maddon.

The Orioles failed to get a runner past second base against the 6-foot-9 left-hander, who walked one and struck out five in his fifth career complete game -- the third against Baltimore.

Toronto 6, Minnesota 3 -- Gustavo Chacin made a strong first start, Jason Phillips hit a tiebreaking double and B.J. Ryan got his second save, leading the Blue Jays at Toronto. Chacin gave up three runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Seattle 6, Oakland 2 -- Right-hander Gil Meche had a strong outing for a Mariners at Seattle, and Carl Everett’s two-run homer was part of a three-run second inning that was all the offense Meche needed. He pitched into the sixth, yielding two runs and four hits.