Halladay Is Sharp in Beating Red Sox

On an up-and-down day, the Toronto Blue Jays lost A.J. Burnett but regained their ace.

Roy Halladay shut down Boston for five innings in his return to Toronto’s rotation, and Bengie Molina hit a two-run homer Saturday in the Blue Jays’ 8-1 victory over the Red Sox at Toronto.

Halladay (2-1) missed his scheduled start last Saturday because of stiffness in his right arm. The 2003 AL Cy Young Award winner gave up one run and six hits, striking out two and walking one.

The Blue Jays needed Halladay to show he’s physically sound after putting Burnett on the 15-day disabled list earlier in the day because of a right elbow injury.

“I felt great,” Halladay said. “I didn’t have anything like I had in the past. I’m excited going forward. I threw 90 pitches and felt good the whole time.”

Vernon Wells hit a two-run triple and finished with three hits for the Blue Jays. Troy Glaus had a two-run double.

The new-look Blue Jays are 4-1 against AL East rival Boston and have scored at least seven runs in each of those wins.

Texas 6, Tampa Bay 5 -- Michael Young hit a run-scoring single in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Rangers the win at Arlington, Texas.

Francisco Cordero (2-2) got the win despite giving up a tying three-run drive to Ty Wigginton in the ninth.

Detroit 2, Seattle 0 -- Nate Robertson and two relievers combined on a two-hitter, Craig Monroe homered and the Tigers won at Seattle.

Robertson (2-2) gave up two hits and two walks and also hit a batter in seven innings. Jamie Walker and Fernando Rodney combined to retire the last six hitters, with Rodney’s getting his fourth save in four opportunities.

New York 6, Baltimore 1 -- Shawn Chacon pitched out of trouble for much of the day, and Hideki Matsui came through with a key two-run double to lead the Yankees at New York.

Chacon (2-1) lowered his ERA from 8.03 to 5.59, giving up one run and four hits in seven innings. Derek Jeter drove in two runs.

Chicago 9, Minnesota 2 -- Jermaine Dye hit a three-run homer and Jim Thome had a two-run drive at Chicago to help the White Sox win their seventh straight game.

Thome’s shot in the eighth against Jesse Crain made it 9-2. It was his ninth homer in April, tying the White Sox’s franchise record for the month, set by Frank Thomas in 1996.

Kansas City 11, Cleveland 5 -- Emil Brown had three RBIs at Kansas City, Mo., to help the Royals end an 11-game losing streak. Kansas City last won on April 8 against the White Sox, 4-3.