The Red Sox win their 12th game in their last 14 to move into first place in the AL East. Today, they roll for a 6 – 3 win over Detroit behind ageless pitcher Tim Wakefield and homers by Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford.

SS Brandon Crawford hits a grand slam in his first major league game to lead the Giants to a 5 – 4 win over Milwaukee. Tim Lincecum is the winner over Shaun Marcum. The Giants get a scare in the 8th when Prince Fielder bowls over C Eli Whiteside in a collision at the plate; the play comes only two days after starting catcher Buster Posey was lost for the season with a broken ankle as the result of a similar collision, but Whiteside is okay and can complete the game.

Jason Hammel of the Rockies sets a personal best with 8 strikeouts before he runs into trouble in the 6th inning of a game against the Diamondbacks. He departs with a 3 – 2 lead, but the Rockies’ hitters go on a late-game power surge, with Seth Smith, Carlos Gonzalez and Ryan Spilborghs hitting consecutive 7th-inning home runs to seal an 8 – 2 win. The Rockies have won 7 of 8, keeping pace in the surprisingly competitive NL West with the San Diego Padres, who have been making headlines with a sub-3.00 team ERA, and the surging Los Angeles Dodgers, who are 17-7 in May.

Mike Pelfrey pitches the Mets’ third consecutive shutout over the Phillies, 3 – 0 at Citi Field. The Phillies’ hitting woes started even before coming to New York, when they were shut out for eight innings by veteran knuckleballer Tim Wakefield two days before facing the Mets. The Mets’ own knuckleballer, R.A. Dickey, baffled the Phils in the first game of the series, followed by Japanese rookie Hisanori Takahashi in the second game. The Mets have only swept a series with three shutouts one other time in their history, during their Amazin’ year of 1969, also against Philadelphia.

The Twins beat the Red Sox, 4 – 2, taking advantage of Boston wildness. The Red Sox throw six wild pitches, tying the modern major league record. Daisuke Matsuzakathrows four, the first Red Sox hurler to do so since Milt Gaston in 1929.

When Jamie Carroll is caught off first base by White Sox pitcher Ehren Wasserman’s fake throw to third and gets into a rundown, David Dellucci, the runner on third, breaks for home and scores on first baseman Paul Konerko’s throw in the dirt, which also allows Carroll to reach second and Grady Sizemore, the runner on second, to move to third base. Chuck Murr, official scorer of the Indians’ 8-2 victory over the White Sox, credits all three runners with stolen bases, making it the first triple steal to be accomplished since 1987 when Atlanta pulled it off against Houston.

At Fenway Park, Curt Schilling becomes the 104th pitcher in major league history to reach 200 wins in the 6 – 4 triumph over Tampa Bay. Trot Nixon has three RBI, Mark Loretta goes 3 for 5 with an RBI, and Jonathan Papelbon notches his 18th save in as many opportunities, extending his major league record. Schilling becomes only the fourth pitcher to earn his 200th win while in a Red Sox uniform, joining Lefty Grove (1934), Ferguson Jenkins (1976) and Luis Tiant (1978).