Mark McGwire became the 13th major leaguer to hit 50 home runs in a season, but Albert Belle countered with his 46th Saturday as Cleveland completed a doubleheader sweep of Oakland with an 9-8 victory over the Athletics.
The Indians won the first game 9-2, and extended their winning streak to six games by winning the second game.McGwire, who hit his 49th homer in the first game, hit a two-run homer off Chad Ogea in the first inning of the second game for No. 50. The shot came in Oakland's 150th game, giving him 12 games left to match Roger Maris' record of 61 homers in 1961. McGwire has played only 119 games this season due to injuries.
Belle was the last player to hit 50, doing it last year for Cleveland, which reduced its magic number to five for clinching a second straight AL Central title.
Belle's 46th homer, a three-run shot off reliever Carlos Reyes, came during a five-run fourth inning off that helped the Indians overcome a 6-3 deficit.
In the first game, Charles Nagy (16-4) got his fourth consecutive win. Nagy allowed eight hits in eight innings with one walk and seven strikeouts.
Mariners 5, Twins 3, 10 innings
At Minneapolis, Paul Molitor moved within two hits of 3,000, but Seattle capitalized on a throwing error in the 10th to tighten the wild-card race.
Molitor went 2-for-4 in reaching 2,998 career hits.
White Sox 13, Red Sox 5
At Boston, Danny Tartabull hit his 11th career grand slam and drove in six runs for Chicago, which moved within one game of Baltimore in the wild-card race.
Yankees 3, Blue Jays 1
At Toronto, Paul O'Neill hit a tying double and scored on Cecil Fielder's single as New York rallied in the eighth for their fifth straight win.
Royals 8, Angels 5
At Kansas City, Mo., Mike Macfarlane homered and drove in three runs as the Royals handed the Angels their sixth straight loss.
Orioles 7, Tigers 6
At Detroit, Todd Zeile's leadoff homer ignited a four-run rally in the seventh inning as Baltimore stayed on New York's heels in the AL East. Baltimore's rain-delayed win, its seventh in eight games, left the Orioles 31/2 games behind the Yankees, and maintained their 11/2-game lead over the Chicago White Sox in the wild-card chase.
Brewers 8, Rangers 6
At Arlington, Texas, Jeff Cirillo went 3-for-5 with a three-run home run as Milwaukee handed Texas its fourth straight loss. The Rangers' losing streak has allowed the Seattle Mariners to move within six games in the AL West.
National League
Mets 6, Braves 5
At New York, Todd Hundley hit his 41st home run to set a major league record for catchers and the New York Mets sent the Atlanta Braves to their sixth straight loss - their worst skid since 1990 - with a win in 12 innings.
Hundley's three-run homer with two outs in the seventh capped a five-run rally against relievers Brad Clontz, Terrell Wade and Greg McMichael.
Hundley broke the record of 40 home runs set by Roy Campanella in 1953 for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Padres 3, Reds 2, 12 innings
At San Diego, Jody Reed singled home the winning run with two outs in the 12th as San Diego ended its seven-game losing streak to Cincinnati.
Phillies 6, Cubs 2
At Chicago, Kevin Stocker had a career-high four hits and Benito Santiago hit a two-run homer for Philadelphia. Navarro (15-10) had a career-high eight-game winning streak stopped.
Pirates 7, Giants 5, 12 innings
At San Francisco, Mike Kingery hit a two-out, two-run double in the 12th inning. Pittsburgh beat the Giants for the third straight day.
Rockies 7, Astros 3
At Denver, Kevin Ritz pitched six solid innings and sparked Colorado's five-run third with a base hit Saturday, sending the Rockies to their seventh straight win, a victory over the Houston Astros.
Expos 3, Marlins 2
At Montreal, Mike Lansing doubled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, lifting the Montreal Expos to their fourth straight win, over the Florida Marlins.