Alex Rodriguez nearly hit for the cycle — the home-run cycle.

"I've never had a game like this," he said Sunday after homering three times and driving in seven runs during the Seattle Mariners 19-7 rout of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Rodriguez was 4-for-5 with five runs scored, hitting a solo homer in the first inning, a two-run shot in the fourth and his seventh career grand slam in the eighth.

"I've dreamt about having a game like this, but I never thought it would happen," he said.

John Olerud went 4-for-4 and scored three times, and Jay Buhner homered, doubled and had five RBIs. The Mariners, who had 22 hits, completed a three-game sweep at SkyDome, where they've won eight straight.

Seattle outscored the Blue Jays 47-22 in the series, which included an 11-9 win Friday and a 17-6 victory Saturday.

"They really put it to us this weekend and showed who is boss," Toronto catcher Darrin Fletcher said. "They bombed us."

At Toronto, Carlos Delgado hit two homers for the Blue Jays.

Freddy Garcia (2-1) won despite allowing six runs and 11 hits in five innings. Chris Carpenter (0-3) was pounded for eight runs and 11 hits in 31/3 innings.

YANKEES 8, ROYALS 4: Jim Leyritz broke a 4-4 tie in the seventh with a solo homer off Chris Fussell (1-1), his first hit of the season.

Ricky Ledee had two doubles and three RBIs for the Yankees, who swept their first homestand of the season 5-0, including three wins against the Royals, who came in 8-3 with eight wins in nine games.

Mike Sweeney hit his league-leading seventh homer and tied it with a seventh-inning RBI single off Jeff Nelson (3-0).

INDIANS 2, RANGERS 1: Jim Thome's one-out homer into the Indians' bullpen followed Manny Ramirez's shot in the ninth. The drives, off John Wetteland (0-1), were the 201st career homers for each player.

Chuck Finley (1-0) struck out 13 and allowed just five hits at Jacobs Field.

DEVIL RAYS 7, TIGERS 6: Mike DiFelice hit a go-ahead single off Todd Jones (0-1) in a three-run ninth following Vinny Castilla's two-run single as Tampa Bay rallied from a 6-1 deficit at Detroit.

Roberto Hernandez (1-1) allowed one hit in 11/3 innings.

Dean Palmer hit a three-run homer for Detroit, and Gerald Williams hit a three-run homer for Tampa Bay.

RED SOX 5, ATHLETICS 4: Carl Everett hit a leadoff homer off T.J. Mathews (0-1) in the ninth inning at Fenway Park, his team-leading fifth homer. He sent a 3-1 pitch from T.J. Mathews (0-1) into the center-field bleachers.

ORIOLES 5, TWINS 0: Sidney Ponson (1-0) pitched a four-hitter in his first career shutout and seventh complete game. His previous low-hit game was six, which he did three times.

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A day after Cal Ripken got his 3,000th hit, Brady Anderson and Jeff Conine homered in a five-run first at the Metrodome.

Joe Mays (0-2) allowed five runs and eight hits in eight innings as Minnesota lost for the ninth time in 11 games.

ANGELS 3, WHITE SOX 1: Scott Schoeneweis (3-0) allowed three hits in eight innings and Troy Percival pitched a perfect ninth for his fourth save.

At Comiskey Park, Scott Spiezio hit an RBI double in the fourth off Jim Parque (1-1), who dropped to 0-4 against Anaheim, and Ben Molina followed with a sacrifice fly. Edgard Clemente added an RBI grounder in the sixth.

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