Ortiz delivers knockout punch in Red Sox' rout of Orioles

David Ortiz homered in Boston's eight-run first inning, then got into a bench-clearing brawl with Baltimore reliever Kevin Gregg as the Red Sox routed the Orioles, 10-3, last night in Fenway Park.

Ortiz and Gregg exchanged a flurry of punches in the eighth, but neither connected before they were separated as both benches and bullpens emptied for the second time in the inning.

Moments before the fight, Ortiz started toward the mound after taking a second straight pitch inside from Gregg. The benches and bullpens emptied, but nothing developed and Ortiz stepped back into the batter's box.

Gregg got him to pop out, then shouted something as the Boston slugger started down the first-base line. Plate umpire Mike Estabrook immediately ejected Gregg - and Ortiz quickly changed course, charging toward the mound. Gregg and Ortiz each threw a few haymakers, but the heavyweight bout was swallowed up by the mass of players rushing onto the field. Gregg and Ortiz were tossed, as well as Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Orioles reliever Jim Johnson.

The Red Sox say pitcher Josh Beckett slightly hyperextended his left knee on the wet mound and was pulled after the fifth inning.

In other games:

* At Cleveland, Travis Snider drove in five runs and Rajai Davis knocked in four as the Blue Jays rebounded a day after a stunning loss to beat the Indians, 11-7.

* At Arlington, Texas, C.J. Wilson pitched seven effective innings, Mike Napoli hit a first-inning grand slam and the Texas Rangers stretched their winning streak to five games with an 8-5 win over the Oakland Athletics, a night after a fan was killed trying to catch a ball.

Josh Hamilton, who tossed the ball to the fan, hit a fan with a foul ball off his bat. The teenage male fan had blood on his face and was tended to by stadium personnel before he walked away, smiling while he held a compress to his head.

* At Kansas City, Magglio Ordonez' two-run home run just six pitches into the game staked Rick Porcello to an early lead and got the Detroit Tigers rolling toward a 6-4 victory over the reeling Royals.

* At Chicago, Luke Hughes' three-run homer capped a six-run fourth inning and the Minnesota Twins continued their mastery of the White Sox, rallying for an 8-5 victory.

Noteworthy

 

* The game between the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays scheduled for last night was postponed because of rain, delaying Derek Jeter's pursuit of 3,000 hits.Earlier in the day, Jeter said he was pulling himself from next week's All-Star Game to rest his injured calf. And Alex Rodriguez also will be absent from the game because of a sore knee.