MLB Notebook: First homer title in Dunn's grasp
With his shot vs. KC, Dunn became the 50th player in baseball history to reach 400 home runs. He has an American League-best 35 on the season, one ahead of Josh Hamilton, and three up on Curtis Granderson. For those curious about such things, Rafael Palmeiro -- with 569 career long balls -- has the most homers for any player who never won a season title.
Dunn's teammate Paul Konerko hit his 400th home run earlier this season, on April 25. According to the White Sox press notes via Elias, Konerko and Dunn are the first set of teammates to each hit their 400th in the same season.
Dunn is playing in his age-32 season and his 12th Major League season. He is one of 14 players in history to have at least 400 homers through his age-32 season. The most for any player through this age-season is 553 from Alex Rodriguez.
Dunn is one of eight players in history to have at least 400 in their first 12 seasons. Albert Pujols, with 472 (and counting), has the most. The other players with 400 in their first 12 seasons were Ken Griffey, Jr. (438), Rodriguez (429), Eddie Mathews (422), Willie Mays (406), Mickey Mantle (404) and Frank Robinson (403).
At 14.53 at-bats per homer, Dunn currently owns the 10th-best rate in baseball history.
Rays' big comeback
Down, 8-0, after three innings, the Rays scored seven in the fifth, one in the sixth and then two in the eighth to defeat the Angels, 10-8.
• The comeback win after being down by eight was the largest for the Rays this season, and the club's largest since 2009.
• The Tampa Bay bullpen -- which owns the lowest ERA in the AL (2.92) -- combined for 6 1/3 innings of three-hit, no-run ball. Rays relievers also lead AL bullpens in WHIP, strikeouts per nine innings, strikeout-to-walk ratio, batting average against, on-base percentage against and slugging percentage against.
• The Rays have won eight of nine against the Angels this season, outscoring them, 47-19.
Trout
Batting leadoff for the Angels, rookie Mike Trout went 3-for-4, scored twice, drove in three runs, stole a base, homered and drew a walk.
Trout, who leads the AL in runs, steals, batting and OPS+, posted his 10th game this season from the leadoff spot with at least two hits, two runs and two RBIs. Those 10 tie Trout with five others for the third most in a season since 1918.
With the steal, Trout has swiped 30 bases in a row. The AL record for most consecutive steals in a season is 39, set by Ichiro Suzuki in 2006.
Colon
In the A's 8-5 win over the Indians, Bartolo Colon allowed a run in eight innings and reached 10 victories for the season.
Colon has six games this year in which he has allowed no more than one run and finished with at least eight innings pitched. Those six are tied for the second most in the Majors. Felix Hernandez has 10, and R.A. Dickey also has six.
Colon is in his age-39 season. He is the fifth pitcher in Athletics history to reach double-digit victories in his age-39 season or older. Jack Quinn had at least 10 wins in his age-42, age-43, age-44, and age-45 seasons, while Joe Berry had 10 victories in his age-39 season, Don Sutton had 13 wins in his age-40 season and Tom Candiotti won 11 in his age-40 season.
Orioles
The Orioles defeated the Tigers, 3-2, giving them 12 consecutive victories in one-run games and an overall record of 23-6 in contests decided by the slimmest of margins.
The 12 straight one-run wins in a season ties the high mark for an Orioles club, first set in 1964 and then matched in '79.
The Orioles' winning percentage in one-run games is .793. According to the O's press notes, the top winning percentage in baseball history is claimed by another Baltimore team: the 1981 club, who owned a .750 mark.
Ciriaco
In Boston's 4-1 win over the Yankees, shortstop Pedro Ciriaco went 4-for-4 with a double and a stolen base. It was his second four-hit game against New York and fourth game with at least three hits against the Yankees this season.
Ciriaco is the first Red Sox player since Wade Boggs in 1989 to have multiple four-hit games against the Yankees in a season. Boggs had three in '89.
Ciriaco is one of 24 Red Sox players since 1918 to have at least four games with three or more hits against the Yankees in a season. In '26, Ira Flagstead had six -- the most since '18.
Here and there
• Rangers closer Joe Nathan struck out two in a perfect ninth inning and recorded his 22nd consecutive save -- the longest single-season streak in franchise history and the second-longest overall run for any Senators/Rangers pitcher. In 1997-98, John Wetteland converted 25 straight opportunities into saves. Nathan's streak is the second longest of his career, behind a 27-save run for the Twins in 2004.
• In the first game of a doubleheader, Reds ace Johnny Cueto took over sole possession of the National League lead in victories, collecting his 16th after allowing two runs in eight innings vs. the Cubs. Cueto, who lowered his ERA to 2.44 (second in the NL), also fanned eight with no walks. His strikeout-to-walk ratio in 2012 stands at 3.65; his career ratio entering this season was 2.29.
• The Marlins beat the Rockies, 6-5, with Giancarlo Stanton homering in a 2-for-5, three-RBI game. Stanton has played in six career games at Coors Field and has homered in all six. His streak of going deep in six straight games at Coors tied him with a couple Rockies players -- Dante Bichette in 1995 and Jeromy Burnitz in 2004 -- for the longest since the ballpark opened in 1995.