ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — George Steinbrenner's presence placed a lot more heat on Joba Chamberlain than the Tampa Bay Rays.

With the Boss making the short trip from his Florida home to watch from his private suite at Tropicana Field, Chamberlain pitched eight scoreless innings last night as New York beat the Rays, 6-2, to continue a strong second-half start.

"It's great he came here. It's definitely good to get a win when he's in the house," said Chamberlain. "I heard stories about when he was here. It was a little nerve-racking. I got a little nervous knowing he was in the house."

Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano homered and drove in two runs apiece for the Yankees, who won for the 11th time in 13 games since the All-Star break.

Chamberlain (7-2) limited the Rays to three singles — two by Jason Bartlett — while allowing only one runner to reach second base. The right-hander struck out five and walked two, with both of the free passes coming in the fifth inning.

"In my eyes," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said of Chamberlain, "that's probably the best I've seen him."

Chamberlain is 4-0 over his last seven starts and improved to 5-0 in nine starts on the road this season.

"Joba seems to get better and better every time out," Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said. "Today, in my opinion, was the best he's been all year because he was working quick, he's throwing strikes. It's easy to play behind him."

MARINERS 3, BLUE JAYS 2:

Ken Griffey Jr. doubled twice and drove in the decisive runs in the seventh, and host Seattle tagged Roy Halladay (11-4) with a season-high 11 hits. Seattle's Ryan Rowland-Smith (1-1) carried a no-hitter into the seventh before Aaron Hill singled leading off. Adam Lind homered for a 2-1 lead.

ATHLETICS 8, RED SOX 6:

Adam Kennedy homered on the first pitch of the game and visiting Oakland outslugged Boston. Oakland started with five runs and four hits in the first inning against Brad Penny (7-5). Oakland's Kurt Suzuki, a Baldwin High alum from Maui, led off the fifth with his sixth homer.

TIGERS 13, RANGERS 5:

Curtis Granderson led off the game with a home run and connected again in the second inning, and Justin Verlander equaled a career high by striking out 13 for visiting Detroit. Verlander (12-5) tied for the major league lead in wins. He pitched seven innings.

ORIOLES 7, ROYALS 3:

Adam Jones homered and drove in three runs, and Nick Markakis also had three RBIs for host Baltimore. Matt Albers (2-4) gave up one hit in 2 1/3 innings and Jim Johnson worked two innings for his second save.

TWINS 3, WHITE SOX 2:

Alexi Casilla had two RBIs, and Minnesota's bullpen pitched four scoreless innings against visiting Chicago. Jesse Crain (3-4) and Matt Guerrier combined for three innings of relief before Joe Nathan pitched the ninth.

ANGELS 9, INDIANS 3:

Howie Kendrick homered and drove in a career-high five runs as host Los Angeles beat Cleveland. The Angels' John Lackey (7-4) gave up a run and three hits in seven innings. He struck out eight and walked four.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

PADRES 7, REDS 1:

Rookie Mat Latos and two relievers combined on a one-hitter for visiting San Diego. Latos (2-1) earned his second straight victory by allowing only Jerry Hairston Jr.'s homer in the fourth inning. Greg Burke and Mike Ekstrom both pitched one inning to complete the Padres' second one-hitter of the season.

CARDINALS 3, DODGERS 2:

Albert Pujols lined an RBI single over the head of center fielder Matt Kemp with two outs in the 15th inning, giving host St. Louis a win over Los Angeles. Jeff Weaver (5-4) worked two perfect innings before running into trouble in the 15th, and the Cardinals squandered Brendan Ryan's leadoff triple before Pujols delivered on a full count.

DIAMONDBACKS 4, PHILLIES 0:

Justin Upton homered and drove in three runs, and Chris Snyder added a solo shot as host Arizona defeated Philadelphia. Arizona's Yusmeiro Petit (1-5) matched a career high with eight strikeouts and won for the first time since Aug. 23, 2008, a span of 11 starts. He worked six innings.

GIANTS 1, PIRATES 0:

Randy Winn lined an RBI single down the first-base line with two outs in the 10th inning and host San Francisco beat Pittsburgh for a three-game sweep. Matt Cain allowed three hits over nine innings for the Giants and Brian Wilson (3-4) worked the 10th for the victory.

CUBS 12, ASTROS 0:

Randy Wells pitched eight innings and Alfonso Soriano hit a three-run homer during host Chicago's six-run first inning. Wells (7-4) is the first Cubs rookie with seven victories since Kerry Wood won 13 in 1998. He gave up six singles, walked two, struck out one and let only one runner get as far as second base.

BREWERS 7, NATIONALS 5:

Casey McGehee's two-run, pinch-hit homer helped rally host Milwaukee over Washington. McGehee's homer came with two outs in the sixth. He smacked a 3-2 pitch from Tyler Clippard (1-1) to left, giving Milwaukee a 6-5 lead.

MARLINS 6, BRAVES 3:

Josh Johnson hit a three-run homer in another solid start, lifting host Florida over Atlanta. Johnson's shot with two outs in the fourth came off Kenshin Kawakami (5-8). Johnson (10-2) allowed eight hits in six innings.