d. There is no doubt. I love having the puck on my stick and having the puck in the offensive zone.Hall believes his best years are ahead of him, and that

CHICAGO -- Jon Lester recovered from a rut of bad starts, pitching six shutout innings to help the Chicago Cubs rout the Seattle Mariners 12-1 on Friday for their third straight victory.Jason Heyward and David Ross homered and the NL Central leaders improved to 10-5 since a 1-9 slump.Seattle lost in its first trip to Wrigley Field since 2007. The Mariners let infielder Luis Sardinas pitch the eighth, and he threw a perfect inning.Lester (11-4) had lasted just 16 innings over his previous four starts, going 1-1 with a 10.13 ERA. That skid came after he had gone 9-3 with a 2.03 ERA in his first 16 starts. Lester gave up four hits, struck out seven and walked two. He was already done when there was a 74-minute rain delay in the seventh.Chicagos Kris Bryant reached base all five times he came up. He singled twice, doubled and walked twice. Hisashi Iwakuma (11-7) was the loser.CARDINALS 11, MARLINS 6MIAMI -- Tommy Pham homered and drove in three runs in St. Louis victory over Miami.Kolten Wong had three hits and drove in two runs and Jeremy Hazelbaker hit a two-run homer for St. Louis. The Cardinals have won four of five and lead the Marlins by a game in the NL wild-card standings.Marlins outfielder Ichiro Suzuki went 0 for 4 to remain at 2,998 career hits.Martin Prado homered and drove in three runs, and Marcell Ozuna also homered for the Marlins.Mike Leake (8-8) was the winner. Jose Urena (1-3) took the loss.BLUE JAYS 6, ORIOLES 5TORONTO -- Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Troy Tulowitzki hit solo home runs in the first inning, Marco Estrada snapped a four-start winless streak and Toronto beat Baltimore.Encarnacion reached base three times and scored twice to help the Blue Jays win the opener of a three-game series between the top two teams in the AL East, cutting Baltimores division lead to a half-game. The Orioles have lost four straight.Estrada (6-4) allowed four runs, three earned, and five hits in six innings.Joaquin Benoit worked the seventh, Jason Grilli gave up Manny Machados solo home run in the eighth and Roberto Osuna finished for his 22nd save.Mark Trumbos two-out double gave Baltimore a 2-0 lead in the top of the first but the Blue Jays answered with a trio of solo shots in the bottom half against Kevin Gausman (2-8).ROCKIES 6, METS 1NEW YORK -- Tyler Chatwood kept winning on the road, Carlos Gonzalez homered and drove in four runs and Colorado beat New York for its fourth straight victory.Mark Reynolds also homered for the surging Rockies. They are 11-4 since the All-Star break and have moved within four games of Miami for the second NL wild-card spot.Chatwood (10-6) improved to 6-0 with a 1.30 ERA away from Coors Field this season. The 26-year-old is 4-6 with a 5.69 ERA at home.Gonzalez matched a season-high hitting streak of 11 games with an RBI double in the first. He hit a 448-foot, three-run drive in the ninth for his 21st homer.Steven Matz (8-7) was the loser.RANGERS 8, ROYALS 3ARLINGTON, Texas -- Rougned Odor homered twice, and A.J. Griffin pitched into the sixth inning in Texas victory over Kansas City.Jurickson Profar also went deep for the Rangers, and scored three runs.Odor hit a solo homer in the first that put AL West-leading Texas up 3-0 against Edinson Volquez (8-9). That 443-foot drive into the second deck of seats in right field came a night after Odors 465-footer that is the longest in his career. He had another solo shot in the seventh, his 21st of the season barely clearing the 8-foot wall in right.Griffin (4-1) struck out one and walked two in 5 2/3 innings.Eric Hosmer homered for the defending World Series champion Royals. They dropped 10 games behind Cleveland in the AL Central.BREWERS 3, PIRATES 1MILWAUKEE -- Junior Guerra limited Pittsburgh to four hits over 8 2/3 innings, and Chris Carter hit a two-run home run in Milwaukees victory.The Pirates managed Andrew McCutchens RBI groundout off Guerra (7-2), who departed with two on and two outs in the ninth. Jeremy Jeffress got Jung Ho Kang to ground out to third on one pitch to record his 25th save in 26 chances.Guerras scoreless streak was snapped at 20 innings. He struck out five and walked one.Pirates rookie Steven Brault (0-1) gave up three runs and seven hits over six innings.INDIANS 5, ATHLETICS 3CLEVELAND -- Abraham Almonte scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in Clevelands four-run seventh inning in the Indians comeback victory over Oakland.Cleveland erased a 3-1 deficit after being held to four hits through six innings. Jason Kipnis bases-loaded single tied it, and Almonte scored from third on Ryan Dulls wild pitch one batter later.Carlos Santana homered in the sixth for Cleveland.Cody Anderson (2-4) pitched a scoreless seventh. Cody Allen worked out of ninth-inning trouble for 20th save. Kendall Graveman (7-7) was the loser.Josh Reddick and Khris Davis hit back-to-back homers in the sixth for Oakland.TIGERS 14, ASTROS 6DETROIT -- Tyler Collins and Justin Upton each hit a three-run homer, helping Detroit beat Houston for its fourth straight victory.James McCann added a solo shot in the eighth and Cameron Maybin had three hits and scored three times. Jose Altuve and Jake Marisnek homered for Houston. The Astros lost for the third time in four games.Matt Boyd (2-2) allowed three runs on four hits in five innings. He walked one while striking out six. Collin McHugh (7-7) didnt make it out of the second inning.RAYS 5, YANKEES 1ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Jake Odorizzi pitched masterfully into the seventh inning, Logan Forsythe and Corey Dickerson hit solo homers in the first, and Tampa Bay Rays cooled off New York.The Yankees had won eight of 11 to close within 3 1/2 games of Boston for the second AL wild card.Odorizzi (5-5) struck out five and allowed six hits over 6 2/3 innings. Alex Colome entered with two on and one out in the ninth, and got two straight outs for his 23rd save.Ivan Nova (7-6) gave up five runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings.BRAVES 2, PHILLIES 1ATLANTA -- Tyrell Jenkins earned his first career victory, pitching six innings and helping the Atlanta beat Philadelphia.Jenkins, acquired in the November 2014 trade that sent Jason Heyward to St. Louis, began the game with a 6.43 ERA and 26 baserunners allowed in his first three career starts, a span of 14 innings.Jenkins (1-2) did a lot better against the Phillies, allowing one unearned run on four hits and four walks. He struck out four.Jim Johnson, the fourth Atlanta pitcher, earned his fifth save in eight chances. Vince Velasquez (8-3) gave up seven hits, two runs, two walks and struck out five in six innings. Custom Carlos Zambrano Jersey . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Authentic Custom Cubs Jersey . -- Its been a long road back for Sean Bergenheim. http://www.customcubsjersey.com/custom-kerry-wood-jersey-large-370n.html . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. Custom Cubs Jersey China . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. Custom Ryne Sandberg Jersey . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. NEWARK, N.J. -- The Devils finally have a legitimate goal scorer, and this one is coming to New Jersey with a chip on his shoulder after a surprising trade.The Devils on Wednesday acquired a `slighted Taylor Hall from the Edmonton Oilers in a straight-up deal for defenseman Adam Larsson.The surprising move two days before the start of free agency gives the goal-starved Devils an exciting young left wing who was the No. 1 pick overall in 2010, while the Oilers get a solid defenseman who was the No. 4 overall selection in 2011.An emotional Hall admitted the move caught him off guard after dealing with six losing seasons in Edmonton.Its tough, the 24-year-old Hall said on a conference call. I have a pretty deep connection to the city of Edmonton. I felt I did everything I could there so its pretty hard not to feel slighted, not to feel a little disappointed with the way everything shook out. Thats hockey.What seemed to bother Hall most was that he felt that the trade focused the blame on him for the teams losing seasons.Hall said he expressed his disappointment to Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli after being informed of the trade.I dont want to sound like I am not excited to join New Jersey, Hall said. Thats not the case. Im a proud person and I take this as an indictment of me as a hockey player. I dont think there is any other way to treat it. I think its safe to say I am a very motivated player right now.At a news conference in Edmonton, Chiarelli said the Oilers have been looking for a top-notch defenseman for months and getting the 23-year-old Larsson required paying a price.He moves the puck, he defends well, he can log a lot of minutes -- he can play 25, 27, 28 minutes, Chiarelli said. He can match up against all of the other top forwards, he has more skill to show also.Its unfortunate in these deals, this is what you have to do, but I felt it was a player that Ive watched very closely this year and I can see hiis game trending up and it was time to act on it.ddddddddddddhe trade also gives the Oilers salary-cap space to possibly sign free agent Milan Lucic. Hall was making an average of $6 million annually.The Devils, who have missed the playoffs the past four seasons, have not had a top-notch goal scorer Zach Parise was lost to free agency in 2012 and Ilya Kovalchuk retired and returned to Russia the following season.Hall spent his entire six-year career with the Oilers, getting 132 goals and 196 assists in 381 games.He has led Edmonton in scoring for three of the past four seasons, and has finished in the top three on the squad in each of his six seasons. This past season, he had 26 goals and 39 assists. He represented the Oilers at the All-Star Game.Im an offensive-minded player, Hall said. There is no doubt. I love having the puck on my stick and having the puck in the offensive zone.Hall believes his best years are ahead of him, and that playing with a team that demands responsibility on both ends of the ice will help his game.He plays the game fast, Devils general manager Ray Shero said. He adds a lot to our group. He really changes the dynamic of our team and how we are going to play.Larsson had three goals and 15 assists, playing in all 82 games on the Devils top defensive pairing. The Swede has nine goals and 60 assists in 274 games.Shero said that trading Larsson leaves a hole in the Devils defense. Vojtech Mozik, Seth Helgeson and Steven Santini are among the young defensemen in the organization that might have a chance at making the NHL roster next season.Shero expects the Devils to sign defenseman Jon Merrill and forwards Beau Bennett and Devante Smith-Pelley, who did not get qualifying offers earlier this week.---AP Sports Writers John Wawrow and Stephen Whyno contributed to this story. ' ' '