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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Nelson Cruz has only two hits in 15 at-bats against the Kansas City Royals this season. Both are home runs. Cruz hit a two-run homer and the first-place Baltimore Orioles beat the Royals 2-1 on Thursday night to snap a four-game losing streak. Cruz homered in the fourth after Chris Davis drew a walk to lead off the inning. It was Cruzs 12th home run, which is second in the American League to the 15 of Chicago White Sox rookie Jose Abreu. Cruzs 35 RBIs are tied for second in the AL. "Hes one of the best power hitters in the American League over the past five or six years," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "Hes hit in a good hitters park in Texas, but hes got power to all fields." Wei-Yin Chen (5-2) limited the Royals to one run and seven hits over 5 1-3 innings with one walk and one strikeout. Chen, who is 5-1 in his past seven starts, was removed in the sixth after Salvador Perez walked and Alex Gordon singled with one out. Darren ODay replaced Chen and struck out Danny Valencia and retried Johnny Giavotella on a fly to right. Royals rookie right-hander Yordano Ventura (2-3) struck out nine and walked one in 6 1-3 innings, allowing two runs and seven hits. After Cruzs home run, Ventura retired the next 10 batters, striking out seven, including six straight at one stretch. "He made a mistake to Nelson Cruz and it wasnt even a mistake," Yost said. "I think he threw a good fastball to Nelson. It was up and over the middle of the plate and he ambushed it." Cruz hit the first pitch out to right-centre from Ventura, who has a fastball that routinely hits triple digits on radar guns. "We know hes got a great fastball," Cruz said. "He can get you quick. Hes got great stuff. It was one of those at-bats that I got what I was looking for. We were trying to be aggressive and he was throwing a lot of first-pitch fastballs. I was looking for a fastball." With a northwest wind blowing 15 mph and gusting up to 28, it was less than ideal conditions to hit a home run. "You could have made some money off me if youd have bet me that somebody could have gotten a ball out of here tonight," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. Valencias sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth scored Eric Hosmer for the only run off Chen. "Ventura pitched great," Giavotella said. "We just couldnt back him up with any runs." Left-hander Zach Britton, who had not allowed a run in 7 1-3 innings in his past eight appearances, worked a perfect ninth for his first major league save. Showalter elected to go to Britton after closer Tommy Hunter blew his past two save chances. "Guys graduate," Showalter said. "It was a good start and its good to know that if we need him for a given night hell be ready. Well see how it goes from here." The Royals did not have a baserunner off four Baltimore relievers, who retired 11 straight. "Our pitchers did a really good job and we really needed this win," Cruz said. "Anytime you can win a game by one run its huge. We feel like we can get something going." The Orioles, who went 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position, threatened in the seventh and eighth innings, but came away empty. Gordon, a three-time Gold Glove Award winner, threw out J.J. Hardy at the plate to end the seventh for his fourth outfield assist this season and his 58th since moving to the outfield in 2011. Hardy attempted to score from second on Nick Markakis single. Manny Machado and Adam Jones led off the Orioles eighth with singles off Louis Coleman, the third Kansas City pitcher. Kelvin Herrera replaced Coleman and struck out Davis and Cruz and retired Steve Clevenger on a grounder to strand the runners. NOTES: The Orioles recalled RHP Evan Meek from Triple-A Norfolk and optioned RHP Kevin Gausman, who lost a Wednesday start to Detroit, to the same club. ... Markakis snapped an 0-for-14 skid with three singles. ... Royals RHP Wade Davis has a stiff neck and was not available. Giorgio Chiellini Juventus Jersey . Vincent Lamar Carter is no longer the lean, athletic dynamo who dazzled Raptors fans with eye-popping dunks that posterized even the leagues best defenders. Medhi Benatia Jersey . A little more than one year after missing a last-second tip-in that would have given the Wolverines a share of the Big Ten regular-season title, the 6-foot-8 forward scored on a layup with 7. http://www.juventusfcpro.com/Kids-Mattia-De-Sciglio-Jersey/ .C. - Brent Sutter scored 1:32 into extra time as the Charlotte Checkers came from behind to defeat the visiting Abbotsford Heat 5-4 on Sunday in American Hockey League action. Sami Khedira Juventus Jersey . These teams will see plenty of each other in the next few weeks as three of the Canucks next nine games are against the Wild (after today they meet February 9th in Minnesota and again February 16th at Rogers Arena). Andrea Barzagli Jersey . -- Louisville backup quarterback Reggie Bonnafon ran for two touchdowns and passed for another and the No. CHICAGO -- Rob Scahill was sound asleep early Wednesday morning when he got a call from his manager at Triple-A Colorado Springs. The Rockies needed another arm for their weary bullpen, and they wanted Scahill to join the team in his hometown. It was the start of one fun day for the right-hander. Scahill pitched a scoreless inning for his second major league win, and the Rockies got a tiebreaking RBI single from Brandon Barnes in the 10th inning of a 6-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs. "I can cross it off my bucket list, coming to Wrigley," said Scahill, a Lombard native who grew up rooting for the crosstown White Sox. "I was definitely excited to have the opportunity to pitch here." Colorado loaded the bases on two walks and Michael McKenrys third hit of the game before Barnes singled with one out against Wesley Wright (0-2). Drew Stubbs then scored on a wild pitch, helping the Rockies stop a three-game slide. "We got some timely hits tonight," manager Walt Weiss said. "We got a few early, and then of course Barnesy had the big one late." Adam Ottavino got three outs for his first career save as Colorado rebounded after it used eight relievers in a 16-inning loss on Tuesday night. Luis Valbuena had three hits and three RBIs for the Cubs, including a tying two-run homer with two out in the eighth. Valbuenas eighth homer came after Stubbs dropped a fly ball at the wall in centre, prolonging the inning. Valbuena came up with a runner on first and two out in the 10th, but was retired on a sinking liner to right. McKenry, Charlie Blackmon and Charlie Culberson each doubled home a run for the Rockies, who finished with 12 hits. Brett Anderson allowed a season-high 11 hits, but held the Cubs to two runs in seven innings. "I made some pitches when I had to, and it was a good team win," Anderson said. Cuubs left-hander Travis Wood set career highs with 11 strikeouts and 119 pitches, but remains winless in eight starts dating to a 3-0 win at Philadelphia on June 15.dddddddddddd Wood gave up four runs and eight hits in six innings. "It was definitely a positive," Wood said. "I had good command of most of my stuff. Missed with a few and they made me pay." Journeyman catcher John Baker had an RBI double one night after he pitched a scoreless 16th inning and scored the winning run in Chicagos 4-3 victory. Blackmon and Culberson got their RBI doubles in the second, helping the Rockies to a 3-0 lead. After Baker got the Cubs on the board in the fifth, McKenry doubled home Stubbs in the sixth to restore Colorados three-run advantage. TRAINERS ROOM Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez was out of the lineup due to soreness in his right ankle and left knee. He went 1 for 5 with a walk and scored a run while playing 12 innings in Tuesday nights loss. "Hes not quite 100 per cent with that ankle," Weiss said. "He played in that fiasco last night and weve got a day game tomorrow, so a lot of things lined up for having a day off." ON DECK The Cubs send right-hander Jake Arrieta (5-2, 2.18 ERA) to the mound for the finale of the four-game series on Thursday afternoon. Arrieta is looking for his first win in a month in his first career appearance against Colorado. Tyler Matzek was slated to start for the Rockies, but Weiss decided to give him an extra day or two of rest after he gave up Starlin Castros game-ending sacrifice fly in the 16-inning loss. Instead, Pedro Hernandez will be promoted from Triple-A Colorado Springs for the leftys first game with Colorado. Hernandez, 25, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies in November after he went 3-3 with a 6.83 ERA in 14 games with Minnesota last year, including 12 starts. ' ' '