BALTIMORE -- J.J. Hardy crushed a grand slam that highlighted a seven-run sixth inning as the Orioles downed Minnesota, 12-8, in front of 40,905 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sunday that, paired with the Yankees' 4-3 loss to the Blue Jays in Toronto, gave them a nine-game lead in the American League East.Wei-Yin Chen struck out seven Twins while allowing four runs on eight hits in 6 2/3 innings. Nelson Cruz blasted a solo homer for the first run of the game in the third inning, his 35th of the year, and Ryan Flaherty smacked a three-run shot later in the inning. 
The division lead matches Baltimore's largest of the season and puts the O's 23 games above .500 for the first time this year. Their magic number is down to 19.Chen started off strong in his return from the Gulf Coast League Orioles -- he was temporarily optioned there after his last start to free up a roster spot -- striking out the first two batters on six pitches and sailing through the first inning on 10. He allowed a homer to Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe, his second homer of the series, in the fourth inning, but by then he already had a four-run cushion to work with.Cruz ripped a hanging curveball by Ricky Nolasco to left field in the third to put Baltimore on the board, and Flaherty's three-run dinger drove in Chris Davis and Hardy four batters later.Nolasco made it through the fifth unscathed before loading the bases with no outs in the sixth.Adam Jones drove a double down the third-base line to score two runs to kick-start the big inning. The Twins intentionally walked Davis to load the bases, then Hardy hit the O's second grand slam of the series. The Orioles took advantage of a series with the last-place Twins and will have a chance to sweep the four-game set on Monday.David Wilson / MLB.com
The division lead matches Baltimore's largest of the season and puts the O's 23 games above .500 for the first time this year. Their magic number is down to 19.Chen started off strong in his return from the Gulf Coast League Orioles -- he was temporarily optioned there after his last start to free up a roster spot -- striking out the first two batters on six pitches and sailing through the first inning on 10. He allowed a homer to Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe, his second homer of the series, in the fourth inning, but by then he already had a four-run cushion to work with.Cruz ripped a hanging curveball by Ricky Nolasco to left field in the third to put Baltimore on the board, and Flaherty's three-run dinger drove in Chris Davis and Hardy four batters later.Nolasco made it through the fifth unscathed before loading the bases with no outs in the sixth.Adam Jones drove a double down the third-base line to score two runs to kick-start the big inning. The Twins intentionally walked Davis to load the bases, then Hardy hit the O's second grand slam of the series. The Orioles took advantage of a series with the last-place Twins and will have a chance to sweep the four-game set on Monday.David Wilson / MLB.com
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