BOSTON -- Baltimore manager Buck Showalter was a 21-year-old minor leaguer in the Yankees system in 1979, with a locker made of "two nails and a piece of tape." None of the players in his current clubhouse was even alive the last time the Orioles held a double-digit lead in the AL East. "Its just a step," he said on Monday night after the Orioles beat Boston 4-0 to open a 10-game lead in the division over the second-place Yankees. "Every night you get to take a step toward your goal." Nelson Cruz had a pair of hits and Miguel Gonzalez took a shutout into the seventh inning as Baltimore won for the ninth time in 12 games. The Orioles have their first double-digit lead in 35 years -- and the second-place New York Yankees have 21 games to play. "Its been incredible," said Gonzalez, who has allowed just four earned runs in his last 34 2-3 innings. "I think our defence and offence have been there the whole year. Were in a good spot." Gonzalez (9-7) allowed six hits and three walks while striking out four in 6 1-3 innings. Steve Pearce also had two hits for Baltimore. The last-place Red Sox had only one runner reach second base in the first six innings. They did not put a runner on third until the seventh, when they loaded the bases with three straight singles against Gonzalez. But Tommy Hunter struck out Will Middlebrooks and David Ross to end the inning. Joe Kelly (1-2) allowed three earned runs, six hits and three walks in 6 1-3 innings. He also hit two batters and struck out six. "We didnt play good defence behind him," Ross said. "We didnt come up with any big hits, especially late. We had the guy on the ropes and couldnt come up with any." Baltimore went ahead on singles by Cruz, Chris Davis and Pearce in the second. The Orioles added two runs in the sixth thanks to a walk, a hit batter and an error on shortstop Xander Bogaerts when he couldnt convert a double play. Another failed double play helped Baltimore score a run in the seventh. TRAINERS ROOM Orioles: SS J.J. Hardy missed the game -- his third in a row -- and was sent back to Baltimore to have an MRI on his ailing back. Hardy said he took some groundballs and swings but wasnt healthy enough to play. He was scheduled to fly to Baltimore for tests and a possible cortisone shot. Red Sox: DH David Ortiz (right foot) and 1B Mike Napoli (illness) returned after missing Sundays game. UP NEXT The teams play the second game of the three-game series on Tuesday, with Chris Tillman (11-5) scheduled to face Boston rookie Anthony Ranaudo (3-1). The Orioles magic number to clinch the AL East is 11. SINGLE PLAY The Red Sox hit into three double plays. But they couldnt turn one in the infield despite five chances, with Orioles batters repeatedly beating the relay to first. With the bases loaded in the sixth inning, the Red Sox botched a potential 3-6-1 double play when shortstop Bogaerts throw bounced past Kelly, who was covering first, allowing another run to score. Boston did manage a strike out-throw out double play in the ninth. KICKING IT AROUND Boston had three errors in the game. In addition to Bogaerts error, Ross threw the ball into centre field when attempting to catch Alejandro De Aza stealing second in the seventh. With De Aza on third, left fielder Yoenis Cespedes was rushing in to field Adam Jones fly ball but muffed it, allowing the run to score. Cheap Custom Hockey Jerseys .com) - Joe Pavelski scored twice to lead the San Jose Sharks in a 5-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers to split a home-and-home set. Wholesale Custom Hockey Jerseys .C. -- Theyll remember the OT from the first Syracuse-Duke game -- and the Ts that decided Round 2. http://www.customjerseyshockey.com/ . Torres calmly stroked a 51st-minute spot kick down the middle with goalkeeper Romel Quinonez diving right to convert a penalty earned by Javi Martinez. Spain controlled play at the Sanchez Pizjuan but found it hard to convert against a well-organized Bolivian team before Iniesta charged forward to curl around Quinonez in the 84th to seal victory. Custom Hockey Jerseys China . In the late match, Shinji Okazaki scored two goals to pace Mainz to a 3-2 victory at Werder Bremen. Goals from Milan Badelj, Maximilian Beister and Hakan Calhanoglu ended Hamburgs two-match losing run and kept Hannover winless in seven games. Custom Anaheim Ducks Jerseys . Acclaimed by world football leaders but held in contempt by many football fans. Blatter should arrive at the Itaquerao stadium in Sao Paulo to watch host Brazil play Croatia confident that this tournament -- his fifth as president -- wont be his last leading the worlds favourite sport.5) And what makes that better? (If the aim was to make the most competitive tournament possible, there can be no doubt that Team Canada Two and Team USA Two would be stronger than Little Europe and Young North America, and the event would then have all players competing for their countries. Thats what they love so much about the Olympics, and the fans are no different.)6) Wouldnt that be strange, to have Canada playing against Canada, and USA vs. USA, and what if one of those matchups occurred in the final? (Okay, lets call that strange, but think about it--Canadian fans who want to be constantly reminded that Canada is number one could be twice as proud if Canada came away with both gold and silver medals, and theyd love to watch Canada beat two rivals in separate semi-final games.)7) How different might Team Canada 2016 be from the Sochi Olympic gold medallists? (Lets take a wild guess and say you should expect approximately half a dozen changes. Room must be made up front for Steven Stamkos, Claude Giroux, and Tyler Seguin. Mark Giordano should make it on defence and theres a good possibility that the goalies who back up Carey Price will be new faces.)8) While were at it, what about Team USA? (If six is the over-under, Id go under. The American team at Sochi was much better than it showed in the end, and there would be no reason to make major changes except for the fact the result needs to be different, and new blood might help. Theres plenty of it in an American talent pool that has never been deeper.)9) Should we ridicule the NHL All-Star Game and its 17-12 score? (No, if we havent done so already, we should cease to regard it as a game. Its just time on the ice for some of the NHLs top players at their mid-season social gathering.)10) Can we take a few more days of DeflateGate talk at the Super Bowl? (Much to the NFLs chagrin, it will not stop until the league announces its findings, and that promises to take a month or more. I have a hard time believing any more time is needed for an investigation that the NFL itself said should and would be wrapped up by now.)11) What will be in the leagues report? (Only three conclusions are possible--the Patriots cheated; theres a logical explanation for the deflated footballs; or there is no explanation for the deflated footballs. Findings that are kind to the Patriots would be easy to release right away, and that would clear the air around the Super Bowl. The leagues determination to push the matter aside this week does suggest that the Patriots will be accused of wrongdoing, and will be punished for it.)12) Have the Patriots done themselves any favours by addressing the situation the way they have, in press briefings by Bill Belichick and Tom Brady? (None whatsoever. My belief is that you shouldnt take questions if you dont have answers, and they went from having no answers to trying bad answers. Had they been giving testimony in a courtroom, their lawyers would have heard it but wouldnt have seen it, because their heads would have been in their hands. Had owner Robert Kraft spoken first, instead of waiting until yesterday, the Patriots would have delivered the sort of forceful denial that was required. It remains to be seen if it can be supported.)13) Does the NFL have a much easier time dealing with DeflateGate if the Seahawks are the Super Bowl champions? (Its hard to think otherwise. Whether or not the Patriots are found guilty or receive punishment, a Super Bowl win will be celebrated quietly and will seem tainted. Maybe thats not fair and maybe they dont care, but thats the way it is.)14) Can the Patriots play on Sunday as if none of this has happened? (No team prides itself more for its ability to focus on the taask at hand.dddddddddddd The Patriots promise thatll be the case this week, and especially on Sunday. Never mind if theyve done anything wrong, they will deserve a lot of praise for shutting out the distraction if they manage to win. But I dont think they can, and I dont think they will.)15) Who or what will be the difference in the game? (Marshawn Lynch. Give him the ball often enough and hes bound to have a big day against a New England defence that is average at best against the run. The classic matchup of Tom Brady vs. the Legion of Boom figures to be a sawoff. Both are too good to have a bad day. And Lynch is probably too bad to have a good one, apart from his rushing total. Even as it might be seen as a victory for good over evil if Seattle should win, Lynch is bound to even up those sides by grabbing his crotch during the celebration, or long after a 15-yard penalty can be imposed.)16) Some are saying Roger Goodell should recuse himself from the DeflateGate affair because of his close, personal relationship with Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Should he? (Yes, it would probably be a good idea, but you start to wonder what Goodell does to earn his annual salary of $40 million when investigations are conducted externally and rulings are constantly challenged and often changed on appeal. What remains of his power is needed and used to keep him in office.)17) Would it be a good idea, as new baseball commissioner Rob Manfred suggests, to ban the radical shifting of fielders? (Anything to boost offence is worth a listen, but in the case of defensive strategy that gobbles up ground balls that would otherwise be hits, the way to produce more hits is to convince batters to combat the shift by bunting or stroking pitches to wide-open, vacated spaces. But they refuse, so much so that you have to believe theyd rather make a hard out than get on base with a soft single……or well-placed double.)18) Are we to believe that the 2015 MLB season can proceed smoothly for the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays, given the fallout from the Dan Duquette-Paul Beeston affair? (The Jays can claim it is business as usual for them, with Beeston still at the helm, a new contract and retirement plan in place. The Orioles are left with a general manager who spent three months trying to wiggle free and land a promotion in Toronto, and during that time, he did precious little to address personnel issues that threaten to weaken the Os significantly. Its not Duquettes fault that the matter dragged on so long, but he needs to put it behind him and his team, and that wont be easy.19) Are you longing to watch "real" hockey after sitting through or ignoring the NHL All-Star Game, and if so, would you like to know where to find the best of it? (I didnt watch what happened in Columbus. The games to keep an eye on as the NHL schedule resumes are ones involving the Chicago Blackhawks. They have a six-game road trip that starts tomorrow in Los Angeles and also takes them to Anaheim, San Jose, Minnesota, Winnipeg and St. Louis. A good trip could send the Hawks to the top of the Central Division, where I believe they belong, but if they struggle as the schedule suggests is possible, they could return home as a wild-card team, trailing Winnipeg. Important games in the West, and each and every one should be intense.)20) What was the score of the Pro Bowl? (Im 100 per cent serious when I tell you that I sit here to write this on Tuesday morning and I do not know the answer to this question. I didnt watch the Pro Bowl either, I havent read about it, and I dont know which side won. I almost said "which conference". All I know is not to say that anymore.) 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