MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Tim Wakefield kept Minnesota at bay for six innings Saturday night before Alan Embree struck out the side to end a seventh-inning threat as the Boston Red Sox posted a 5-2 victory over Twins.
The Twins, who have spent the summer with a comfortable lead atop the American League Central, have lost nine of their last 12 games, their first prolonged slump since losing seven of 10 games in mid-May. Despite the slump, the Twins still maintain a 14-game lead over the second-place Chicago White Sox.
Making things difficult for the Twins was Rickey Henderson, who played in his 3,033rd game to tie Ty Cobb for fourth most on the all-time list. Henderson celebrated with three hits and a pair of RBI. He drove in a run with a groundout in the second inning and added a homer in the ninth off reliever Mike Jackson.
Wakefield used his knuckleball to frustrate the Twins for six innings before running into trouble in the seventh. He left after allowing a double to David Ortiz and a single to Torii Hunter before walking Doug Mientkiewicz.
Bobby Howry walked Dustin Mohr on four pitches and promptly was lifted for Embree, who struck out A.J. Pierzynski, Luis Rivas and pinch-hitter Bobby Kielty.
Wakefield (7-4) allowed four hits, walked three and struck out four.
Johan Santana (6-5) dropped his third straight start, allowing three runs -- two earned -- and five hits in five innings.
The Twins scored single runs off Santana in the first and second.
Henderson walked to lead off the game, went to third on a double to right field by Johnny Damon and scored on a wild pitch by Santana.
In the second, Trot Nixon, Tony Clark and Lou Merloni singled before Henderson grounded into a run-scoring force play.
An embarrassing mistake by Mientkiewicz helped the Red Sox score another run in the fifth.
Merloni walked and Henderson singled before Damon sacrificed. Mientkiewicz caught the throw from Santana to get Damon. The Twins first baseman then tried to toss the ball a few inches from his bare hand to his glove hand only to see the ball glance off the glove and an alert Merloni raced home, increasing the lead to 3-0.
The Red Sox added a run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Doug Mirabelli. The fly ball to center scored Nomar Garciaparra, who made an excellent slide to evade catcher Pierzynski, who was late with the tag.
