Schwarzesbrett » a double, but Mauer struck out to end the inning. "

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Alcides Escobar pumped his fist. Jarrod Dyson did a backflip. And for the first time in more than a decade, the Kansas City Royals were in first place in mid-August. Yordano Ventura outpitched Sonny Gray in a matchup of talented young starters Monday night, and Escobar drove in the go-ahead run as Kansas City beat the Oakland Athletics 3-2 to take over the AL Central lead from Detroit with its eighth consecutive victory. "You want to be in first place. Our goal was to get back to first place," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "Now our goal is to stay in first place." The Royals trailed the Tigers by eight games on July 21, but their 16th win in 19 games wiped away the deficit and gave them the lead at the latest point in a season since 2003. "Were playing great," said Escobar, who drove in a run in the second inning before his two-out single off Gray (12-6) in the seventh gave Kansas City the lead for good. Ventura lasted through sixth innings before giving way to Kelvin Herrera (3-2), who tossed a spotless seventh. Wade Davis breezed through the eighth and Greg Holland worked the ninth for his 35th save, though it didnt come without a little drama. Josh Donaldson led off the ninth with a single, the first hit by the Athletics since the second inning, and Brandon Moss drew a walk. But after a brief conference on the mound, Holland got Derek Norris to bounce into a double play and Stephen Vogt to fly out to end the game. "He has the ability to focus pitch to pitch, which good closers can do," Yost said. "You get first and second with his stuff, you just have a feeling hes going to get out of it." Kansas City put pressure on right from the start, when Dyson and Omar Infante opened the game with back-to-back singles. Gray might have escaped the jam, though, if right fielder Josh Reddick hadnt flubbed a routine throw to the infield after Infantes hit. It allowed Dyson to reach third base easily, and he scored on Salvador Perezs double-play groundout. "Its pretty embarrassing," Reddick said, "especially since it cost us a run. And we end up losing by one run, so it doesnt make your feel any better." After Escobar made it 2-0 in th second, Oakland answered with some help from Ventura, who worked to overcome command problems most of the night. John Jaso led off with a single, Coco Crisp worked a walk and Donaldson earned another free pass to load the bases with two outs. Moss hit a full-count pitch up the middle to score both runners and knot the game. Yost pulled Ventura after a double play got the rookie right-hander through the sixth. And when Gray faltered in the seventh and Kansas City took the lead, one of the stingiest bullpens in baseball made sure the smallest of margins was enough. "Those three guys at the end are as good as you get," As manager Bob Melvin said. "They dont worry about righty-lefty. They feel when they get to the seventh inning with a lead, they feel pretty good about it." LEADERS OF THE PACK The Royals have not trailed since the first inning of Thursdays game in Arizona, a span of 44 innings. "Theres just a real confidence right now when we step on the field," Yost said. BULLISH BULLPENS Herrera has worked 17 1-3 consecutive scoreless dating to June 27. Thats the third-longest stretch in the majors behind Davis, who has gone 17 2-3 innings, and the As Ryan Cook, who has gone 19 innings. Grey AREA Gray struck out a career-low two batters while losing to Kansas City for the second time in his young career. The only other team hes lost to twice is Baltimore. TRAINERS ROOM Athletics: SS Jed Lowrie was back in the starting lineup. Hes missed time recently with a bruised right index finger. Royals: 1B Eric Hosmer continues to wear a brace on his right hand after breaking his third metacarpal. He hopes to return in September. UP NEXT LHP Jon Lester, who beat the Royals in his first start with Oakland, tries to move to 3-0 since arriving from Boston in a July 31 trade. Kansas City counters with RHP Jeremy Guthrie. Wholesale Sneakers Online . At this rate, the Flyers captain is set to be remembered more for a fantastic finish. Wholesale Sneakers Australia .com) - Rakeem Christmas scored 21 points, B. http://www.cheapsneakersaustralia.com/ . According to TSN Edmonton reporter Ryan Rishaug, agent Rick Valette met with Oilers senior VP of hockey operations Scott Howson and general manager Craig MacTavish on Monday to kick off the talks. Cheap Sneakers Australia . "Hes over there," the first baseman said. "You dont need to talk to anybody else." Indeed, Peralta did it all as the majors top team won again. Sneakers Australia Sale . Unfortunately for the Cleveland Cavaliers, James Harden was in the building. MILWAUKEE -- After a stretch of inconsistency, Matt Garza is beginning to resemble the pitcher the Brewers envisioned when they signed him to a $50 million deal last off-season. Garza took a shutout into the seventh inning and Mark Reynolds hit a two-run homer, sending Milwaukee to a 6-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Monday night. "This was a really nice ballgame," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "He came out with a great fastball, he located it well, it had life on it. His sliders were outstanding. He threw good curveballs, so yes, I thought this was a really good game for him." Garza (3-4) scattered six hits over 6 1-3 scoreless innings against the team that brought him to the big leagues in 2006. Garza, signed to a four-year contract as a free agent, struck out eight and walked two for his first win since May 5. "Ive been feeling good," Garza said after his best outing since his first start of the season, when he allowed one run and two hits in eight innings of a 1-0 loss to Atlanta. "Baby steps. Ive felt great. My mechanics are where I want them to be and Im getting back to where Ive been." Kyle Gibson (4-5) allowed four runs and six hits in six innings. Gibson has won just one of his last eight starts after winning his first three. The Brewers took a 2-0 lead in the fourth on consecutive RBI singles by Jonathan Lucroy and Carlos Gomez. Reynolds followed Scooter Gennetts leadoff double in the fifth with an opposite-field shot to right for his team-leading 13th home run to make it 4-0. "I just made the wrong pitch," Gibson said. "I had a guy on second with less than two outs and I had gotten Reynolds away his first at-bat. And any good hitter right there is trying to move the runner over to third. And I got beat on not my best pitch. I threw him a four-seamer away and the sinkers obviously my best pitch. A sinker there, Id probably feel a whole lot better about it. Should have gone in. He was trying to hit a ball the other way and I gave him the pitch he needed to do it." Milwaukee added an unearned run in the seventh and another on Lucroys third homer in the eighth. After three perfect innings by Gibson, Jean Segura opened the fourth with his sixth bunt hit of the season. Segura advanced tto second on Ryan Brauns groundout and scored on Lucroys single up the middle, with Lucroy going to second on the throw.dddddddddddd Gomez followed with another single back through the box. "They earned their way on," Gibson said. "The great bunt by Segura to start the inning, then Lucroy hit the ball up the middle. I got Gomez in a good situation, threw him a good slider and he did what good hitters do, he put the ball in play and found the hole with it." Milwaukee scored in the seventh on consecutive two-out errors by third baseman Trevor Plouffe. The Twins got a run in the eighth on an RBI infield single by Josh Willingham and another in the ninth on an RBI infield single by Brian Dozier. Minnesota, which stranded nine runners, squandered several scoring chances against Garza. Joe Mauer doubled with one out in the first, but was stranded at third. Mauer doubled again to open the fourth and did not advance. In the fifth, Gibson singled with two outs for his first major league hit and Dozier followed with a double, but Mauer struck out to end the inning. "It was more about keeping the runs off the board," Garza said. "We had some momentum and the last thing I wanted to do was go out there and break it. Mauer is a great hitter. He already hit two doubles and I just basically said, If youre not going to hit this, no one is." I just tried to get it really far in there. He swung and it worked out." NOTES: Brewers 3B Aramis Ramirez, on the 15-day disabled list with a left hamstring injury, went 2 for 4 as the designated hitter in his second rehab game for Class-A Wisconsin. Ramirez is expected to be activated for Wednesdays game at Minnesota and could be the DH in the American League ballpark. ... It was the first of four consecutive interleague games between the Brewers and Twins, two in Milwaukee followed by two in Minnesota. ... Gibsons soft liner just beyond the reach of Gennett at second was his first hit in four major league at-bats. ... Mauers two doubles gave him 290 for his career, moving him past Justin Morneau for fourth place on the Twins all-time list (since 1961). ... Brewers reliever Will Smith has made 14 consecutive appearances without allowing an earned run, covering 13 2-3 innings. ' ' '