BALTIMORE -- Rick Porcello and the Boston Red Sox appear poised to extend their late-season charge deep into October.Porcello pitched a four-hitter for his major league-high 21st victory, David Ortiz and Mookie Betts hit two-run homers and Boston beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-2 on Monday night to pad its lead in the AL East.Coming off a four-game sweep of the Yankees, the Red Sox extended their surge in the opener of an important four-game series for both clubs. Boston has won 10 of 13 and stands atop the division by a season-high four games.Its never over until its over, but were definitely going to try to increase the gap between us and them, Porcello said.Adam Jones homered and Mark Trumbo picked up his 102nd RBI for the second-place Orioles, who started the day with a one-game lead over Toronto for the top AL wild card.Weve got three more here against (the Red Sox), Baltimores Manny Machado said. Well just put it on a track where we need to be.Bostons goal over the next three days will be to put away the Orioles for good.Were going to try, Ortiz said.Porcello (21-4) struck out seven and walked none in his third complete game of the year. Five days earlier against Baltimore, the right-hander gave up one run in eight innings but took the loss.In this one, he threw only 89 pitches -- 65 in the strike zone.When its his day on the mound, he sets the tone for us, manager John Farrell said. Did once again.Porcello has allowed three runs or fewer in 11 straight starts and is sure to receive strong consideration for the AL Cy Young Award after going 9-15 last year.All of us are honored to be mentioned for those awards, he said. But Ive been saying it all year, our focus is winning and what we want to accomplish as a team.Playing his final regular-season series in Baltimore, the 40-year-old Ortiz connected against rookie Dylan Bundy (9-6) with a man on in the fifth for a 5-1 lead. It was his 35th home run of the season and the 53rd of his career against the Orioles.When he finally walks away from the game, Ortiz will certainly miss taking his cuts at Camden Yards.Yeah, man, its just super nice. I like it, he said, especially when its warm like it is.Betts put Boston up 2-0 with his 31st homer in the third. It was his eighth home run in seven games at Camden Yards -- most in a season by a Red Sox in a visiting ballpark since Jimmie Foxx hit eight in St. Louis in 1939.Porcello retired the first 11 batters before hitting Machado with a pitch in the fourth. Trumbo followed with an RBI double.The Red Sox responded with a three-run fifth. Dustin Pedroia snapped an 0-for-12 skid with a run-scoring single before Ortiz launched a 1-1 pitch over the 25-foot scoreboard in right field.Jones homered in the eighth, his 28th.TRAINERS ROOMRed Sox: RHP Steven Wright (shoulder) has started a throwing program at the teams spring training facility in Fort Myers, Florida, but Farrell did not give an estimated date for his return. Wright (13-6, 3.33 ERA) last pitched on Aug. 31. . Farrell said OF Andrew Benintendi has been cleared to play in back-to-back games. He returned from a left knee sprain last Tuesday.Orioles: OF Steve Pearce will have surgery to repair flexor tendons in his right forearm in New York on Wednesday and is expected to be out 4-6 months. Baltimore placed Pearce on the 60-day DL on Sunday. . LHP Wade Miley threw Monday and is feeling much better after leaving Sundays start with a strained muscle in his back, manager Buck Showalter said.UP NEXTRed Sox: Former Oriole Eduardo Rodriguez (2-7, 4.98) makes his fourth start this season against Baltimore on Tuesday night. Hes 1-1.Orioles: Kevin Gausman (8-10, 3.43) seeks his sixth straight victory. The right-hander blanked Boston over eight innings to beat Porcello last Thursday night. Robert Covington Jersey . Bryzgalov stopped 25 shots on Saturday in the Oklahoma City Barons 4-1 victory over the Abbotsford Heat. The Oilers signed Bryzgalov to a one-year $2 million contract last Friday after shedding payroll by dealing defenceman Ladislav Smid to the Flames. Luol Deng Jersey .com) - The women will also have a new champion at the Australian Open. http://www.timberwolvesgear.com/authentic-jerryd-bayless-timberwolves-jersey/ . Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. Kevin Garnett Jersey . Listen to the game live on TSN Radio 1050 at 7pm et. The Raptors traded Rudy Gay, Quincy Acy and Aaron Gray to the Sacramento Kings on Monday, in exchange for Greivis Vasquez, John Salmons, Patrick Patterson and Chuck Hayes. Robert Covington Timberwolves Jersey . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. Having two big pieces back is going to be a key for us moving forward for years to come," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. Even though everyone is a weekend removed from a four-day respite, eight teams are off on Monday. However, the reduced quantity does not result in poor quality as several aces return to action as their clubs used the short week to give them an extra day to recharge.If the weekend is any indication, the pitchers are a little ahead of the hitters, as scoring was way down compared to going into the break. It shouldnt be long before the hitters get their timing back and home runs return to leaving the yard at a record pace.This week also marks the homestretch for those making a playoff push in seasonal head-to-head leagues. No matter what game you play, everything you need to start the week in the right direction is here in Mondays daily notes.PitchingEliteWhile nothing has been announced officially, most expect Jose Fernandez to be capped around 180 innings, leaving him about 73 to go. That equates to 11, maybe 12, more starts. There are 11 weeks left in the campaign, so by delaying the rightys post-break debut through the weekend, the Miami Marlins will only need to skip their prized, soon-to-be 24-year-olds turn once or twice more. Fernandez opens his second half in Citizens Bank Park against a middling Philadelphia Phillies squad. Hell cost, but as usual, Fernandez is worth the hefty DFS price tag.With 125 frames and an All-Star start already on his 2016 ledger, the Chicago White Sox opted to give Chris Sale an extra day, as he was originally scheduled for Sunday. Now he draws a date in the Pacific Northwest against the Seattle Mariners. Sales strikeout rate is markedly down, and its decline is supported by a lower swinging strike rate along with fewer first-pitch strikes. Its premature to confidently declare this is a new baseline for the ace, though the safe approach is to temper expectation in terms of strikeouts going forward. Theres nothing wrong with a rate right around a batter per inning, but its just not the double-digit level everyone anticipated. As for this matchup, its better to pay up for Fernandez in DFS cash play and look for cheaper options for tournament action.While most hurlers would give their non-throwing arm for a 3.61 ERA, Corey Kluber and his fantasy owners deserve to be a little disappointed, as hes pitched to a slightly better ERA. The Cleveland Indians right-hander opens the unofficial second half in Kauffman Stadium against a Kansas City Royals club that is battling through injuries. There isnt much strikeout upside past Klubers usual hitter per inning, but the matchup is safe enough to deploy the All-Star in cash games.SolidAfter averaging 207 regular-season innings for the past eight years and pacing for another 200-frame campaign, no one may have benefited from a week off more than Jon Lester. The veteran lefty entered the break on a tailspin but is in a great spot to get things going again as he faces a New York Mets club that whiffs at a 24 percent clip against southpaws. This avails Lester the strikeout upside intrinsic to GPP action.StreamersMike Leake kicks off the potential spot starters as hes owned in just 41 percent of ESPN leagues. Not only is the St. Louis Cardinals righty in play as a seasonal league streamer, but with an affair in pitcher-friendly Busch Stadium against the strikeout prone San Diego Padres, Leake is a lower-end GPP candidate, too.Since I prefer to take chances early in the head-to-head scoring week, its worth incurring the risk and letting Nick Tropeano loose for a home date with the Texas Rangers. Angels Stadium is a pitchers park, which helps buffer the risk.Lets ignore the name for a moment. You have a chance to use a guy sporting 9.9 K/9, 2.2 BB/9 and .94 HR/9 -- all much better than league average -- at home against the Marlins. Its a no-brainer, right? What if the pitcher in question is Aaron Nola? Not so easy anymore?Nolas June swoon and subsequent extra time off around the break is well documented, so no need to reiterate. The concern from a numbers perspective is his swinging sttrike rate plummeted as the first half progressed.dddddddddddd Again, with an aggressive philosophy, I want Nola active when, not if, he gets back on track. I like his chances Monday night.There arent many spots where streaming Brandon Finnegan is a viable option. A home affair with the punchless Atlanta Braves qualifies.Since neither are going to make the avoid section, lets tackle the Coors Field dilemma as Drew Smyly and the Tampa Bay Rays head to the mountains for an interleague tussle against Tyler Anderson and the Colorado Rockies. Theres no more challenging rest-of-season projection than Smyly. The number crunchers still love him, contending all he needs to do is get the homers under control. The watch-the-game crowd asks, Have you seen him pitch? As a card-carrying member of both factions, Im still on the Smyly bandwagon but have a hard time trusting him a mile high.That said, theres serious strikeout potential, so if you need a boost in that category and can absorb a hit to ratios, the lefty is in play. The confidence level is a little higher for Anderson, one of the first halfs pleasant surprises. The Rays are one of the best teams in the league against southpaws but also whiff a ton in that scenario. Anderson is like Smyly, viable for punchouts with risk to ratios. Forced to pick one, the nod goes to Anderson.AvoidDespite falling short of the projected game score threshold of 45 to be an automatic avoid, Edinson Volquez, Matt Wisler, Ricky Nolasco and Christian Friedrich are all too risky for my tastes. If youre curious why, or have any other questions pertaining to Mondays slate, please post the query in the comments section or fire a tweet to @ToddZola, and Ill do my best to reply.Hitting The Baltimore Orioles get top billing as they square off with the only hurler falling in the auto-avoid range, Ivan Nova. The New York Yankees incendiary righty is equally charitable to all hitters, so platoon edge isnt as important. Using Yankee Stadiums inviting right-field porch as a tiebreaker, well favor lefty swingers like Chris Davis and Pedro Alvarez, but dont eschew Adam Jones, Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop and especially Mark Trumbo.Until Wisler figures out how to keep left-handed batters in check, hes going to be vulnerable to rough outings. In homer-friendly Great American Ballpark, Joey Votto and Jay Bruce make for a great mini-stack.The Cardinals used to be a great stacking option with a righty on the hill, but with the emergence of Stephen Piscotty, Aledmys Diaz, Randal Grichuk and Tommy Pham, along with veterans Matt Holliday, Jhonny Peralta and Yadier Molina, they can give southpaws like the San Diego Padres Friedrich fits.Nolasco doesnt beat himself. He pitches around the plate, forcing teams to put the ball in play to beat him. This can be a successful recipe at times, but a matchup at Comerica Park against the Detroit Tigers isnt one of them. For his career, the Minnesota Twins righty has exhibited reverse splits, which feeds right into the heart of the Tigers lineup. Starting with Ian Kinsler and Cameron Maybin, passing through Miguel Cabrera and Nick Castellanos and ending with Justin Upton, Nolasco could be in for a long evening. And that doesnt even include switch-hitting Victor Martinez, whos also in play.The contrarian stack consists of the Indians visiting Kauffman Stadium, where Volquez will take the ball for the Royals. Switch-hitters Carlos Santana and Francisco Lindor sandwich lefty Jason Kipnis at the top of the Tribes order. Further down resides Lonnie Chisenhall as a cheaper addition to the stack.Most likely to hit a homer: Despite the overall boost in long balls, Chris Davis is lagging behind last years pace. Look for Crush to pick up said pace against Nova and his 1.7 HR/9.Most likely to steal a base: Jose Reyes is in a great spot to jump-start his running game with Lester on the hill. ' ' '