LOS ANGELES — Manny Ramirez joined a growing lineup of All-Stars linked to drugs yesterday, with the dreadlocked slugger banished for 50 games by a sport that cannot shake free from scandal.

The Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder was suspended by Major League Baseball for a drug violation, adding a further stamp to what will forever be known as the Steroids Era.

"It's a dark day for baseball and certainly for this organization," Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti told reporters on the field at Dodger Stadium. "This organization will never condone anything that isn't clean."

Ramirez said he did not take steroids and was given medication by a doctor that contained a banned substance. A person familiar with the details of the suspension said Ramirez used the female fertility drug HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the banned substance wasn't announced.

"As tough as it is for us, it's pretty tough for Manny, too," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "I know he's the one that did the wrong thing and nobody is trying to cover that up, but it's still something that I know he's sorry about."

HCG is popular among steroid users because it can mitigate the side effects of ending a cycle of the drugs. The body may stop producing testosterone when users go off steroids, which can cause sperm counts to decrease and testicles to shrink.

Ramirez's suspension was based not on a spring training urine test result but rather evidence obtained afterward, a second person familiar with the suspension said, speaking on condition of anonymity because those details were not released.

SHORT HOPS

Ozark dies: Former Phillies manager Danny Ozark, who led Philadelphia to three consecutive National League East titles in the late 70s but fell short of the World Series each time, died yesterday at his home in Vero Beach, Fla . He was 85.

Diamondbacks fire Melvin: The Arizona Diamondbacks fired Bob Melvin yesterday and will select a replacement at a Chase Field news conference on this afternoon. Melvin went 337-340, including 12-17 this year, in four-plus seasons.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RED SOX 13, INDIANS 3

Boston tied a modern major league record with 12 runs in an inning — the sixth — before making an out and Tim Wakefield (4-1) gave up two runs on four hits over six innings to win his fourth straight decision in a victory over Cleveland.

RAYS 8, YANKEES 6

Mariano Rivera gave up home runs to consecutive batters for the first time in his major league career, with Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria connecting in the top of the ninth inning as surging Tampa Bay handed New York its fifth consecutive loss.

WHITE SOX 6, TIGERS 0

Mark Buehrle (5-0) was perfect into the seventh inning and allowed one hit over eight innings, and A.J. Pierzynski and Jayson Nix hit homers helping host Chicago beat Detroit to end a four-game losing streak.

ROYALS 3, MARINERS 1

Brian Bannister (3-0) struck out seven, walked one and allowed five hits in six scoreless innings and host Kansas City turned four double plays to beat Seattle and extended its winning streak to six games.

ATHLETICS 9, RANGERS 4

Jack Cust hit a grand slam, Matt Holliday added a three-run shot, and Baldwin High alum Kurt Suzuki added three hits as host Oakland snapped a four-game slide and got starter Trevor Cahill (1-2) his first major league win.

ANGELS 6, BLUE JAYS 1

Jered Weaver (3-1) scattered three hits in his first career complete game — his only mistake was a home run to Aaron Hill in the fourth — and host Los Angeles won for the fourth time in five games.

ORIOLES 5, TWINS 4

Lou Montanez singled in Melvin Mora with the tiebreaking run in the bottom of the eighth inning, and George Sherrill got three outs for his fifth save in seven tries as Baltimore completed a two-game sweep of Minnesota.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

NATIONALS 11, DODGERS 9

Nick Johnson and Adam Dunn each had three RBIs, and Washington rallied for 10 runs in the final three innings to beat Los Angeles, which lost at Chavez Ravine for the first time this season after setting a modern major league record Wednesday night with a 13-0 start at home.

METS 7, PHILLIES 5

Carlos Beltran and David Wright each hit a two-run homer in the first inning, and host New York won its fourth straight, beating Philadelphia. Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino, a St. Anthony alum from Maui, had an infield single in the eighth to extend his hitting streak to a career high 16 games.

BRAVES 4, MARLINS 2

Jair Jurrjens gave up two runs, both on homers by Hanley Ramirez, and three hits in seven innings to help visiting Atlanta complete a two-game sweep of slumping Florida, which has lost three in a row and is 4-13 since its 11-1 start.

REDS 6, BREWERS 5

Right-hander Micah Owings (2-3) gave up five runs and seven hits in six innings and had an RBI triple before scoring for a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the fourth as Cincinnati's flu-depleted lineup held off Milwaukee.

CARDINALS 5, PIRATES 2

Todd Wellemeyer (3-2) allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings, Skip Schumaker had three hits, and Jason LaRue started a four-run fifth with a homer to lead host St. Louis past Pittsburgh for its straight victory.

GIANTS 8, ROCKIES 3

Bengie Molina, hitless in 12 career plate appearances against Jason Marquis (4-2), lined a solo homer to left-center in the second and crushed a two-run shot to right the following inning as visiting San Francisco defeated Colorado.

PADRES 4, DIAMONDBACKS 3

Kevin Kouzmanoff doubled to left-center with one out off Esmerling Vasquez (0-1), moved to third on walks to Nick Hundley and Chris Burke, and scored on David Eckstein's single in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift San Diego over Arizona.

CUBS 8, ASTROS 5

Alfonso Soriano hit a solo home run in the fourth and a two-run shot in the ninth, and Mike Fontenot had two RBIs to help visiting Chicago sweep the two-game series from NL-Central foe Houston.