Tigers top AL Central, Yankees stay ahead of Orioles Wed Sep 26, 2012 11:20pm EDT (Reuters) - The Detroit Tigers clawed their way back to the top of the American League Central for the first time in more than two months on Wednesday with a 5-4 win over the Kansas City Royals. With their third win in a row, the Tigers (83-72) moved a half-game in front of the Chicago White Sox (82-72), the team they have been chasing since July. That slender advantage could disappear by the end of the day, however, as the White Sox are playing Cleveland. Detroit trailed the Royals 4-1 in the fourth inning but got back on level terms on home runs from Alex Avila and Austin Jackson before moving into the lead in the eighth. In Minnesota, CC Sabathia had 10 strikeouts to lead New York to an 8-2 victory over the Twins and keep the AL East-leading Yankees (90-65) 1 1/2 games in front of Baltimore (89-67), who trounced Toronto 12-2. In the National League, the St. Louis Cardinals were shut out by the Houston Astros 2-0 to give hope to remaining teams pursuing the last playoff spot in the NL. The Cardinals (84-72) lead the final wild card spot by 3 1/2 games over Milwaukee and the Los Angeles Dodgers, who both won on Wednesday. Matt Kemp powered the Dodgers (80-75) with four hits and four RBIs in an 8-2 victory over San Diego, while the Brewers (80-75) topped Cincinnati 8-1, reigning NL MVP Ryan Braun hitting his NL-leading 41st homer of the season.