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Roy Halladay won’t be facing the Tampa Bay Rays again this season, something both sides are perfectly happy about.
Halladay pitched seven solid innings to win his fifth straight start, Alex Rios hit two homers and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Rays 6-4 on Friday night to extend their season-high winning streak to six.
“Doc’s had a great year,” Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. “If Doc had more run support (earlier in the season), he’d certainly have over 20 wins right now.”
Rios hit a solo homer in the third and a two-run drive in the eighth for his third career multihomer game and second this season.
“I’m being aggressive, but in the strike zone,” Rios said. “I don’t want to be wild.”
The AL East-leading Rays have lost three of four.
Halladay (18-9) allowed three runs, one earned, and seven hits to improve to 10-3 in his last 13 starts. He struck out seven and walked none.
The right-hander entered 1-3 with a 4.82 ERA in four starts against the Rays this season. He has never lost to the same opponent four times in a single year. It won’t happen this year either, and Halladay is happy not to have to face the Rays again until 2009.
“You always look for the challenge, but I’m not disappointed by any means,” Halladay said. “They’ve been a great team this year, the way they’ve turned things around.”
The Rays jumped on Halladay with two in the first. Akinori Iwamura reached on second baseman Joe Inglett’s error and advanced to third on B.J. Upton’s double before Carlos Pena and Cliff Floyd each hit a sacrifice fly.
Halladay ended the inning by striking out Willy Aybar, the start of a stretch where he set down 17 of 20.
“You’ve got to get a lot on him early because he’s going to settle down,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “I don’t think he’s ever not settled down.”
Scott Downs followed Halladay with a scoreless eighth. B.J. Ryan gave up Jason Bartlett’s RBI double in the ninth but struck out Pena with runners at second and third for his 27th save in 30 opportunities.
Lyle Overbay hit a two-run double off center fielder Upton’s glove in Toronto’s three-run second and Rios went deep off Andy Sonnanstine to make it 4-2 in the third.
Sonnanstine was disappointed not to hold the early lead against Halladay.
“He’s one of the better pitchers I’ve ever had to pitch against,” Sonnanstine said. “Coming out of the gates with those two runs, they’re precious. I’m kind of disappointed that I didn’t go back out there and put another zero up.”
Bartlett cut it to 4-3 with an RBI single in the seventh, but Iwamura bunted back to the mound on a squeeze attempt with runners at second and third, with Gabe Gross getting caught in a rundown and tagged out by catcher Rod Barajas.
“It was wide open,” Maddon said of the squeeze attempt. “We just didn’t get it done.”
Iwamura failed in a similar situation in an Aug. 12 loss at Oakland, and was upset at himself for not getting the bunt past the mound.
“I accept that I made a mistake,” Iwamura said through a translator. “We’ve got a game tomorrow, too, so I’ve got to keep my head up.”
Halladay threw a called third strike past Upton to end the inning, stranding runners at second and third.
“It was a good pitch,” Maddon said. “He’s been known to make big pitches when he needs to.”
Rios followed John McDonnell’s eighth-inning double with his 13th homer, giving Toronto a 6-3 lead.
Sonnanstine (13-7) lost for the first time in seven starts, allowing four runs and five hits in six innings.
The roof at Rogers Center opened after the third, but had to be closed again midway through the sixth when a light rain began to fall.
Xtra, xtra: Rays 3B Evan Longoria (fractured wrist) will take 20 to 40 swings on Saturday. Longoria has been out since Aug. 11, and the Rays want him to take two or three days of regular batting practice before activating him off the DL. Rays OF Carl Crawford (finger) is in Arizona visiting his doctor and won’t rejoin the team until after this nine-game road trip. Tampa Bay returns home Sept. 15. Former Blue Jays star Joe Carter attended the game (Associated Press - Sports).
Scott Kazmir did his part to get the Tampa Bay Rays back on track.
The All-Star left-hander allowed one hit in six scoreless innings, and the Rays’ bullpen weathered ninth-inning home runs by Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez to beat the Yankees 7-5 and avoid a three-game sweep on Thursday night.
Willy Aybar homered and drove in three runs for the AL East leaders, who avoided a three-game sweep and extended their lead in the division over second-place Boston to 3 1/2 games. The Red Sox, who face Tampa Bay six times over the next two weeks, were idle.
The Yankees’ slim playoff hopes were dealt another blow. They trail the Rays by 11 games in the division and Boston by 7 1/2 in the wild-card race.
“It’s good to keep them in our rear view mirror because they’ve played well against us,” Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. “To lose three in a row here would not have been any fun at all.”
Kazmir (11-6) limited the Yankees to Cody Ransom’s fifth inning double, walked five and struck out seven, but a high pitch-count (98) prevented him from going deeper into the game. Ransom also singled off reliever Trever Miller in the seventh for New York’s second hit.
Chad Bradford worked a scoreless eighth but Tampa Bay lost its bid for its 13th shutout of the season in the ninth when Jason Hammel gave up RBI single to Ransom, who finished 3-for-3, and home runs to Jeter and Rodriguez.
Jeter’s three-run shot to right field moved him within four hits of tying Babe Ruth for second on the Yankees career hit list. Rodriguez followed with career homer No. 550 to trim New York’s deficit to 7-5.
Dan Wheeler replaced Hammel and earned his 11th save in 14 opportunities, retiring Xavier Nady on a first-pitch fly ball.
“We can’t look (at not gaining ground on the Red Sox). … How many games do we have left? 22. We have to go out and do what we do,” Rodriguez said.
“We’re not looking at series. We’re looking at games as must-win games, and that’s the situation tomorrow. It’s almost like college. Double-elimination and you go home. That has to be the approach. Urgent.”
A-Rod homered for the third straight night, giving him 32 this season. He had 422-foot blast upheld in baseball’s first use of instant replay on Wednesday night, but there was never a doubt Thursday night’s 436-footer that also struck one of the catwalks that support the roof at Tropicana Field.
“I think it might have been the farthest one I’ve seen here. I truly do,” Maddon said. “That was zero gravity right there.”
Aybar capped a five-run second inning against Darrell Rasner (5-10) with a two-run single for Tampa Bay. He hit a solo homer in the fourth off Alfredo Aceves.
The Rays, who lost a series for the first time since the All-Star break, looked bad in dropping the first two games.
Maddon attributed the flat performances to the way the Yankees have been playing lately and uncharacteristic mistakes by the Rays—not the pressure of being in a pennant race in September for the first time.
Tampa Bay improved the best record in the majors to 85-52, but is 6-9 against New York, one of two AL teams with winning marks against the Rays this year.
Kazmir walked four in the first three innings, including A-Rod twice. He didn’t give up a hit until one out in the fifth when Ransom doubled on a fly ball to shallow right that fell in when Gabe Gross tried to make a shoestring catch.
“We gave them that 5-spot, and Kazmir has been tough on us all year. He shut us down for six innings, and it makes it difficult,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “We had a few opportunities, not a lot, and we weren’t able to capitalize.”
Rasner, 0-3 in nine starts since last winning on July 12, allowed five runs and six hits in 1 1-3 innings. Aybar drove in the last two runs charged to the right-hander with a bases-loaded single off Aceves.
Gross, Jason Bartlett and Akinori Iwamura also had RBIs during the five-run second against the Yankees starter.
“We had a chance to sweep them. That would have been big for us, but we didn’t. You’ve got to move on,” Girardi said.
“We need more than series. Obviously we need to string together a lot of wins. We’ve got a lot of ground to make up.”
Xtra, xtra: Since taking over for injured rookie All-Star third baseman Evan Longoria, Aybar has five homers and 16 RBI’s in 23 games. The Rays improved to 52-21 at home (Associated Press - Sports).
Alex Rodriguez made major league history by agreeing with an umpire.
The New York Yankees third baseman, a lightning rod for headlines on and off the field throughout his career, saw his ninth-inning home run Wednesday night the same way as third base umpire Brian Runge. So did baseball’s instant replay system.
Rodriguez’s long blast down the left field line was upheld in baseball’s first use of video to review boundary calls, and the Yankees beat the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays 8-4.
“I’m the first player. Next time I’m going stealth and go under the radar screen,” Rodriguez said. “It’s very fitting I’m involved. I was just glad we got the right call.”
Rodriguez, who went 3-for-4 and drove in four runs, hit a towering two-run shot off Troy Percival that Runge immediately ruled a homer when it bounced off the catwalk behind the foul pole in left field.
Rays catcher Dioner Navarro protested, bringing manager Joe Maddon out of the dugout. After convening, the umpires left the field to review the video, a process that took 2 minutes, 15 seconds to back the onfield call.
Rodriguez was denied a homer May 21 against Baltimore when a ball he hit over the fence at Yankee Stadium was incorrectly called an RBI double.
It was one of a string of home run calls blown by umpires, leaving some calling for instant replay.
“I had the best view because I was at home plate. I saw what Brian saw, and for sure I knew this was going to get replayed,” Rodriguez said of his 549th career homer that moved him ahead of Mike Schmidt for sole possession of 12th place on the all-time list. “I saw the way Navarro jumped and then Maddon jumped out of the dugout and I said, ‘Here we go.”’
Umpire crew chief Charlie Reliford said Maddon asked plate umpire Greg Gibson to discuss the call with Runge.
“We all believed it was a home run, but since the technology is in place we made the decision to use the technology and go look at the replays,” Reliford told a pool reporter, adding that the umpires watched the video several times.
“If there had been no argument, obviously we wouldn’t have because all four of us believed the call was correct on the field,” Reliford said. “Because he disputed it, and it was very close, and now the technology is in place, we used it.”
Percival had no beef with Runge’s call.
“I thought it was clearly fair, but after looking at the replay, I wouldn’t have known what to call, to be honest with you,” Percival said. “The replay made it more cloudy for me.”
But Reliford said the process, which was put in place last Thursday, worked “exactly like they trained us it would go,” adding it was a group decision.
“Technically, it’s up to the crew chief. But when the ship sinks, everyone drowns. We operate as a crew, we do everything as a crew, and we make decisions as a crew,” Reliford said. “If it comes down to a split decision, then the crew chief is going to have to decide which decision is most likely correct.”
Boston, which beat Baltimore 5-4 on Wednesday, moved within three games of Tampa Bay in the division.
Edwar Ramirez (5-1) worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam after Carl Pavano ran into trouble in the fifth. He was the winner despite facing only three batters as the Yankees won a series against a team .500 or better for the first time since winning two of three against Boston July 25-27.
Rodriguez, who has two homers and nine RBIs in the first three games of 10-game, four-city road trip, had a run-scoring double in the third off Edwin Jackson (11-9) and a RBI single in the fourth against Chad Bradford.
Robinson Cano, Ivan Rodriguez and Jason Giambi had RBI doubles off Jackson, who lasted 3 1-3 innings.
The Rays, who had one hit after the fifth inning, lost a series for the first time since the All-Star break.
It was only the third time since the break that Tampa Bay lost consecutive games. The Rays had been 12-0-1 in series since losing a season-high seven straight games from July 7-13 to turn a five-game lead over the Red Sox into a half-game deficit.
While the Rays weren’t charged with any errors Wednesday night, sloppy defense contributed to four infield singles and helped the Yankees advance baserunners at will on hits to the outfield.
In losing the series opener 7-2 on Tuesday night, the Rays ran themselves out of a potential big inning and committed a throwing error that helped New York break the game open after Xavier Nady hit a two-run homer.
The Yankees built a 6-1 lead for Pavano. The right-hander, making his third start since returning from elbow surgery that sidelined him for more than a year, couldn’t get through the five innings required to get the win.
B.J. Upton singled and Carlos Pena walked to begin the fifth against Pavano, who was replaced by Ramirez with New York leading 6-3. Cliff Floyd lined a single off second baseman Cano’s glove to load the bases with no outs.
The Yankees escaped unscathed when Willy Aybar lined into a double play to Cano, who stepped on second before Pena could get back to the bag. Eric Hinske popped to Derek Jeter, ending the threat.
The Rays scored on Floyd’s first-inning RBI double and Gabe Gross’ two-run homer in the fourth as Pavano allowed six hits, walked two and struck out one in four-plus innings—his shortest outing since coming off the DL. Akinori Iwamura added an RBI double off Jose Veras in the ninth.
Jackson, who had won six of his previous seven decisions, allowed six runs and 10 hits in his shortest start of the season. Four of the hits were infield singles, and two of the five doubles he yielded would have been singles if Bobby Abreu and Ivan Rodriguez hadn’t been aggressive in taking an extra base.
Xtra, xtra: Navarro returned to the lineup after missing five of the previous six games because of sore hamstrings in both legs. Rays All-Star rookie 3B Evan Longoria, sidelined since Aug. 8 with a fractured right wrist, ran the bases during pregame, but still is not ready to take batting practice. “We’re in a holding pattern there,” Maddon said (Associated Press - Sports).
Mike Mussina is doing all he can to help the New York Yankees cling to their slim playoff chances.
The 39-year-old right-hander earned his 17th win, and the Yankees got home runs from Alex Rodriguez and Xavier Nady in a 7-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night that included a scoreless relief outing by Joba Chamberlain.
“We’re just trying to win ballgames any way we can. I’m trying to contribute on my day,” Mussina said. “We battled to get out of some situations. We got some big hits we needed.”
Chamberlain came off the disabled list for New York and pitched 1 1-3 scoreless innings. Tampa Bay’s lead in the AL East was trimmed to four games over Boston, which beat Baltimore 14-2.
Mussina (17-7) got his 267th win, passing Hall of Famers Bob Feller and Eppa Rixey for sole possession of 34th place on the career list. One thing that’s eluded him, though, is a 20-win season.
“Obviously, you would like to see a guy that has been so good for so long be able to achieve that,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “It’s kind of neat that he’s chasing it.”
Mussina allowed two runs and 10 hits in six-plus innings. He matched a season high with eight strikeouts, improving to 3-0 against the Rays. He also beat them on April 7 and May 14, and his 19 career wins tie him with Tim Wakefield for the most by any pitcher against Tampa Bay.
Nady hit a two-run homer off Matt Garza (11-8) for the third-place Yankees, who have won 10 of 16.
Rodriguez hit home run No. 548, tying Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt for 12th on the career list. The eighth-inning solo shot off Jason Hammel was his 30th of the year, giving A-Rod 11 consecutive seasons—and 12 overall—with 30 or more.
Meanwhile, Chamberlain made a strong return from a month stay on the DL. He entered with runners on first and third with two outs in the seventh inning and needed just one pitch to get out of the jam.
“It felt good,” Chamberlain said. “My mechanics were kind of off, all over the place. But at the end of the day, there’s a zero. That’s what a month does physically. I came out great.”
The right-hander was placed on the DL with right rotator cuff tendinitis on Aug. 6, two days after he left a start against Texas with shoulder soreness. The Yankees expect him to work out of the bullpen the rest of the season.
Chamberlain allowed one hit and walked one in 1 1-3 innings. Dan Giese, also activated from the DL on Tuesday, worked the ninth in a non-save situation.
“Joba looked good for not being out there for a while,” Girardi said.
Mussina, 19-7 lifetime against Tampa Bay, gave up an RBI single to Cliff Floyd in the third and left after Gabe Gross and Shawn Riggans opened the seventh with consecutive doubles to trim New York’s lead to 6-2.
Akinori Iwamura followed with a single, putting runners at the corners with no outs, but the Yankees’ bullpen didn’t allow any more damage.
Damaso Marte struck out B.J. Upton and Carlos Pena. Chamberlain entered to a standing ovation from Yankees fans among the crowd of 21,629 and got pinch-hitter Rocco Baldelli to ground into a force play on a 96 mph fastball.
The Rays, who had won five in a row, are beginning a stretch of 19 consecutive games against clubs in playoff contention, including six against Boston and five more against the Yankees—one of just two AL teams with winning records against Tampa Bay this season.
“I know they’ve hit a few tough moments this year. But they are the Yankees. They are very talented and they beat us again,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “We’ll put it behind us and play them again.”
Johnny Damon\, Jason Giambi and Hideki Matsui all drove in one run apiece against Garza, who yielded six runs and five hits in five-plus innings. The right-hander had allowed four runs combined in his previous three starts.
Xtra, xtra: The Yankees are 8-5 against Tampa Bay. Cleveland is the other AL team with a winning record (5-2) against the AL East leaders. Rays closer Troy Percival, out since Aug. 14 because of cartilage damage in his right knee, was reinstated from the disabled list. C John Jaso (Triple-A Durham) and RHP Juan Salas (Double-A Montgomery) were recalled from the minors (Associated Press - Sports).
The Tampa Bay Rays completed their best-ever month in the team’s most memorable season by far.
James Shields allowed one run over seven innings and Jason Bartlett hit his first homer in more than a year to help the AL East-leading Rays complete a three-game sweep with a 10-4 win over the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday.
Tampa Bay went 21-8 in August, setting a team record for wins in a month. The Rays, who will have their first winning season and possibly a playoff trip this year, are a club-best 33 games over .500 at 84-51.
“This series was really good to go into September,” Shields said. “Our hitters are really on right now and our pitchers are pitching as good as ever. We’re really putting it together right now.”
Shields (12-8) gave up six hits to match his career high for wins set last season. He has won seven of his last nine starts at home.
Bartlett had four hits and drove in two runs, including a solo shot during a two-run seventh that made it 10-1. It was his first homer since Aug. 27, 2007.
Tampa Bay, which has the majors’ best home mark at 52-19, lead second-place Boston by 5 1/2 games after the Red Sox lost 4-2 to the Chicago White Sox.
“We can’t take anything for granted because the moment we do that everything blows up,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “I think if you take care of the seconds, the minutes and hours will take care of themselves.”
The Rays had 34 runs, 40 hits and walked 25 times in the series. They were also hit by six pitches and twice drew four walks in a row.
Baltimore manager Dave Trembley and pitching coach Rick Kranitz will meet with the Orioles pitching staff before Monday’s game at Boston.
“In an understatement, not very pretty,” Trembley said. “Not real pleased, you’ve got to sit there and watch 180 pitches everyday. I’d rather have the fastball thrown over the plate and have people hit it instead of giving runs away like that. It will be addressed.”
Luke Scott had a two-run double during a three-run eighth for the Orioles (63-73), who have lost 10 of 12 to drop a season-worst 10 games under .500.
“We got flat-out beat,” Baltimore first baseman Kevin Millar said.
Willy Aybar put the Rays ahead 2-0 on a two-out, two-run double off Brian Burres (7-9) in the first. Tampa Bay went up 3-0 on a second-inning RBI double by Shawn Riggans.
Ben Zobrist hit a sacrifice fly and Bartlett had a run-scoring single as Tampa Bay took a 5-0 lead in the third.
Burres gave up seven runs and nine hits in five-plus innings. The Orioles have lost the last 10 times in which the left-hander has pitched against the Rays, including four starts. Baltimore also fell to 3-19 on Sundays this season.
The Rays extended their lead to 8-1 in the sixth thanks to the wildness of reliever Alberto Castillo, who hit two batters in a row and then walked the next two before being pulled. B.J. Upton was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded before consecutive walks to Carlos Pena and Rocco Baldelli.
Upton, hit on the ankle, was replaced defensively in the seventh. Upton said the ankle is fine and will play when Tampa Bay opens a three-game series Tuesday with the New York Yankees.
Upton picked up his 40th stolen base of the season when he swiped second in the fifth. He joins Carl Crawford—who has done it five times—as the only Tampa Bay players to have 40 steals in a season.
Xtra, xtra: Bartlett was hit by a pitch in the eighth. Maddon said he thought the pitch by reliever was intentional. The Rays are 11-3 against Baltimore this season. Tampa Bay C Dioner Navarro (hamstrings) was out of the lineup for the fourth time in the last five games. Maddon said Navarro, who started Saturday, was “a little bit sore.” Rays closer Troy Percival (knee) is expected to be activated from the 15-day disabled list Tuesday (Associated Press - Sports).
Rocco Baldelli’s career nearly came to an end during spring training. Five months later, he’s delivering key hits to spark Tampa Bay’s surprising playoff drive.
Baldelli hit a game-winning RBI double in the ninth inning and the AL East-leading Rays came back from a four-run deficit to beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-9 on Saturday.
Baldelli missed most of the season due to a mitochondrial disorder, a condition that slows muscle recovery and causes fatigue. His return was uncertain, and after missing much of the last few seasons because of hamstring injuries, his career was very much in question.
“I didn’t think in spring training that I’d be part of anything like that,” said Baldelli, who was mobbed by teammates after his first career walk-off hit. “I wanted to, but I didn’t think it was a possibility. Sometimes you get things that you don’t expect. So it was nice.”
Baldelli started the season on the disabled list and was activated on Aug. 10. In part-time duty, he is hitting .294 with two homers and six RBIs in 12 games.
“I know that the guys were pulling for him,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “I know that everybody feels especially happy for him. He looks really comfortable out there and I like that.”
Carlos Pena drew a one-out walk in the ninth off Rocky Cherry (0-2) and scored on Baldelli’s double down the third-base line.
Nick Markakis hit a game-tying solo homer with two outs in the ninth off Rays reliever Dan Wheeler (3-5), who blew his third save in 13 opportunities.
The Rays, a major league-best 51-19 at home, have won the first two games of the three-game set and improved to 12-0-1 in series play since the All-Star break.
“Our guys are really aware of what’s going on,” Maddon said. “You can tell by the intensity.”
Tampa Bay went up 9-8 in the seventh when Orioles reliever Alberto Castillo hit Baldelli with a pitch with the bases loaded.
Jay Payton and Aubrey Huff homered for Baltimore, which has lost nine of 11. Huff’s homer was his 30th, making him the first Orioles’ player to have 30 homers in a season since Miguel Tejada (34) in 2004.
After Huff’s homer gave the Orioles a 5-3 lead in the third, Ramon Hernandez increased the lead to 7-3 in the fifth with an RBI single. But the Rays came right back, pulling within two on Dioner Navarro’s RBI double and a run-scoring grounder by Gabe Gross in the bottom of the inning.
In the bottom of the sixth, Pena tied it at 7 with a two-run double off Dennis Sarfate, and the Rays then took an 8-7 lead on a double-play grounder by Willy Aybar.
Baltimore pulled even at 8-all on a seventh-inning sacrifice fly by Hernandez.
Andy Sonnanstine, who failed in his bid to tie Rolando Arrojo’s team single-season win total of 14 set in 1998, allowed six runs and seven hits in 3 1-3 innings.
Orioles rookie starter Chris Waters, who resides about 50 miles away from Tropicana Field in Lakeland, Fla., started off poorly, walking four straight batters in the first. He gave up five runs and eight hits in 4 1-3 innings.
“Little bit of nervousness in my first game in my hometown,” Waters said. “Thirty people here to see me and I just let it overwhelm me.”
Baltimore pitchers have walked 18 and allowed 24 runs over the past two games.
“I think we’re making it a whole lot more difficult than we should,” Orioles manager Dave Trembley said.
Xtra, xtra: Rays All-Star 3B Evan Longoria (right wrist) is not expected to be ready to play in a three-game series with the New York Yankees that begins Tuesday. Rays closer Troy Percival (knee) could be activated from the disabled list in time for the Yankees’ series. Tampa Bay signed a two-year player development contract with Class-A Bowling Green of the South Atlantic League (Associated Press - Sports).
The Tampa Bay Rays cleared another hurdle in the effort to distance themselves from their woeful past.
Ben Zobrist hit a grand slam, Cliff Floyd drove in five runs and the AL East-leading Rays guaranteed their first-ever winning season with a 14-3 rout of the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night.
“Going into spring training I knew we were better,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “We just didn’t know how much better. Eighty-two wins is a big moment, and I want this to be the standard of what we do, to get that number on an annual basis.
“You’ve got to break through the barrier eventually. We’ve done it, now let’s move on down the road.”
Floyd had a two-run double, Zobrist hit his slam and Gabe Gross added a solo shot during a seven-run fourth that made it 10-0.
“It was contagious,” Zobrist said.
Scott Kazmir (10-6) allowed three hits and three walks over 5 1-3 scoreless innings. The left-hander has won 10 games or more in four straight seasons. Tampa Bay joined the 1968 Oakland Athletics as the only teams to have five pitchers 26 years old or younger with 20 starts and 10 wins in the same season.
“It’s been a great season and we’re showing no signs of letting up,” Kazmir said.
Tampa Bay (82-51) is 4 1/2 games ahead of second-place Boston, which beat the Chicago White Sox 8-0. The Rays, an AL-best 50-19 at home, had never won more than 70 games in a season before this year.
“They’re on a roll right now. They’re playing very well at home,” Orioles manager Dave Trembley said.
Carlos Pena and Floyd drew bases-load walks—the last two of four consecutive two-out walks by Jeremy Guthrie—to give the Rays a 3-0 lead in the second.
Floyd had put Tampa Bay ahead 1-0 on a first-inning RBI double, and added a sacrifice fly during a three-run sixth that extended the Rays advantage to 13-0. He had a homer and two RBIs in the Rays’ 3-2 win over Toronto on Thursday.
Guthrie (10-11) lost his third consecutive start, giving up seven runs, seven hits and six walks in three-plus innings. It was shortest start of his career.
“I didn’t feel great physically,” Guthrie said. “At the same time it doesn’t mean I can’t pitch well.”
Tampa Bay also got a solo homer from Shawn Riggans in the eighth.
Juan Castro and Aubrey Huff had RBI doubles for Baltimore, which has lost eight of 10.
Orioles third baseman Melvin Mora left the game in the third with a strained left hamstring. He was hurt trying to beat out a ground ball with two and two out in the third.
Mora is hitting .393 with 12 homers and 49 RBIs since the All-Star break. He’s not expected to play in the final two games of the series Saturday and Sunday.
Baltimore catcher Ramon Hernandez was ejected by plate umpire Sam Holbrook in the fourth. After the Rays had gone up 10-0, Hernandez argued with Holbrook after a check-swing by Tampa Bay’s Akinori Iwamura was called a ball.
Orioles reliever Fernando Cabrera, who allowed the homers to Zobrist and Gross, drew the ire of Trembley for flipping the ball into air when he left the mound.
Cabrera apologized after the game for his action.
“He was frustrated that he gave up the home runs,” Trembley said. “I’ll deal with it. When I say I’ll deal with, it won’t mean that I’ll ignore it. I’ll deal with, which means I’ll do something about it.”
Xtra, xtra: Kazmir threw 102 pitches. Rays 3B Evan Longoria (right wrist) made around 70 throws, but hasn’t started hitting. Tampa Bay C Dioner Navarro (hamstrings) could start Saturday after being out of the lineup three consecutive games. The Rays released LHP Kurt Birkins, who was pitching for Triple-A Durham (Associated Press - Sports).
The Tampa Bay Rays reached another milestone in their unexpected run toward the playoffs.
Edwin Jackson took a shutout into the eighth inning, Cliff Floyd and Willy Aybar each homered, and the Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-2 on Thursday night to guarantee they will finish no worse than .500 for the first time in franchise history.
“Hopefully getting past these barriers, mentally and numbers-wise, we can put that in the past and become the organization we’re envisioned on becoming,” Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said.
Tampa Bay, 81-51 and an AL-best 49-19 at home, took two of three from Toronto and is 11-0-1 in series play since the All-Star break. The Rays extended their lead in the AL East over Boston to 4 1/2 games. The Red Sox lost 3-2 to the New York Yankees.
“It’s just another day at the office,” Floyd said. “Everyday, someone’s doing something to win a ballgame.”
Jackson (11-8) gave up one run and six hits over seven-plus innings in winning for the sixth time in his last seven starts. He departed after allowing Alex Rios’ double to start the eighth.
“Every game we take now is a big one,” Jackson said.
Rios scored on Adam Lind’s infield single and Rod Barajas added a two-out RBI double later in the eighth, cutting the Toronto deficit to 3-2. Jose Bautista, mired in an 0-for-24 slide, struck out to end the inning.
Dan Wheeler pitched the ninth for his 10th save in 12 opportunities.
“I think you have to give those guys some credit over there,” Toronto manager Cito Gaston said. “They’ve got a pretty good pitching staff that will shut you down.”
Floyd put Tampa Bay up 2-0 with a first-inning sacrifice fly and a solo homer in the third.
Tampa Bay extended the lead when Aybar homered off Jesse Litsch (9-8) in the sixth. Aybar, who entered in an 1-for-16 slide, had three hits in four at-bats.
Litsch allowed three runs and 10 hits in 6 2-3 innings. He had a 13-inning scoreless streak end in the first.
“I made a couple of mistake pitches and they hit them over the fence,” said Litsch, who was a Rays’ bat boy in 2002-03.
Toronto had at least one baserunner in each of the first six innings, but failed to score.
Thursday’s announced attendance was 14,039, making it the sixth consecutive Rays’ home game with a turnout under 20,000. Wednesday’s crowd was 12,678.
“I’m really proud of the fact that we’ve really raised the level of our intensity despite only having 12,000 people in the stands,” Maddon said before the game. “They’ve been very professional about this. That’s the part I really appreciate about it also. You’d like to see 36,000 every night, but for right now, the way our guys are going about our business, I’m very proud of them.”
Xtra, xtra: Rays closer Troy Percival (right knee) threw 39 pitches in batting practice and could be activated from the 15-day disabled list by early next week. Tampa Bay C Dioner Navarro (hamstrings) was out of the lineup for the second straight game and might return Saturday. Rays 3B Evan Longoria (right wrist) has started a throwing program and hopes to return next week (Associated Press - Sports).
Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon thinks the Rays’ latest victory came in a “really classic kind of a game.”
Matt Garza and two relievers combined on a six-hitter and Carlos Pena homered to lead AL East-leading Tampa Bay past Toronto 1-0 Wednesday night.
“This team finds a way to win,” Garza said. “It’s amazing.”
Garza (11-7) allowed six hits and three walks with five strikeouts over 7 2-3 innings for the Rays. Grant Balfour got the final out in the eighth before Dan Wheeler pitched the ninth for his ninth save in 11 chances.
Pena provided the scoring with a solo homer in the fourth, his 27th of the season and sixth over his past 13 games.
Justin Ruggiano, who moved from right to left field to start the ninth, ended the game with a leaping catch to take away an extra-base hit from Rod Barajas.
“It was a very exciting finish,” Maddon said.
Tampa Bay, an AL-best 48-19 at home, remains 3 1/2 games ahead of Boston, which beat the New York Yankees 11-3.
“We don’t quit,” Garza said. “Everybody is out there for one reason, that’s to try to get to October.”
Blue Jays rookie David Purcey gave up five hits and struck out a career-high 11 in eight innings for his first career complete game. The left-hander was coming off a start Aug. 20 against the New York Yankees in which he allowed five earned runs and seven hits in four innings.
“Two great pitchers tonight,” Toronto manager Cito Gaston said. “They pitched a great ballgame.”
Purcey struck out 10 and allowed just three hits—two by Pena, including the homer—in the first five innings. His previous high for strikeouts was eight.
“I’ve been trying to pound the zone,” Purcey said. “I just tried to keep us in the game. That’s all I can do.”
Purcey tied the Blue Jays’ rookie mark for strikeouts. He is the fourth pitcher to do it, and the first since Dave Bush had 11 on Oct. 1, 2004, against the Yankees.
The Blue Jays got one hit, including a third-inning double by Joe Inglett, in each of the first four innings, but failed to score.
Garza retired nine in a row after Lyle Overbay’s single with two outs in the fourth. Matt Stairs ended the stretch with a two-out single in the seventh. After a single by Barajas put runners on first and second, John McDonald popped out.
“He’s got a great fastball,” Gaston said. “He can reach back and get a couple extra miles an hour on it. Curveball and changeup is good as well. It makes him really unhittable sometimes.”
Alex Rios and Vernon Wells drew two-out walks in the eighth to end Garza’s night. Balfour entered and struck out Adam Lind on three pitches.
The announced attendance was just 12,678, the fifth straight Rays’ home game with a crowd under 20,000.
Xtra, xtra: This was the seventh 1-0 game in the history of Tropicana Field, and the first this season. Rays C Dioner Navarro (tight hamstring) didn’t start but was available off the bench. He might sit Thursday, too. Tampa Bay 3B Evan Longoria (right wrist) swung a wiffle bat and is expected to take batting practice later this week. He hopes to return early next week. Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Ripken Baseball and the Rays announced the purchase of the Class A Florida State League team in Vero Beach, Fla., and plan to relocate the franchise to Charlotte County, Fla., next year (Associated Press - Sports).
No team has ever beat Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay four times in one season. Vernon Wells helped make sure the Tampa Bay Rays didn’t.
Halladay beat Tampa Bay for the first time this season, and Wells homered and had three RBIs as Toronto beat the AL East-leading Rays 6-2 on Tuesday night.
“It’s a team that can get you at any point, so you’ve got to kind of be on your toes,” Halladay said. “You can never get too comfortable. You’ve got to go out and still be aggressive. You can’t change your game plan too much, but I think there’s a point with teams like this that they’re never out of it. It’s a tough team to pitch again.”
Halladay (16-9) gave up two runs and six hits in six innings. The right-hander posted a 5.32 ERA in losing his previous three starts against Tampa Bay this year.
“I honestly don’t know how we beat him three times,” Rays left fielder Eric Hinske said. “He’s probably the best pitcher in baseball. Tonight he had a good night.”
Halladay, who struck out seven, is 4-1 with a 1.96 ERA over his last five starts.
Wells had two run-scoring singles and added a solo homer in the ninth that made it 6-2. He his hitting .643 with four homers and nine RBIs over his last three games.
“When Doc is on the mound, you’ve just got to scratch out a few (runs) and you’ve got a chance to win,” Wells said.
Rod Barajas hit a solo homer for the Blue Jays, who have won 10 of their last 13 road games.
Hinske drove in two runs for Tampa Bay, which has lost consecutive games for just the second time since the All-Star break. Tampa Bay is an AL-best 47-19 at home this season.
The Rays’ lead over second-place Boston dropped to 3 1/2 games. The Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 7-3 on Tuesday.
Toronto took a 3-0 lead in the third on Lyle Overbay’s two-run, two-out double. He has 11 RBIs over his last 10 games.
Wells had put the Blue Jays ahead 1-0 with an RBI single in the first. He hit a run-scoring single in the seventh that put Toronto up 4-2.
Hinske pulled the Rays within 3-2 with a two-run single in the sixth.
Rays starter James Shields (11-8) went 6 2-3 innings, allowing four runs and nine hits. He had won six of his seven previous starts at home.
“Definitely the margin is slim,” Shields said about pitching against Halladay. “He’s one of the premier pitchers in the league. I thought I pitched pretty well tonight, but when you’re facing Halladay, you’ve got to be in your ‘A’ game.”
When asked what level his performance was at, Shields said “‘B’ game I guess.”
“It definitely wasn’t my ‘A’ game or else I would have won the game,” he added. “You can’t make too many errors when you’re facing a guy like that.”
Tampa Bay had runners on second and third with two outs in the second, but Halladay struck out Gabe Gross on a 3-2 pitch.
Rays catcher Dioner Navarro left in the sixth with cramping in both hamstrings. He might miss Wednesday’s game.
Xtra, xtra: Halladay is 10-7 all-time against Tampa Bay. Rays rookie All-Star 3B Evan Longoria (right wrist) will resume hitting this week and hopes to return around Sept. 1. Tampa Bay closer Troy Percival (right knee) had his first bullpen session since getting hurt. Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston is a big fan of playing indoor baseball. “I don’t mind domes myself,” he said. “Actually, I think all teams should have domes. Wouldn’t have the rainouts. That’s what I believe.” Tampa Bay’s first-round pick in this year’s amateur draft, SS Tim Beckman, is joining Class-A Hudson Valley after starting his pro career with rookie-level Princeton. The attendance was 13,478 (Associated Press - Sports).
A.J. Pierzynski found himself in the middle of another strange play, and once again the umpire involved was Doug Eddings.
This time, the chaos followed a rundown between second and third, not a third strike.
“It’s just a funny coincidence, I guess,” said Pierzynski, whose bizarre trip around the bases in the 10th inning Sunday capped a 6-5 victory for the Chicago White Sox over the Tampa Bay Rays. “Him and I will be linked forever because of that one play, and now there’s two plays.”
Eddings and Pierzynski were at the center of a disputed call in the 2005 AL championship series between Chicago and the Los Angeles Angels. The latest ruckus came before Alexei Ramirez singled home the winning run Sunday, allowing the White Sox to avoid a three-game sweep.
Chicago also moved back into first place in the AL Central, a half-game ahead of Minnesota.
Jim Thome hit his 534th homer, Carlos Quentin also connected and Chicago tied it at 5 in the ninth on pinch-hitter Paul Konerko’s two-out single off fill-in closer Dan Wheeler.
Ken Griffey Jr. started the rally with a one-out double.
Rocco Baldelli hit his second homer in three days and Carlos Pena gave Tampa Bay a 5-4 lead with an RBI double in the seventh.
Pierzynski led off the 10th with a single against Jason Hammel (4-4), then tagged up and went to second when center fielder B.J. Upton casually flipped the ball in after catching Quentin’s fly. Jermaine Dye sent a grounder toward shortstop, Pierzynski got caught in a rundown and the strange play unfolded.
Pierzynski, who always seems to be at the center of controversy, appeared to get tagged out after falling—but Eddings signaled safe instead.
The second base ump called interference on Rays third baseman Willy Aybar, ruling that he bumped the runner after a throw toward second. Replays showed that Pierzynski initiated the contact, hitting Aybar with his left elbow before falling to the ground.
“As a runner, you’re allowed to do that,” third-base umpire Ted Barrett said. “What Doug ruled at second base was, even though A.J. did kind of stick his arm out to make contact, Aybar was still in his way. So A.J., if he would have turned, he wouldn’t have been able to continue on to third. So after making the throw, Aybar is no longer in the act of fielding and he can’t obstruct the runner, which is what Doug ruled happened. And in a rundown, even though A.J. was going back to second, the rule of obstruction during a rundown is he gets his next advanced base and that’s why he was rewarded third base.
“If Aybar’s got the ball, there’s no obstruction,” Barrett said. “You protect the fielder when he’s in the act of fielding. Once that ball’s released and out of his hand, he has to vacate.”
Tampa Bay infielders and manager Joe Maddon argued vehemently to no avail, and Pierzynski was awarded third. Hammel intentionally walked Thome before Ramirez singled to right.
That made a winner of Bobby Jenks (3-0), who pitched two scoreless innings.
Aybar said through a translator that Eddings told him he initiated the contact and that “he wasn’t going to talk to him anymore, that he was going to talk to Joe.”
And Maddon said: “(Eddings) thought he bumped him, that Willy interfered or obstructed with the runner and he gave him the extra base. I disagree.”
Eddings was behind the plate in the 2005 ALCS when he called strike three on Pierzynski—but not the third out—in the ninth inning of Game 2. In a weird scene, Eddings ruled the two-out pitch had bounced in the dirt, and Pierzynski hustled safely to first as the Angels ran off the field. Moments later, the White Sox rallied to win.
In this one, the AL East-leading Rays seemed to be on their way to their 12th win in 15 games before Konerko’s single to left on a 2-2 pitch from Wheeler, subbing for injured closer Troy Percival.
The throw home from Ben Zobrist arrived in plenty of time but bounced off catcher Shawn Riggans, allowing pinch-runner Brian Anderson to score the tying run.
The blown save was Wheeler’s second in 10 chances and denied Andy Sonnanstine his 14th win, which would have tied the club record set by Rolando Arrojo in 1998.
Thome and Quentin hit two-run homers in the fourth to give the White Sox a 4-3 lead. Thome’s shot tied Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx for 15th on the career list. Quentin leads the majors with 36 this season.
Chicago’s bullpen blew late leads in the first two games of the series. This time, poor defense was the problem.
Baldelli, who missed the first 116 games of the season with a muscular disorder, hit a two-run shot in the first after first baseman Nick Swisher booted Pena’s grounder for an error, the first of several gaffes.
Pierzynski’s passed ball with two outs in the second allowed Jason Bartlett to reach on a strikeout, putting runners on first and third before Akinori Iwamura’s run-scoring single.
The Rays tied it 4-all in the sixth when shortstop Orlando Cabrera booted Aybar’s grounder for an error, allowing Pena to score.
Chicago’s Mark Buehrle allowed five runs—two earned—in 6 2-3 innings.
Xtra, xtra: Percival, on the 15-day disabled list with cartilage damage in his right knee, is scheduled to play catch Monday (Associated Press - Sports).
Faced with key injuries or late deficits, the Tampa Bay Rays refuse to flinch. And their lead in the AL East is increasing.
Carlos Pena’s two-run single capped a four-run eighth inning, and the surging Rays rallied for a 5-3 victory Saturday over the Chicago White Sox.
“The phrase that we have is just keep coming,” Pena said. “Keep coming, keep coming, keep coming. At-bat after at-bat, at-bat after at-bat.”
Pena’s bases-loaded single off Matt Thornton broke a 3-all tie and sent Tampa Bay to its 11th win in 14 games. The surprising Rays, who keep winning despite injuries to Evan Longoria, Carl Crawford and Troy Percival, moved 5 1/2 games ahead of second-place Boston.
Tampa Bay pulled this one out even though Chicago’s Jermaine Dye hit two solo homers and Javier Vazquez retired his first 17 batters. The White Sox, who began the day a half-game behind first-place Minnesota in the AL Central, took a 3-1 lead into the eighth before unraveling.
Vazquez (10-11) left to loud cheers after allowing a single to Dioner Navarro, a walk to Gabe Gross and another single by Jason Bartlett that loaded the bases with none out.
Thornton came in and walked Akinori Iwamura on a 3-2 count after he fouled off seven pitches, making it a one-run game. B.J. Upton then drove a hard one-hopper off shortstop Orlando Cabrera for an infield single that tied it, and Pena followed with a single to right.
After Thornton left to boos, D.J. Carrasco escaped further damage.
Although he delivered the go-ahead hit, Pena was more impressed with Iwamura.
“That’s not easy,” Pena said. “You’ve got to be cold-blooded to be in that situation and actually only focus on seeing the ball and staying in your zone.”
That’s exactly what Iwamura did.
“I knew he was a great pitcher with a great fastball,” he said through a translator. “He throws real hard but I knew the situation. With the bases loaded, I was trying to get the runs in at the time.”
Grant Balfour (4-2) pitched a scoreless seventh for the win. Chad Bradford retired the side in the eighth and Dan Wheeler tossed a perfect ninth for his eighth save.
The late rally spoiled another strong outing by Vazquez, who took the loss even though he outlasted Scott Kazmir.
“That was one of the toughest games for me in my career, one of the toughest that I’ve lost,” Vazquez said. “Just being ahead like that and, boom, we lost. It was just a tough game to swallow.”
Vazquez did not allow a base runner until Bartlett doubled with two outs in the sixth. Iwamura followed with a single, pulling the Rays to 2-1.
“That was an unbelievable game Vazquez pitched today,” Pena said. “Amazing. Great job. To be able to get to him in that inning and get to the bullpen, it says a lot about how much our guys battled at-bat for at-bat.”
But another shaky effort by a reliever cost the White Sox.
This time, it was Thornton, who allowed a run and two hits besides that bases-loaded walk. On Friday, it was Octavio Dotel and Horacio Ramirez, who each allowed three runs in a 9-4 loss.
Kazmir was almost as good as Vazquez early but came up short in his bid to become the fifth Tampa Bay starter with at least 10 wins. He allowed three runs and four hits in six innings, striking out seven and walking two.
The lefty did not allow a hit until Dye leaned in and pulled a low-and-away pitch into the left-field seats with one out in the fourth. Dye made it 3-1 in the sixth with another shot to left, giving him 31 homers.
“Both those pitches that he hit out, I really liked them,” Kazmir said.
Xtra, xtra: Rays manager Joe Maddon set a franchise record with his 206th win, moving ahead of Larry Rothschild. The Rays held Rocco Baldelli out of the starting lineup after he hit his first homer in more than a year Friday. Baldelli, who returned from the DL less than two weeks ago after missing the first 116 games with a muscular disorder, entered as a pinch hitter in the eighth (Associated Press - Sports).
With one big swing, Rocco Baldelli gave a big indication that he is finally feeling better.
He hit his first homer in more than a year, Carlos Pena and Ben Zobrist also went deep and the Tampa Bay Rays opened a weekend showdown against the Chicago White Sox with a 9-4 victory on Friday.
“I just want to get back into the swing of things where I feel comfortable and it’s not a big deal when I go through a game and do something well,” said Baldelli, sidelined most of the past two seasons with injuries and ailments. “I just want to contribute to what’s going on here. It’s awesome.”
Chicago’s Nick Swisher homered in his fourth straight game, giving the White Sox a 2-0 lead with a two-run shot in the fourth, but the Rays came back.
Pena tied it at 2 with a leadoff homer in the sixth, and Jason Bartlett doubled in the go-ahead run off John Danks in the seventh, sending Tampa Bay to its 10th win in 13 games.
The Rays maintained a 4 1/2 -game lead over Boston in the AL East, and they continued to win even though Troy Percival, Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford are on the disabled list.
They began the day tied with Los Angeles for the AL’s best record and, after taking two of three from the Angels, kept the momentum going against one of baseball’s hottest teams. The White Sox had won eight of nine and had a 46-9 scoring edge over the previous four games while pounding out 14 homers—but they were victimized by the long ball this time.
One of the big blows came from Baldelli, who returned from the DL less than two weeks ago.
Sidelined for the first 116 games with a muscular disorder after missing much of last season with hamstring injuries, Baldelli looked just fine against Octavio Dotel in the eighth. He drove an 0-1 pitch over the left-field wall for his first homer since May 3, 2007, against Minnesota.
“Taking some time off isn’t always the easiest thing to do, but I feel like I’m able to do it OK and not lose my swing by taking days off,” said Baldelli, who did not play in the Los Angeles series. “It did feel pretty good tonight.”
After Willy Aybar doubled, Zobrist chased Dotel when he drove a 3-2 pitch out to right to make it 6-2.
Chicago’s Alexei Ramirez hit a two-run homer off J.P. Howell in the bottom half, his fourth homer in five games, but the Rays added three more runs in the ninth.
The White Sox had the leadoff man on in seven innings but got little to show for it. They stranded eight and were 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
“One thing I talked about before the game is we can’t do two things, walk people and commit errors because of their propensity to hit home runs,” manager Joe Maddon said. “We got away with it tonight, but you can’t expect to do that all the time. We were fortunate.”
Edwin Jackson (10-8) became the Rays’ fourth 10-game winner despite six shaky innings. He allowed seven hits and two runs, struck out five and walked five while improving to 5-1 in his last six starts.
Danks (10-6) lasted 6 1-3 innings, allowing five hits and three runs. But from the start, he knew this wasn’t his night.
“In the second or third inning, I told the guys tonight was the epitome of being effectively wild,” he said. “I was getting away with some stuff. I was missing my spots.”
Pena had two hits and scored two runs while driving in two. Baldelli and Dioner Navarro added two hits and two runs apiece.
Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-4 with a run after hitting his first homer with the White Sox against Seattle on Wednesday. The 13-time All-Star had just nine hits in his first 43 at-bats after the trade from Cincinnati.
The last time these teams met, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen unleashed a rant that seemed aimed at general manager Kenny Williams and hitting coach Greg Walker. He called for roster changes while saying his job and Walker’s were in jeopardy after watching his team go 5-for-39 with runners in scoring position while dropping three of four May 29-June 1.
There were no firings and no major roster moves, although they did acquire Griffey at the trade deadline.
This time, Guillen’s tone was different.
“That’s kind of a weird feeling about the situation here in Chicago,” he said. “We lose a game and all the sudden we are down the tank. I don’t know if it’s people waiting for us to fail or people don’t just believe in the White Sox.”
Xtra, xtra: Rays manager Joe Maddon won his 205th game, tying Larry Rothschild’s club record (Associated Press - Sports).
Given one more chance to extend his hitting streak to 23 games, Garret Anderson made sure he got his bat off his shoulder.
“I told myself as I was walking to the plate that if it’s out over the plate, I’m going to swing at it, and that’s what it was,” he said Wednesday night after his ninth-inning infield single gave the Los Angeles Angels a 5-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
“Sometimes I have to do that because I’ll get too picky up there and not swing and not be myself.”
Anderson struck out with the bases loaded in the seventh—taking three called strikes as the Angels wasted an opportunity to break open a one-run game — but wouldn’t repeat the mistake against submariner Chad Bradford after the Rays tied it 4-all on Carlos Pena’s eighth-inning RBI double off Jose Arredondo (5-1).
Vladimir Guerrero was walked intentionally to load the bases with one out in the ninth. After Torii Hunter grounded into a force play at the plate, Anderson hit a sharp grounder that second baseman Akinori Iwamura was unable to backhand cleanly moving to his right.
The play initially was ruled an error. It was changed to a hit, keeping Anderson’s streak alive, after the Angels asked the official scorer to review it.
“That’s not a routine play because he did a good job to get in front of it and knock it down. That would have been a terrific play if he could have made it,” Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said. “He’s got to dive and knock a ball down and get an out all at the same time.”
The run was charged to Grant Balfour (3-2), who walked Chone Figgins to begin the inning before giving up a one-out single to Mark Teixeira on a routine fly ball that fell in front of left fielder Justin Ruggiano.
Ruggiano, who had just entered the game as a defensive replacement, said he pulled up short of the ball, not wanting to take a chance on it getting past him.
“That was definitely a break to move that inning along,” Scioscia said. “A timely break.”
Francisco Rodriguez pitched the ninth for the Angels for his major league-leading and club- record 48th save. He broke his own team mark of 47 (2006) and is on pace for 62 saves, which would shatter the major league mark of 57, set by Bobby Thigpen of the Chicago White Sox in 1990.
Angels starter Jered Weaver settled down after allowing three runs in the second, limiting the Rays to five hits and matching a career high with nine strikeouts in six innings before entrusting a 4-3 lead to the bullpen.
Los Angeles squandered a couple of chances to break the game open, leaving the bases loaded in the sixth against right-hander Matt Garza and the seventh when left-hander Trever Miller fanned Anderson.
Erick Aybar had a two-run triple and Chone Figgins and Mark Teixeira also drove in runs off Rays Garza for the Angels, who won for the first time in six tries at Tropicana Field this season.
Despite the loss, Tampa Bay retained its 4 1/2 -game lead over second-place Boston in the AL East.
“You’re going to lose some tough ones, but what really matters is what you do after that,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “They beat us tonight, but we had our opportunities to win the game, too. Again, it just indicates we are making progress.”
The victory cooled the Rays, who have won nine of 12, and enabled Los Angeles to nudge back ahead of Tampa Bay for the best record in the American League at 77-48.
The Rays scored three runs with two outs in the second after Angels third baseman Figgins was unable to get to Gabe Gross’ foul ball that didn’t quite reach the stands up the left-field line.
Gross singled to right two pitches later, driving in Eric Hinske, who drew a throw to the plate that allowed Gross to move up to second base. Shawn Riggans followed with a RBI single, then Jason Bartlett tripled to left-center to make it 3-0.
The Angels countered with a four-run third against Garza, who was coming off a two-hit shutout over the Texas Rangers.
Figgins doubled to drive in the first run, Aybar followed with his two-run triple and Teixeira put Los Angeles ahead 4-3 with a RBI grounder that scored Aybar.
Xtra, xtra: Rays LF Carl Crawford, on the 15-day disabled list after undergoing surgery to correct a tendon problem in his right middle finger, returned to St. Petersburg from his home in Phoenix and will see a therapist on Thursday. He hopes to return before the end of the regular season. He said he’s not surprised the team has continued to win with him, 3B Evan Longoria and RHP Troy Percival on the DL. “We’ve been winning like that all year long without certain guys in the lineup,” Crawford said. “The team is not built for one person to make it win. It’s a team effort.” (Associated Press - Sports).
One night the Tampa Bay Rays play long ball. The next they rarely get the ball out of the infield and still beat the Los Angeles Angels.
The surging Rays won for the ninth time in 11 games Tuesday night, using Willy Aybar’s two-run single to break an eighth-inning tie in a 4-2 win over the Angels that gave Tampa Bay the best record in the American League.
The AL East leader overcame a strong pitching performance by Los Angeles’ Ervin Santana, who took a no-hit bid into the sixth and left with a 2-1 lead after allowing one run and four hits in seven innings.
“It just means we’re starting to do things in the right way,” manager Joe Maddon said after Tampa Bay improved to 77-48 and held on to its 4 1/2 -game lead over second-place Boston in the division.
“We’re making less mistakes. We’re starting to believe in what we’re doing. It just validates the work that we’ve done,” Maddon added. “It’s good. But still, there’s a long ways to go. It’s just nice to be there right now.”
Los Angeles let the game slip away in the eighth when the Rays loaded the bases with no outs against Scot Shields (5-4) on two walks and an error. Carlos Pena drew a one-out walk from Darren Oliver, forcing in the tying run before Aybar singled.
James Shields (11-7) allowed two runs and nine hits in eight innings, and Dan Wheeler pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save in eight chances as Tampa Bay improved to 6-2 against the AL West-leading Angels, including 5-0 at home.
The Rays won the series opener 6-4, getting two-run homers from Eric Hinske and Cliff Floyd. They got their first run Tuesday night on B.J. Upton’s infield RBI single, then scored three unearned runs in the eighth, with Aybar’s hit the only ball getting to the outfield.
“I don’t think we’ve played particularly bad in any of these games, but tonight was one bad inning,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.
“We set the table for them and cracked it open further with an error and those guys capped it off with a hit. We just didn’t get it done late. We’ve been doing a terrific job of that, but not tonight.”
Vladimir Guerrero hit his 23rd home run for Los Angeles, a solo shot in the second. Garret Anderson made it 2-0 in the fourth with an RBI double that extended his hitting streak to 22 games.
Maddon was ejected in the sixth for arguing with first base umpire Jerry Meals after Upton beat out his RBI infield single to trim the Angels’ lead to 2-1. Upton was called out when Meals ruled he turned toward second and was tagged out by second baseman Howie Kendrick.
Replays showed Upton, who hit a high chopper to first baseman Mark Teixeira, contorted his body to avoid a potential tag by Santana, who was covering first. However, it did not appear Upton, in the spotlight lately for a lack of hustle, turned toward second before being tagged by Kendrick, who was backing up the play.
Maddon bolted from the dugout and had an animated discussion with Meals before being ejected. The manager also had an exchange with second base umpire and crew chief Gary Darling before leaving the field.
Maddon said the call was flat-out wrong, going as far as to describe it as “fabricated.”
Upton apologized before the game for a “mental lapse” on the bases Monday night when he was thrown out at second base on what should have been a routine double, saying he didn’t want to become a distraction for the Rays.
He was just happy to get some support Tuesday night from his manager, who in the past two weeks has benched the 23-year-old for two games and part of a third for not hustling.
“Things haven’t really been the best lately … and he went out there and he had my back,” Upton said. “You’ve got to love it, and I’m glad he did. It shows me a lot.”
Santana retired 11 straight before walking Pena with two outs in the fourth. Jason Bartlett doubled down the line in left for the first hit with one out in the sixth.
“We’ve been pitching well, it’s just, at the end, we cracked the door for them and let them win,” Scioscia said. “It’s frustrating because we didn’t play well enough, certainly in the eighth inning. There’s not much more you can say about it.”
Xtra, xtra: Guerrero is 10-for-23 with two homers lifetime against James Shields. The Rays are two games into a stretch in which they play 28 of 31 against teams in playoff contention, including six against the Red Sox (Associated Press - Sports).
B.J. Upton slipped away from Tropicana Field without speaking to reporters, leaving others to answer questions about another baserunning gaffe that overshadowed a big Tampa Bay victory.
The first-place Rays beat the Los Angeles Angels 6-4 Monday night, but the postgame buzz was more about Upton getting caught jogging on the bases again instead of the AL East leaders improving to 5-2 against the team with the top record in the majors.
“I’ll tell you one thing about tonight, he’s hurting,” said designated hitter Cliff Floyd, who hit a two-run homer to help right-hander Andy Sonnanstine get his team-leading 13th win. “He’s hurting bad.”
The speedy center fielder, who has been benched three times in the last two weeks for not hustling, was thrown out at second base on what should have been a routine double in the fourth inning.
But unlike last Friday at Texas, Upton wasn’t removed from the game by manager Joe Maddon.
“That’s a mental mistake he made right there. It’s not a lack of effort,” Maddon said, explaining why he didn’t take action.
“It’s one of those situations where he assumed. We’ve talked about assumptions. That’s an assumption on his part. That’s part of his game we’ve got to get rid of.”
Floyd, whose locker is three cubicles away from Upton’s in the clubhouse, said that will be done.
“I think everybody in here will do everything possible to make sure it doesn’t happen again. It’s not in Joe’s hands any more. It’s in nobody’s hands but ours,” the 14-year veteran said.
“It bothers me. You get choked up a little bit because it’s like, ‘Man, we’ve got something real special here.’ We don’t need to be talking about this stuff.”
Eric Hinske also hit a two-run homer and Sonnanstine (13-6) allowed three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings to pull within one victory of the Rays’ single-season record. Rolando Arrojo won 14 in 1998, and Sonnanstine’s total matches the 13 Scott Kazmir won a year ago.
Dan Wheeler, the sixth Tampa Bay pitcher, worked a perfect ninth for his sixth save in seven opportunities, enabling the Rays to maintain their 4 1/2 -game lead over Boston in the division.
Hinske hit his 19th homer in the second and Floyd added his ninth in the third, both coming off right-hander Jon Garland (11-8), who allowed five runs and 10 hits in six innings.
The Rays made it 5-1 in the third when Willy Aybar scored from first after Hinske singled and the ball rolled between Vladimir Guerrero’s legs in right field for a two-base error.
Back at Tropicana Field after going 7-3 on a season-high 10-game trip in which they thrived despite the benching of Upton and losing Carl Crawford, Evan Longoria and Troy Percival to injuries, the Rays improved the best home record in the majors to 46-17.
The Angels have the best road mark in baseball (39-24) but are 0-4 in the Rays’ ballpark this season.
Juan Rivera homered and Garret Anderson extended his hitting streak to a season-best 21 games with a sixth-inning RBI double for Los Angeles. Guerrero added an RBI single off Grant Balfour in the seventh, cutting Tampa Bay’s lead to 5-4.
“What’s hurt us here is what’s happened in the batter’s box. We just haven’t swung the bats well in what’s invariably a hitter’s park,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.
Upton drew a mixed reaction from fans in his first plate appearance after hitting a fourth-inning drive to left off Garland and breaking into a trot out of the batter’s box, apparently thinking it would be a home run.
Instead, the ball hit the fence on a hop.
Upton casually rounded first and jogged toward second with Angels first baseman Mark Teixeira following up the line to meet left fielder Rivera’s throw to an uncovered base. Teixeira fielded the ball on a bounce and made the tag just before a surprised Upton touched the bag.
With the inning over, Upton dropped his head and bent over at second base for a few moments before taking his position on defense.
Upton was benched for one game on Aug. 6, the day after he failed to run hard on a grounder back to the mound against Cleveland. Maddon removed him in the middle of an inning at Texas for not hustling on a double-play grounder Friday, then left him out of the lineup for Saturday’s game against the Rangers.
“He’s going to get it right, trust me,” Floyd said. “He’s going to be, in my mind, one of the best players to play the game. You don’t want anybody looking at you like you really don’t want it.”
The game drew an announced crowd of 15,896, despite the approach of Tropical Storm Fay, which is expected to make landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast—south of the Tampa Bay area—on Tuesday.
Tuesday night’s game between the division leaders is still scheduled, however Rays president Matt Silverman said that could change if the storm deviates from its projected path. If there’s a postponement, it likely will be rescheduled as part of a Wednesday doubleheader.
Xtra, xtra: Hinske has three homers in his last seven games. Percival, Tampa Bay’s closer, opted not to have surgery on his injured right knee and hopes to resume throwing off a mound in four or five days (Associated Press - Sports).
Roy Halladay won’t be facing the Tampa Bay Rays again this season, something both sides are perfectly happy about.
