Tampa tops Texas in slugfest

Baseball Betting Lines

05/17/2007 - Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carl Crawford's bases clearing triple in the fifth proved to be the game winner as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays downed the Texas Rangers, 11-8, in the second of a three-game set at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex.

Delmon Young went 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored and B.J. Upton drove in a pair of runs for the Devil Rays, who are on a season-high three- game winning streak.

"He's taking pitches and that's why he's hitting," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said of Young. "What you're getting out of him is that he's not expanding his strike zone. Because of that, he's starting to make much better contact."

Casey Fossum (3-3) got the win despite being charged with six runs on nine hits with four strikeouts in five innings of work.

"What I've been working on this year is my sinker, down and away," Fosum said. "I really wanted them to hit to left field, and I think they only hit two to the left. But our offense did a great job. We got a big lead and the bullpen came in and closed the door."

Tampa Bay is in the early stages of a nine-game "homestand" that will be played in the 9,500-seat stadium. The Devil Rays hope their stay in Orlando will expand their fan base into Central Florida.

Mark Teixeira hit a two-run home run and Vicente Padilla (1-6) was banged up for eight runs and 12 hits in four-plus innings of work for the Rangers, who have dropped three straight and five of their last six.

"We know exactly what is going on here," Teixeira said. "If we have a good offensive night, our pitching is off. If we have a good pitching night, our offense is off. We have guys going down like flies. I think we have a very good idea of why we are losing."

Sammy Sosa finished 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and three RBI. The home run was No. 597 in his career and needs just three more to become the fifth player in MLB history to reach the 600 mark.

The Rangers had a 6-4 lead when Tampa Bay batted in the fifth, but the Devil Rays plated six runs in the frame to take a 10-6 advantage.

Ty Wigginton and Carlos Pena started the inning with singles to put runners at the corners and Brendan Harris and Young each followed with an RBI single to tie the game and A.J. Murray took over on the mound for Padilla.

After getting Dioner Navarro to line out, Murray walked Jonny Gomes to load the bases. Upton worked a walk to force home Harris and Crawford cleared the bases with a triple to right center to give Tampa Bay a four-run lead.

The Rangers got a run back in the seventh on a single from Sosa which plated Michael Young to make it a 10-7 game.

The Devil Rays, though, got the run back in the bottom of the seventh as Wigginton smacked an RBI single to score Upton and make it an 11-7 contest.

Texas continued to keep it close as Kevin Mahar hit into a double play that scored Chris Stewart to make it an 11-8 game.

Al Reyes, though, retired the Rangers in order in the ninth to pick up his 12th save of the season.

The Devil Rays got on the scoreboard in the first inning as Elijah Dukes led off the frame with a shot over the left field wall for a 1-0 lead.

Texas, though, took the lead with three runs in the fourth inning. After Teixeira beat out an infield single, Sosa blasted a shot over the right field wall to give the Rangers the lead. After Hank Blalock popped out, Victor Diaz nailed a shot over the right-center wall for a 3-1 advantage.

Tampa Bay, however, answered with three runs of its own in the bottom of the fourth to take a 4-3 lead. With runners on second and third and no outs, Delmon Young punched a single to center that scored Pena and Harris. Two batters later, Gomes punched a single to left and, after Dukes walked to load the bases, Upton grounded into a fielder's choice to score Young.

The Rangers had another three-run inning in the fifth to assume a 6-4 advantage. With Jerry Hairston, Jr. at third, Young punched a single to right to score Hairston. Teixeira followed with a bomb over the right-center wall to give Texas the lead.

Game Notes

Before the game, the Rangers placed outfielder Brad Wilkerson on the 15-day disabled list with a pulled right hamstring. Also, Texas purchased the contract of Mahar from Triple-A Oklahoma and transferred pitcher John Rheinecker to the 60-day disabled list...Tampa Bay outfielder Rocco Baldelli will have an MRI on his left hamstring on Thursday...Texas second baseman Jerry Hairston Jr. left the game in the fifth inning with an undisclosed injury...Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays are the other players to reach at least 600 home runs in their career.