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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -
Carl Crawford
hit a three-run homer and
Cliff Floyd
added a pair of run-scoring singles, helping the
Tampa Bay Rays
stop
Ervin Santana
from becoming the AL's first seven-game winner with an 8-5 victory over the
Los Angeles Angels
on Sunday.
Santana departed with a 5-4 lead with one runner on and two outs in the sixth inning, but the game quickly shifted when
Justin Speier
(0-3) entered and gave up a double to
Akinori Iwamura
and Crawford's third homer of the season.
B.J. Upton doubled for the third consecutive hit off the Angels reliever. He took third base on a wild pitch and scored on
another wild pitch by Speier, who struggled for the second time in three days against the Rays.
Evan Longoria
's two-run, ninth-inning homer off Speier gave Tampa Bay a 2-0 win in the series opener Friday night. The Rays won by the
same score Saturday, holding the Angels to a total of four hits in the two losses.
The series sweep left Los Angeles with a four-game losing streak for the first time since April 2007 and lifted the Rays (21-16)
five games over .500 for the first time in the club's 11-season history.
Although Santana remained unbeaten, Tampa Bay prevented an Angels starter from becoming the league's first seven-game winner
for the second straight day.
Joe Saunders
lost for the first time in seven decisions on Saturday.
J.P. Howell (2-0) pitched three scoreless innings in relief of
Andy Sonnanstine
to get the victory.
Troy Percival
worked the ninth for his ninth save in 10 opportunities.
Garret Anderson
and
Torii Hunter
drove in two runs apiece for the Angels, who finally showed signs of life on offense. Slumping
Vladimir Guerrero
went 2-for-4 and drove in a run for just the fourth time in 23 games.
Santana, coming off a four-hit shutout of Kansas City, allowed three runs on four hits in the first six batters Sunday. Floyd,
Upton and Longoria had the RBIs for Tampa Bay, which also had been struggling at the plate the past week.
The Angels snapped a streak of 20 consecutive scoreless innings with RBI singles by Guerrero, Anderson and Hunter in the third
inning, however Santana quickly fell behind again.
Upton and
Carlos Pena
singled to start the bottom of the third. Floyd, in his first action since coming off the 15-day disabled list, followed with
his second run-scoring single to give Sonnanstine another lead the Tampa Bay starter couldn't hold.
Anderson's RBI single and Hunter's run-scoring triple turned the Angels' 4-3 deficit into a 5-4 lead and ended Sonnanstine's
afternoon. The Rays starter gave up eight hits, walked two and struck out three.
Santana allowed five runs and eight hits - both season highs - in 5 2-3 innings. He walked one and struck out seven.
Notes: Crawford finished 3-for-5, stole two bases and scored two runs. ... Speier has allowed five homers in 15 innings this
season. ... Angels INF
Howie Kendrick
's strained left hamstring will be reevaluated on Monday. He went 3-for-3 in a rehab game with Class A Rancho Cucamonga last
Tuesday, but experienced some tightness in the hamstring. ... Rays INF
Ben Zobrist
will have the pins removed from his broken left thumb on Monday and could be activated during this week's series against the
New York Yankees
.
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