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Sunday, Apr. 16 1:05pm ET
Devil Rays rally past Tigers in ninth | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
DETROIT (AP) -- Mike DiFelice wanted to make sure everybody knew he wasn't the only hero for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Sunday. DiFelice hit a go-ahead single in a three-run ninth inning as the Devil Rays rallied from a five-run deficit to beat the Detroit Tigers 7-6. "I just happened to be the guy who batted in the lead run," DiFelice said. "But everybody won that game." With Detroit ahead 6-4 in the ninth, Dave Martinez hit a one-out single off Todd Jones (0-1) and Fred McGriff reached on a two-out single when second baseman Shane Halter couldn't come up with his grounder between first and second. Greg Vaughn loaded the bases on a bad-hop hit, a smash that hit third baseman Dean Palmer in the throat. Vinny Castilla tied the score with a two-run single, and DiFelice followed with the go-ahead hit. "The first week was a long week for us, and to come back like that, maybe things will get easier for us," DiFelice said. "It's just great to come back and win after being down 6-1." Halter blamed himself for the loss because he couldn't make the play on McGriff's grounder. "I lost my footing and overran the ball," Halter said. "Had I not done that, I could have gotten him out." Halter was able to recover and get the ball, but McGriff just beat his throw to first. "He ran there fast," Devil Rays manager Larry Rothschild said. "He just didn't get there fast." The loss dropped the Tigers to 3-3 in their first homestand at Comerica Park. "We had the ballgame under control, then it got down to the end of the game and we couldn't put them away," Tigers manager Phil Garner said. "They battled back and did the job on us." The blown save was Jones' first in four chances this season. "This is one of the stranger ways I have blown a game, with two outs, a couple of ground-ball hits and two rockets off my guys," Jones said. "He's in a high-risk business," Garner said. "You have one bad outing and it stands out. But 35 times he'll come through for you. He's one of the top closers in the league." Roberto Hernandez (1-1) allowed one hit in 1 1-3 innings. Three Tampa Bay relievers combined for four shutout innings. "They've been doing that as long as I've been here," DiFelice said. "They got banged up a little bit the first week, but today they showed what competitors they are." Brian Moehler, who won the Comerica Park opener Tuesday, allowed four runs and 10 hits in 6 1/3 innings. Devil Rays starter Esteban Yan gave up six runs, seven hits and four walks in five innings. Palmer's three-run homer gave Detroit a 6-1 lead in the third, but Gerald Williams closed the gap with a three-run homer in the seventh. Juan Encarnacion hit a two-run single in the second, and Deivi Cruz's sacrifice fly gave Detroit a 3-0 lead. Tampa Bay loaded the bases with none out in the third but got only one run on Martinez's RBI forceout. Moehler escaped further damage when Jose Canseco grounded into a double play. Palmer hit his fourth homer on an 0-2 pitch in the bottom half after Robert Fick doubled and Juan Gonzalez walked. Game notesWilliams' homer was his second of the series and made him the first to homer twice in Comerica Park. ... Though only five home runs have been hit in Comerica Park's first six games, doubles have been plentiful. The teams combined to hit five doubles Sunday. Gonzalez has hit five in his last four games. ... Devil Rays LHP Wilson Alvarez, on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis, pitched four perfect innings Saturday in a rehab start with St. Petersburg of the Florida State League. ... Sunday's attendance of 24,686 marked the first time in Tigers history that the club had drawn at least 20,000 for six straight home games in April. Average attendance after six dates is 26,175. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Tampa Bay Clubhouse Detroit Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 5 Oakland 4
Tampa Bay 7
Colorado 14
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