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Wednesday, Aug. 9 7:15pm ET
Devil Rays strengthen as games lengthen | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- The Tampa Bay Devil Rays like working overtime. Miguel Cairo scored on shortstop Cristian Guzman's error in the 10th inning as the Devil Rays beat the Minnesota Twins 5-4 Wednesday night. Tampa Bay, an American League-worst 49-63, has won eight of 12 extra-inning games this season. "I don't count them, I just manage them," Devil Rays manager Larry Rothschild said. Cairo opened the inning by drawing a walk off LaTroy Hawkins (2-3). He went to third on Fred McGriff's one-out single and scored when Guzman mishandled Jose Guillen's grounder, on which Guillen was credited with an RBI. "Took a chance playing back with first and third and go for the double play," Twins manager Tom Kelly said. "Guillen hit a bouncer, Guzman was sort of stuck. He pretty much had to try and throw home." The Twins are just 3-7 in extra innings. "We started off the inning with a walk ... put yourself in trouble right away," Kelly said. Bill Taylor (1-1), the fifth Tampa Bay pitcher, allowed one hit in the 10th. Despite pitching with an upset stomach, Taylor earned his first win since July 1, 1999 with Oakland. "You never know what's going to happen when the ball's in play," Taylor said. "It worked out for us in a good way." The Devil Rays nearly won it in the ninth. Jason Tyner had a one-out single and stole second, but he was thrown out at the plate by left fielder Jacque Jones on pinch-hitter Aubrey Huff's single. McGriff hit his 20th homer, marking the 13th season he has reached at least 20 homers. Tampa Bay right-hander Dave Eiland, activated from the disabled list before the game, allowed two runs and seven hits in six innings in his first outing since May 23. "I think the biggest thing was I was fighting a head cold for the past 2-3 days," Eiland said. "That was a battle for me out there, but it was something I really didn't think about. It might have gassed me a little toward the end." Minnesota starter Eric Milton went seven innings, giving up three runs and seven hits. He won his past three starts, allowing just three runs in 23 innings. "I don't say this too often, but I think the umpire (Dan Morrison) missed a lot of pitches tonight," Milton said. "It kind of got to me. "The outcome could have been better. It's just a tough loss." The Devil Rays took a 3-2 lead in the sixth inning on Russ Johnson's two-out, two-run single. The Twins tied it in the seventh on Guzman's eighth homer of the season off Doug Creek. After Guzman's homer, the Twins loaded the bases with two outs. The inning ended when Gerald Williams caught Torii Hunter's fly ball near the center-field fence. "I thought we might find a way to pull it out," Minnesota catcher Chad Moeller said. "We were just a run short." The teams traded runs in the eighth. Jay Canizaro had an RBI single for the Twins, while Greg Vaughn hit his 21st homer off Bob Wells. The Twins opened the scoring on Hunter's RBI single in the second inning. Hunter is 13-for-25 during a seven-game hitting streak. A run-scoring single by Ron Coomer put Minnesota ahead 2-0 in the third inning. McGriff homered in the fourth to make it 2-1. He went 72 at-bats since his last homer, a July 17th shot off Atlanta's John Rocker. Game notesTampa Bay has gone extra innings in four of the past 10 games. ... Canizaro appeared to get hit in the face by a piece of a bat he shattered during a fifth-inning at-bat. ... To make room for Eiland, LHP Mike Duvall was optioned to Triple-A Durham. ... McGriff has 410 career homers. ... Former Twins C George Mitterwald threw out the ceremonial first pitch. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Minnesota Clubhouse Tampa Bay Clubhouse RECAPS Cleveland 6 Texas 4
Tampa Bay 5
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