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Pena lifts first-place Rays to crucial win over Red Sox

Sep 11, 2008 - 5:53 AM By MIke Petraglia PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

BOSTON (Ticker) -- Carlos Pena drilled a three-run homer in the top of the 14th as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-2, in a key battle between the top two teams in the American League East Division.

Willy Aybar also drove in a run for the Rays (87-57), who took two of three in the series to move 2 1/2 games ahead of the Red Sox (85-60) for first place in the AL East.

Pena's two-out blast to the seats above the "Green Monster" came off Mike Timlin (4-4), who tied Kent Tekulve for most career relief appearances by a righthander with 1,050.

"Obviously, he's a veteran pitcher," Pena said. "He smart up there on the mound and he's had an incredible career. He knows what he's doing up there. I was just trying to make it as simple as possible. You can't really start thinking too much with a guy like him. I was just trying to see the ball the best I could. I got a pitch I thought I could handle, put a good swing on it. ... Got the barrel on the ball and was actually surprised it went out. I was actually shocked. When it went out, I was excited, very excited."

"Carlos has had opportunities and you just knew at some point he was going to come through," said Rays manager Joe Maddon.

Timlin said afterward that he was stunned that ball carried over the left-field wall.

"I was extremely surprised," Timlin said. "It was a good pitch. We pushed him off the plate, then went down and away and he somehow got underneath it. I have no idea. I was very surprised."

"He didn't miss with that pitch," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said of Timlin's offering. "That was off the plate. I bet that was a couple of inches off with some movement."

Trever Miller (2-0) pitched a scoreless 13th for the win, and Jason Hammel earned his first career save after Troy Percival loaded the bases with none out in the 14th before leaving with a stiff back.

Hammel allowed a sacrifice fly to Kevin Youkilis before getting Jason Bay to strike out and Alex Cora to fly out to center to end the 5-hour, two-minute marathon.

"(Percival) just wasn't feeling that good," Maddon said. "When I went out there he insisted on staying in but I knew better at that point. You've got to give Jason a lot of credit. Coming in with the bases loaded at that point of the batting order, to do what he did, that was truly a tremendous performance."

Starters Andy Sonnanstine and Josh Beckett hooked up in a classic pitchers' duel in the final regular-season meeting between the two AL East rivals at Fenway Park.

Beckett, in his second start back from right elbow inflammation, threw six innings, allowing just six hits and one run while walking two and striking out seven.

The Rays took a 1-0 lead in the second, when Cliff Floyd reached on a leadoff bad-hop single off the glove of Dustin Pedroia, and

Willy Aybar followed with an RBI triple to right.

The Red Sox tied it in the third on an unearned run when Pedroia doubled home Jed Lowrie with two outs. The double was the 46th of the season for Pedroia, breaking Jody Reed's mark by a Boston second baseman, which was set in 1990.

Sonnanstine overpowered the Red Sox for seven innings, allowing just one unearned run and striking out seven without a walk.

One night after going 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position, the Rays once again failed to convert on golden scoring opportunities. In the fifth, Cliff Floyd flew out to deep right with two outs and the bases loaded. Again with the bases full in the eighth, Justin Masterson struck out Dioner Navarro and got Gabe Gross to ground out to end the threat.

Before Pena's home run, the Rays had been 0-for-13 with runners in scoring position and 1-for-35 in the three-game series.

Now, the Rays have a chance to close in on their first playoff appearance when they visit Yankee Stadium this weekend for three games.

"I think so," Pena said of making a statement by taking two of three in Boston. "We don't ever set out to do that. We just go out there and try to win a ballgame. Given the situation and the time of the year it is, maybe it will be that way. We just know that we have to go out there Friday and play another game.

"But it's definitely helpful and feels great to win the series. This team is obviously energized because of it and the ways we've won it. It's been exciting both days and to do it at Fenway Park is even better. We're going to enjoy it, day off (Thursday) and back to business Friday."