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Ponson gets first win in nearly a year, Twins crush Devil Rays

Apr 15, 2007 - 4:16 AM MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Sidney Ponson showed his Minnesota Twins teammates that he is not quite ready for the scrap heap.

Ponson allowed two runs in 5 1/3 innings and Torii Hunter drove in three as the Twins posted a 12-5 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Hunter had three hits, as did Michael Cuddyer and Jason Tyner, who each scored three runs for Minnesota, which has won 11 of 12 here vs. Tampa Bay.

Ponson was awful in his Twins debut, surrendering eight runs in 5 2/3 innings against the New York Yankees last Monday, but he yielded eight hits and three walks while striking out six to even his record at 1-1.

"Ponson was missing with some pitches but he battled," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "He gives us everything he has. He's got all the pitches, it's just a matter of getting them where he wants them a little more often and a little more consistent. But I was happy for him."

He snapped a personal six-game losing streak, recording his first win since May 27, 2006.

"You went deep for that one, didn't you?" Ponson said after being asked about his streak. "I go out there to battle every night I go out there.

"Like you said, six decisions I lost. It happens. But hopefully my next five or six will be 'W's. I don't win, the team wins. That's what its all about."

Still, Ponson was far from happy with his performance.

Ponson said he told Gardenhire before the game that he would last for nine innings. When Gardenhire went to the mound to retrieve Ponson after throwing 104 pitches in 5 1/3 innings, Ponson had Gardenhire and the rest of the Twins' infield chuckling.

"He just said he felt like he's thrown nine innings," Gardenhire said. "All you can do is look at him and smile, because he had a pretty good smile on his face."

Ponson left to a standing ovation from a crowd of 35,269.

With the game knotted at 2-2 and the bases loaded in the third, Justin Morneau, Hunter and Jason Kubel each had an RBI in the frame off Devil Rays starter Edwin Jackson to put the Twins up, 5-2. Minnesota added a run in the fifth, three in the sixth and three in the seventh, including a solo homer by Luis Rodriguez for his first blast of 2007 and fifth of his career.

Jackson surrendered five runs - four earned - three hits and five walks in just three-plus innings to drop to 0-2 this season.

"Jackson's command was not there tonight," Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "He didn't have that confident look he had the other day in Texas. It was just disheveled. He did not have that good appearance."

Carlos Pena belted a three-run homer in the ninth and Ty Wigginton and B.J. Upton each had two hits for Tampa Bay. However, center fielder Elijah Dukes went 0-for-4, striking out on each occasion.