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Rays keep Marlins floundering

Jun 18, 2011 - 5:46 AM St. Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Sean Rodriguez hit a two-run homer and Kelly Shoppach added a solo shot as Florida took down Tampa Bay, 5-1, in the opener of a three-game interleague set.

Wade Davis (6-5) allowed one run on six hits and two walks in six innings to end a brief two-game skid for the Rays.

"I think overall it was solid. It wasn't great. It wasn't bad. I think it was a pretty honest game, but it was a great win for us," Davis said about his performance.

Brad Hand (0-3) was again denied his first major-league victory. He lasted 4 2/3 innings and gave up three runs -- two earned -- on three hits, including two home runs, as Florida dropped its eighth straight game. The Marlins are 1-16 this month.

Evan Longoria reached base on a Hanley Ramirez fielding error to start the second inning and Rodriguez followed two batters later with a homer into the left-field bleachers to give the Rays a 2-0 lead.

Shoppach added a leadoff home run in the third.

Florida got on the board on John Buck's lead-off shot in the fifth, ending a streak of 19 straight scoreless innings for the Marlins.

Later in the inning, Florida had a runner on third with two outs after Dewayne Wise singled, stole second and advanced to third on an Omar Infante groundout. But after a Logan Morrison walk, Gaby Sanchez flew out to center field to end the inning.

Tampa Bay added to its lead in the eighth after Matt Joyce and Longoria hit back-to-back singles to start the inning. Two batters later, Rodriguez hit a ground-rule double that was grabbed by a fan in the right-field corner and Joyce and Longoria were allowed to score.

On the play, the ball landed right on the right-field chalk and as it rolled into the corner, when the fan grabbed the ball. Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez argued that Longoria should be put back on third and was ejected from the game by home plate umpire Ted Barrett.

Kyle Farnsworth entered the game with men on first and second in the eighth to try and earn a four-out save. He got Mike Stanton to pop out to the catcher to end the eighth and threw a perfect ninth to earn his 15th save of the year.

Game Notes

Florida selected the contract of outfielder Wise from New Orleans, optioned outfielder Chris Coghlan to Triple-A New Orleans and designated pitcher Dustin Richardson for assignment on Friday...Johnny Damon is one double shy of 500 for his career...Florida finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base while Tampa was 1-for-8 and stranded seven.