• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Despite injury to Jackson, Devil Rays pound Diamondbacks

Jun 19, 2007 - 6:13 AM PHOENIX (Ticker) -- The Tampa Bay Devil Rays still have never lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks. However Edwin Jackson remains winless.

Jonny Gomes homered and doubled as the Devil Rays posted a 10-2 interleague victory over the Diamondbacks on Monday, improving to 7-0 all-time vs. Arizona.

Tampa Bay earned the win despite losing Jackson, who entered 0-8, before he could collect the victory. The 23-year-old righthander left the game with a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning with cramping and fatigue in his right index finger.

"There was a little cramping up, something I had before, nothing serious," Jackson said. "I just came out because of precautionary measures."

He allowed two runs, four hits and four walks in 4 2/3 innings, one out shy of being eligible for a decision.

"It was kind of tough to leave the game but we came out with the win," Jackson added. "I felt just as strong as I did to start the game, but you never know. If I threw a couple of more pitches then maybe I might wind up on the DL."

"It is a tough moment, a bad moment as a manager knowing he was one out away of getting his first win," Devil Ray manager Joe Madden said. "He is telling me that he was feeling these different things so we did what we had to do."

Jackson, who was receiving 1.82 runs of support so far this season, had not won a game since September 26, 2005 and was coming off the shortest outing of his career, surrendering five runs in one-third of an inning in a 9-0 loss to San Diego last Wednesday.

Gomes hit a second-inning homer off Livan Hernandez over the swimming pool in right-center to put the Devil Rays up 2-0 and his double in the sixth provided a 4-2 bulge. In between, Brendan Harris homered in the third - his eighth of the season - for a 3-0 lead.

Gomes, who was recalled from Class AAA Durham last Wednesday, has hit .555 (10-18) with four home runs and four doubles since he rejoined the club.

"Jonny is just having great at-bats right now," Madden said. "His two-strike at-bats have gotten a lot better too. That was a problem earlier in the season, he was struggling with two strikes. He is hitting to right-center as well, that's why he's gotten hot."

After Gomes' double, Tampa Bay reliever Jason Hammel, in his first major league at-bat, smacked the first pitch he saw into deep center for an RBI double to make it 5-2.

Hammel (1-0) picked up his first victory as well, going 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit.

"I think I am more excited about the hit because I had no idea what was going to happen," Hammel said. "Jacks (Jackson) threw great. We were able to pick him up. We hit and pitched well tonight."

Hernandez (5-5) allowed six runs and 12 hits in six innings, suffering his third straight loss.

"I have had two tough games back-to-back," Hernandez said. "I've had a lot of good games but I don't feel to comfortable now on the mound. It seems I have a bit of trouble every year, but I will fix the problem."

Orlando Hudson had two hits for Arizona, which snapped a mild three-game winning streak.

"We had some decent at bats early and came back and made it 3-2, but Livan didn't have his best command," Diamondbacks manger Bob Melvin said.