Marlins beat Rays

[flsportsfan83]

Ramirez hustles Marlins to win

Infield single starts 5-run rally

By Craig Barnes

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Posted June 27 2006

MIAMI GARDENS -- When the Marlins left Tampa Bay on May 21, they were 11-31 and going nowhere. After Monday night's 8-5 win over the Devil Rays at Dolphin Stadium, they are one game out of second place in the National League East.

Behind Josh Johnson's pitching and a 13-hit attack, they improved to 22-9 since May 22, the best record in baseball. The Marlins have won two in a row and seven consecutive games at home. All of the Marlins' runs came with two outs.

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"Two-out runs are the ones that hurt," manager Joe Girardi said. "Josh pitched pretty well, but most important, he won against what I think it an underrated offensive team."

Johnson (7-4, 2.20 ERA), who gave up three runs in the first three innings, settled down and retired eight of the last 10 hitters he faced to win his third consecutive game. Joe Borowski recorded his 14th save and ninth in a row.

"I threw pretty good, but I was off a little at times," said Johnson, who pitched for the first time in eight days. "It was different, but you have to adjust. I was a little out of whack. After I gave up two in the first inning [on Rocco Baldelli's two-run homer], we came right back and got two."

With two outs in the first, Miguel Cabrera walked and scored on Mike Jacobs' double. Josh Willingham knocked in Jacobs with a single. Jacobs, Willingham, Jeremy Hermida and Cody Ross had two RBI each.

After Baldelli's single gave the Devil Rays a 3-2 lead in the third inning, the Marlins rallied for five runs with two outs in the fifth inning off Devil Rays' loser James Shields (4-1, 4.37 ERA).

"One guy hustling turned into five runs," Girardi said.

The outburst occurred when Hanley Ramirez beat out ground ball to third base.

"I was just trying to get on base and into scoring position," Ramirez said. "I was trying to get the team going."

After Ramirez stole second and advanced to third on an error, Jacobs punched a single through the right side on a Shields' change-up to score Ramirez and tie the game. Willingham followed with a single to score Cabrera, who ran through a stop sign at third base giving the Marlins the lead.

"It all started with Hanley, and we just fed off him," Willingham said.

As for Cabrera running through coach Jim Presley's stop sign, Girardi said, "If you run through the stop sign, you better be safe."

Hermida then laced a double into the right-field corner scoring Jacobs and Willingham to give the Marlins a 7-3 lead. In the seventh inning with two outs, Ross tripled home Hermida.

"The guy had one of the best right-handed change-ups that I've seen," Willingham said, "but once we saw it a time or two, we adjusted and waited on it better."

On a night when Johnson forgot how many outs there were (in the third) and didn't run out an infield roller (in the fifth because he felt something funny when he swung), and Ramirez hustled to second on a routine fly ball (in the second), the Marlins were anything but sharp. Still, they managed to win.

"We weren't crisp [tonight]," Girardi said, "but we have guys who give it all they have because they have something to prove."

Craig Barnes can be reached at cbarnes@sun-sentinel.com.

[mulheap]

I think it's time to change the name of this board to "flsportsfan83 vs. everything in Tampa".

[Velcro]

bragging about marlins beating rays is like bragging that the Atlanta Hawks beat the NY Knicks or the SF 49ers beat the Detroit Lions.

Does it really matter?  nope.

[Triple B]

bragging about marlins beating rays is like bragging that the Atlanta Hawks beat the NY Knicks or the SF 49ers beat the Detroit Lions.

Does it really matter?  nope.

**** sports snobs ............   >

[Velcro]

;D  

Hey, the Bucs turned it around... maybe the Rays will someday.