Pena, Aybar homer in Rays win

[June 11, 2009]  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- Carlos Pena and Willy Aybar homered Wednesday night, helping the Tampa Bay Rays stop a three-game losing streak with a 9-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels and nemesis John Lackey.

Pena hit a solo homer in the third inning and Aybar added a two-run shot off Lackey (1-2) for a 9-5 lead in the fifth. Aybar also had a RBI single during Tampa Bay's five-run second against the Angels starter, who had won nine of 10 previous decisions against Tampa Bay.

The Rays, who suffered from a lack of timely hitting during their three-game skid, rallied from a 3-0 deficit to build a 7-3 lead for Jeff Niemann. But the rookie right-hander lasted just 3 2-3 innings.

Lance Cormier (1-1) pitched 2 1-3 scoreless innings for the win. Jason Isringhausen, Joe Nelson and Dan Wheeler finished up, holding the Angels to one hit -- Vladimir Guerrero's ninth-inning triple -- over the last three innings.

Chone Figgins had a two-run triple for Los Angeles, but also committed a costly throwing error. Gary Matthews Jr., Bobby Abreu and Juan Rivera also drove in runs for the Angels, who stranded nine baserunners while wasting several scoring opportunities.

Coming off the best performance of his career -- a two-hit, complete-game shutout of Kansas City -- and pitching on extra rest, Niemann allowed five runs and seven hits.

Aybar, Gabe Gross, Dioner Navarro and Carl Crawford drove in runs in the second inning for the Rays. A fifth run scored on a wild pitch by Lackey, who was 9-1 with a 2.36 ERA in 11 career start against Tampa Bay before Wednesday night.

Pena hit his 18th homer in the third, and the Rays went up 7-3 when another third-inning run scored on Figgins' error with two outs. After Los Angeles pulled within two on Abreu's sacrifice fly and Rivera's RBI single in the fourth, Aybar restored the four-run lead with his fifth homer.

Lackey allowed nine runs and 11 hits in five innings.

Notes: Los Angeles CF Torii Hunter, slowed by a groin strain, was out of the lineup. The Angels didn't want Hunter, who will start Thursday, to play three straight days on artificial turf. ... Rays DH Pat Burrell (neck strain) could return this weekend, and SS Jason Bartlett (sprained left ankle) might be back early next week. ... Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said setup man Scot Shields' stay on the 15-day disabled list with an injured left knee remains open-ended. ... Tampa Bay LHP Scott Kazmir (right quadriceps) is scheduled to throw three innings in a simulated game Friday. If all goes well, he will pitch in a minor league game next week.

[Associated Press; By FRED GOODALL]

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