St. Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Evan Longoria and Cliff Floyd each hit solo home runs as the Tampa Bay Rays downed the Chicago Cubs, 3-2, in the opening test of a three-game interleague series at Tropicana Field.
Erick Hinske drove in a run while Akinori Iwamura scored the other run for the Rays, who have won three of their last four. Scott Kazmir started on the mound, but didn't factor in the decision as he gave up one run on three hits with four walks and seven strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings of work. Grant Balfour (1-0) got the win for pitching 1 1/3 perfect innings.
Ryan Theriot drove in a run while Mark DeRosa and Henry Blanco each scored for the Cubs, who had won five of six coming into the contest. Ryan Dempster started on the mound and pitched five innings, giving up one run on six hits with two walks and six strikeouts. Neal Cotts (0-1) got the loss for giving up two runs in one-plus innings of work.
Tampa held a 3-1 lead heading into the ninth and Troy Percival started on the mound to close out the win, but he made it interesting.
After getting Geovany Soto to fly out to deep left to start the inning, he issued a single to DeRosa and then Kosuke Fukudome laced a pinch-hit, opposite field double to left. With Micah Hoffpauir at the plate, Percival's wild pitch allowed DeRosa to score, but on the next pitch Percival got Hoffpauir to strike out swinging. With Jim Edmonds batting, Percival uncorked another wild pitch, but luckily for Tampa the ball took a quick hop off the backstop and Fukudome stayed at third. Edmonds then worked the walk to put runners at the corners. Reed Johnson stepped to the plate and on the first pitch he saw bunted the ball down the third base line, but Longoria made a beautiful barehanded grab and one-hopped the ball to first base in time for the force to end the game and give Percival his 16th save of the season.
The Rays grabbed the lead in the second as Floyd lofted a two-out, solo homer deep into the right field stands.
Tampa loaded the bases with one out in the third, but B.J. Upton hit a weak grounder back to the mound for the force out at home and Hinske struck out to end the inning.
Kazmir had a no-hitter going into the fifth inning, but he did not make it out of the frame. Blanco punched a single to center with one out and, after Ronny Cedeno struck out, Johnson beat out an infield single. Theriot then hit a grounder that got past both Willy Aybar and Iwamura and rolled into the outfield to allow Blanco to score and tie the game. After Derrek Lee drew a walk, Kazmir was replaced on the mound by Balfour, who struck out Aramis Ramirez to end the inning.
Tampa regained the lead in the sixth. Cotts took over for Dempster on the mound and Longoria greeted him by blasting a pitch over the right field stands for a 2-1 lead.
The Rays padded their lead in the seventh. Iwamura started the frame by hitting a high chopper back to the mound that Cotts fielded, but he rushed the throw and it went into the outfield, allowing Iwamura to race to third. Michael Wuertz then took the mound and got Aybar to line out to short, but Upton walked and Hinske followed with a single to shot that allowed Iwamura to score for a 3-1 advantage.
NOTES: It was the first time the Cubs played at Tropicana Field. The team is 60-51-1 in their first appearance at a ballpark..Tampa outfielder Carl Crawford served the last of his four-game suspension stemming from a melee with the Red Sox on June 5..This is the first time these teams have met set the Cubs took two of three against the Rays in Chicago in 2003..Cubs manager Lou Pinella managed the Rays from the 2002-05 season..Before the game, the Cubs recalled outfielder Matt Murton from Triple-A Iowa and optioned infielder Eric Patterson to Iowa..The Rays stranded 12 men on base..Attendance was 31,607.