Johnny Damon had a three-run double in the eighth inning and Jeremy Hellickson snapped a personal four-game losing streak to lead the Tampa Bay Rays to an 8-3 win over the visiting St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
The Rays ended interleague play with a 12-6 record.
Hellickson (8-7) won for the first time since June 4, allowing three runs in 7 1/3 innings. The righthander gave up Yadier Molina's solo homer in the second and a two-run shot to Lance Berkman that tied the game in the sixth. The home run was Berkman's fourth in as many games.
Kyle Farnsworth recorded the final five outs for his 17th save of the season.
The Rays answered immediately in the bottom of the sixth off Kyle Lohse (8-5). Matt Joyce led off with a double and scored on B.J. Upton's double. John Jaso's double plated Upton.
Damon's run-scoring double gave Tampa Bay a 3-1 lead in the fifth. Damon, who had three hits, also scored on second baseman Skip Schumaker's throwing error.
Molina's second-inning homer gave St. Louis the lead in the second, but Elliot Johnson's RBI groundout in the third tied the game.
St. Louis | Tampa Bay | |
Kyle Lohse | Player | Jeremy Hellickson |
Loss | W/L | Win |
5.1 | IP | 7.1 |
2 | Strikeouts | 2 |
7 | Hits | 6 |
6.75 | ERA | 3.68 |
St. Louis | Tampa Bay | |
Lance Berkman | Player | Johnny Damon |
1 | Hits | 3 |
2 | RBI | 4 |
1 | HR | 0 |
4 | TB | 6 |
.333 | Avg | .600 |