ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Mike Scioscia says the Los Angeles Angels won't be able to get back to where they want to be until they have consistent, reliable starting pitching. Thursday's gem from Hector Santiago is the kind of outing for which they are looking.

Santiago (6-4) threw seven innings of three-hit shutout baseball as the Angels won their third straight over the reeling Tampa Bay Rays, closing the series with a 5-1 win on Thursday afternoon at Tropicana Field.

"When you rebound and have three games like we have, you're going in the right direction," Scioscia said. "We have our work cut out for us. We need to keep getting better, and we're not going to get better until really that rotation gets solid and these guys get comfortable and keep throwing like Hector this afternoon and (Jered Weaver) last night."

The Angels (36-50) have won three straight games for the first time since mid-May, while the Rays (34-51) have lost 19 of 22, the worst stretch by any team in baseball this season and matching the worst 22-game stretch in franchise history.

Tampa Bay's Blake Snell and Santiago were locked in a scoreless tie for five innings, each giving up two hits entering the sixth.

Los Angeles finally got to Snell in the sixth, as Yunel Escobar led off with a single, advanced on an infield out and scored on an RBI single by Albert Pujols for a 1-0 lead. C.J. Cron hit a grounder up the middle for what looked to be an inning-ending double play, but second baseman Logan Forsythe's throw sailed high over first base, allowing a second run to score. The Rays challenged to play, arguing that Pujols had interfered with the throw as he did not slide and went into second standing up, but the call was upheld.

"You don't have to slide," Scioscia said of the play. "I think Albert made an effort to get out of his way, so I don't think it affected the path of Forsythe's throw to first base."

After the game, Rays manager Kevin Cash said he saw enough ambiguity in the rule to ask for the challenge, one day after he won two challenges in overturning calls on the field.

"The way the rule is written, there can be a little bit of different interpretation," Cash said. "From my judgment, I thought (Pujols) affected Logan's throw. I think from the judgment of the umpire, there has to be ... intent to do it or not, and if you're not sliding, to me, that's intent enough. But I understand that it's not a black-and-white rule. They discussed, they went to replay to look at it, and they came up that there was no infraction."

Snell (1-4) left after six innings, having held the Angels to two runs on four hits while striking out seven batters, his most in six career starts.

"That might have been one of his best outings," Cash said. "I think we're all pleased with the way Blake made a commitment with commanding the fastball ... We know if he gets ahead in his counts, his stuff will work just fine up here."

The Angels added two runs in the eighth off the Rays bullpen, getting a sacrifice fly from Cron to score Escobar, who had singled. With two outs, the Angels expertly pulled off the double steal with Mike Trout stealing home and Pujols stealing second -- the catcher threw to shortstop Brad Miller, who neither threw home nor covered second, allowing both to advance for a 4-0 lead.

Santiago (6-4) continued his strong pitching in recent weeks -- he had held opponents to exactly one run in three of his four previous starts while lasting at least six innings in each outing. Thursday was no different, as he went seven innings and held the Rays to three hits and no runs while striking out nine, one off his season high.

The Rays didn't have many opportunities, going 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position. Their best chance came in the second, when Brandon Guyer singled and Oswaldo Arcia drew a one-out walk, but Santiago faced a pair of batters hitting under .200 on the season, striking out Tim Beckham and getting Hank Conger to pop out to end the inning.

Tampa Bay spoiled the shutout in the eighth as Miller hit his 13th home run -- and eighth in 24 games -- as the first batter to face reliever Joe Smith.

The Rays went 3-8 on an 11-game homestand and now play at Boston for three games before a much-needed All-Star break. The Angels finish the first half of the season with three games at Baltimore.

NOTES: Playing their 11th game in as many days on Tropicana Field's turf, and a 12:10 p.m. local start after a three-hour night game, the Rays tweaked their lineup Thursday to provide key players some rest. Evan Longoria played designated hitter for just the fourth time this season, with Tim Beckham playing third for only the second time this season. Logan Morrison got a rare day off, which meant Nick Franklin playing at first base for the first time in the majors this season. ... The Angels went into Thursday's game averaging 8.7 runs per game on their current road trip, with 33 total extra-base hits in the six games.