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Amazing Rays: Tampa Bay takes 2-0 series lead over ChiSox

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10/03/2008 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Akinori Iwamura hit a two-run home run and Dioner Navarro knocked in two with a pair of hits as the Tampa Bay Rays took a commanding two-game lead in their American League Division Series with a 6-2 win over the Chicago White Sox at Tropicana Field.

Carl Crawford was 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored while Willy Aybar had two hits and scored for the Rays, who will try to win this best-of-five series in Game 3 on Sunday, as the matchup shifts to Chicago.

Scott Kazmir (1-0) recovered from a shaky two-run first frame and tossed 5 1/3 innings. The 24-year-old left-hander gave up the two runs on eight hits, walked two and struck out four in getting the Game 2 win. He had won four of his last six starts in the regular season, finishing up 12-8 for the season.

Mark Buehrle (0-1) helped keep the White Sox close through his seven-plus innings, but was ultimately charged with five runs on 10 hits. The 15-game winner did not walk a batter and fanned three.

Jermaine Dye had four hits while Jim Thome and Alexei Ramirez drove in a run each for the AL Central champion White Sox, who are back in the postseason for the first time since winning the World Series in 2005.

"It's White Sox baseball. We have 12 hits, we got two runs and the two runs were in the first inning. We got Kazmir against the ropes and we let him go," Chicago skipper Ozzie Guillen said. "And we left 12 people on base. You're not going to win many games like that. The opportunities were there, and we couldn't get it done. They had 12 hits and they scored six runs. That means they got clutch hitting with that."

Chicago failed to pick up an extra-base hit, leaving 12 men on base and going 3-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

After stranding a runner at second in the fourth, the Rays got a two-run homer from Iwamura in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead. Jason Bartlett singled to left with one down and Iwamura jumped on a 1-1 slider that just cleared the fence in left-center.

"As soon as I hit the ball, I hit it real good, so I knew it was gone," Iwamura said of the blast. "But at the same time (Rays manager Joe Maddon) says 'run the bases.' As soon as I heard the home run horn, that's the time when I actually realized it was a home run."

Juan Uribe led off the top of the sixth for Chicago with a single to center and Brian Anderson advanced the runner with a sacrifice. Grant Balfour came on for Kazmir and got Orlando Cabrera to ground out, moving Uribe to third, but Nick Swisher flied out to left.

The White Sox then opened the next inning with base hits from Dye and Paul Konerko, bringing Rays reliever J.P. Howell into the game to face Thome, who flied out. Ramirez lined out to short and A.J. Pierzynski grounded out as Chicago continued to waste scoring opportunities.

Buehrle, however, kept the White Sox close by allowing only an Evan Longoria single over the sixth and seventh innings, and the visitors came to bat in the eighth still trailing by only one. Howell fanned the first two batters before Cabrera singled, but Swisher was caught looking at strike three.

The White Sox's struggles at the plate opened the door for Tampa Bay to extend its lead in the eighth. B.J. Upton lined a leadoff triple to the gap in left- center and Crawford followed with a looping single to left for a 4-2 Rays lead. Octavio Dotel entered for Buehrle and got two quick outs. But Crawford, who previously stole second, raced home on a run-scoring single from Rocco Baldelli.

Matt Thornton was brought on to stop the bleeding but Navarro flared a double to shallow center and the ball bounced clear of three charging Chicago players, allowing Baldelli to round the diamond, stretching the lead to four entering the ninth.

Dye reached on a controversial single to start the last frame. Replays showed Aybar applied the tag on a wide throw a step before Dye touched the bag. But Chad Bradford got a double play ball from Konerko and Thome was called out on strikes to end the game.

"They're a veteran team. They can come back and win three easy if you let them," Howell said of the White Sox. "We don't have to win one more to clinch. We just have to win one more the next day whenever we play. We're not trying to look too far ahead and win three in one day or win two in one day. We're trying to go one at a time, and if we lose that day, we're ready to move on and try to win the next game the next day."

Chicago started the game by giving Buehrle a two-run lead to work with. Kazmir drilled Cabrera in the leg, walked Swisher and gave up a single to Dye to load the bases right out of the gate. Konerko popped out but Thome ripped an RBI single through the right side, and Ramirez followed with a sacrifice fly to left for a 2-0 lead. Pierzynski reached on a squib base-hit to fill the bases once again but Uribe struck out.

"It's really important that we get him going and be patient," Maddon said of Kazmir's early struggles. "That's what I kept telling myself. If he was able to get through that (first inning), I thought he might be able to settle in; and he did."

Aybar started off Tampa Bay's second frame with a single, then moved up two bases when Ramirez threw the ball into the Rays' dugout trying to double up Aybar on a Baldelli liner. Navarro followed with a run-scoring single to right to cut Chicago's lead in half.

Game Notes

Tampa Bay won six of its 10 matchups with the White Sox during the regular season, but was just 4-3 against Chicago at the Trop...Kazmir posted an 8-2 record in 14 starts at the Trop this season...Rays first baseman Carlos Pena, who left Game 1 in the third inning after experiencing blurred vision in his left eye, was scratched from the lineup just before the game. He accidentally scratched his eye at home on Wednesday night. Dewayne Wise, who hit a three- run homer in Game 1 for the White Sox, was not in the lineup as Swisher got the start in left field...Another switch for Game 2 saw Brian Anderson starting in center field, where Ken Griffey Jr. played in Game 1.