INDIANS Rays end Tribe winning streak

Tampa Bay's 5-3 win snapped Cleveland's streak at four games.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Jared Sandberg hit a two-run homer and Aubrey Huff had two RBIs Saturday night as the improving Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat Cleveland 5-3, ending the Indians' winning streak at four.
Sandberg connected in the second inning off rookie Cliff Lee (1-1) as the Devil Rays won yet another close game.
Tampa Bay, which has the best record (16-10) in the AL East since July 20, has played in a major league-leading 70 games decided by two runs or fewer. They're 35-35 in those games.
Mark Malaska (2-1), a Cardinal Mooney High graduate, pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings, and Lance Carter gave up a one-out single in the ninth before getting his 21st save.
Alex Escobar homered for the first time in nearly two years for the Indians, now 9-3 in their last 12.
Big defensive plays
Cleveland left fielder Jody Gerut made two excellent plays in the seventh inning to keep the Indians close. First, he robbed Julio Lugo of extra bases with a diving catch in the corner, and later in the inning, Gerut threw out Huff at the plate.
Tampa Bay's 20-year-old rookie, Chad Gaudin, made his first major league start and lasted 3 2-3 innings. The youngest player in Devil Rays history allowed three runs and six hits with three walks.
Gaudin made four relief appearances before getting his start.
Lee, recalled earlier in the day when the Indians placed reliever Jason Boyd on the 15-day disabled list with shoulder tendinitis, gave up three earned runs and eight hits in six innings.
After being shut out Friday night by C.C. Sabathia, the Devil Rays scored twice in the first inning, helped by two Cleveland errors.
Lugo singled with one out in the first and Rocco Baldelli reached when third baseman Casey Blake couldn't handle his routine grounder.
Huff's single scored Lugo, and Baldelli also came in when right fielder Escobar's throw to third sailed into the photographer's pit.
Tampa Bay added two runs in the second when Toby Hall led off with a single and Sandberg followed by pulling a 1-1 pitch into the left-field seats for his third homer and first since June 6.
Escobar, whose 24 homers led the International League before he was recalled on Friday from Triple-A Buffalo, made it 4-1 with his first AL homer.
The homer was also his first since Oct. 5, 2001, with the New York Mets. Escobar missed all last season with a torn knee ligament.
Notes
With Lee up, Indians manager Eric Wedge plans to use a six-man rotation the rest of the season. Lee is also the 15th rookie on Cleveland's 25-man roster. ... Gaudin is the 13th starter used by the Devil Rays this season, tying a club record set in 1999.
TAMPA BAYCLEVELAND
abrhbiabrhbi
Crwfrd lf5020Crisp cf5010
Lugo ss5120Blake 3b5032
Baldelli cf4220Gerut lf4010
Huff dh5022Brssrd 1b3000
Rolls rf4000AEscbr rf4111
TLee 1b4010Hafner dh3000
Hall c4110Bard c4010
Sndbrg 3b3122Peralta ss2100
Tyner rf1000ASntos 2b4120
Perez 2b3000
MAndn 2b1000
Totals395124Totals34393
Tampa Bay220000100--5
Cleveland010200000--3
E--Blake (14), AEscobar (1). DP--Tampa Bay 1. LOB--Tampa Bay 9, Cleveland 9. 2B--Lugo (10), Huff (44). HR--Sandberg (3), AEscobar (1). SB--Lugo (8), Baldelli 2 (21). CS--ASantos (1).
IPHRERBBSO
Tampa Bay
Gaudin3 2-363330
Malaska W,2-11 1-300002
Backe220011
Colome100012
LCarter S,21110000
Cleveland
Lee L,1-1684315
Cressend131100
Betancourt210001
HBP--by Cressend (Rolls). WP--Lee. Umpires--Home, Jim Reynolds; First, Laz Diaz; Second, Jim Joyce; Third, Dale Scott. T--2:48. A--23,397.