Scott snaps record hitless streak; Rays clobber Masterson, Tribe

Associated Press

CLEVELAND

Luke Scott snapped his team-record hitless streak with a two-run homer and the Tampa Bay Rays broke out of their slump by routing the Cleveland Indians 10-3 Friday night.

Scott was 0 for 41 since June 1 until connecting against Justin Masterson (5-8) in a six-run fifth inning.

Tampa Bay had scored more than four runs in a game only once in its previous 11 contests.

Alex Cobb (4-5) overcame a shaky start to pitch six innings and win for the second time in seven decisions since May 30.

Ben Zobrist had a two-run homer, Jose Lobaton a two-run single and Elliot Johnson a two-run double as the Rays broke Cleveland’s three-game win streak and improved to 5-13 against the AL Central.

Scott struck out his first two times up, moving within five at-bats of the major league record. Eugenio Velez went 46 consecutive hitless at bats in 2010-11.

After B.J. Upton singled with one out in the fifth, Scott drove the first pitch he saw from Masterson to center. He waited almost breathlessly for the towering shot to land. As it did, Michael Brantley tried to make a leaping catch at the wall.

Scott slowed between first and second and, when Brantley came down without the ball, continued his jog around the bases. He kept running to the dugout, where he received happy high-fives from teammates.

Scott went 1 for 5 overall for the Rays, who came in hitting only .209 (73 for 349) and averaging 2.9 runs in going 3-8 since sweeping an interleague doubleheader from Philadelphia on June 24.

The Rays struck quickly against Masterson, who fell to 1-6 with an 11.40 ERA in eight career starts against them.

Desmond Jennings lined the game’s first pitch to center for a single. He scored one out later on Zobrist’s 11th homer on a 3-0 pitch.

Cobb gave the lead right back in the bottom half as Cleveland got three hits and a walk. Travis Hafner grounded into a double play as one run scored and Asdrubal Cabrera went to third. Cabrera broke for home on a 3-2 pitch, then stopped. The move caused Cobb to balk and Cabrera trotted home anyway to tie it at 2.

Lobaton restored the Rays’ lead with a two-run single in the third, breaking his own 1-for-18 slump.

Johnson’s two-run double off reliever Nick Hagadone made it 8-2 in the fifth. Zobrist added a sacrifice fly and Upton an RBI single later in the inning.

Shin-Soo Choo’s RBI single in the bottom half made it 10-3.

The Indians put two runners on in the sixth before Cobb again got Hafner to bounce into a double play. Cobb gave up three runs and six hits overall.

Masterson gave up eight runs and nine hits over 41/3 innings — one more earned run than he yielded over his previous five starts and 36 innings.