Devil Rays Cool Off A's With 12-2 Rout

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) _ James Shields carried a shutout into the ninth inning and Tampa Bay ended Oakland's five-game winning streak, pounding the Athletics 12-2 Friday night. <br/><br/>Shields

Friday, August 24th 2007, 9:29 pm

By: News On 6

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) _ James Shields carried a shutout into the ninth inning and Tampa Bay ended Oakland's five-game winning streak, pounding the Athletics 12-2 Friday night.

Shields (10-8) gave up nine hits and struck out eight, walking one and working out of jams in the third and sixth innings. The only runs he allowed came with one out in the ninth, when Dan Johnson hit a two-run homer to right.

The right-hander was replaced by Grant Balfour, who closed out Shields' second win since July 17 _ a span of seven starts.

The Devil Rays, who have the major's worst record at 49-79, have scored 10 or more runs in just eight games.

Lenny DiNardo (8-7) gave up a pair of runs in the second before giving up four runs and six consecutive hits in the third. He was replaced by Ruddy Lugo without retiring a batter, and gave up six runs and eight hits in two-plus innings _ his shortest start of the season.

Oakland, which moved back to .500 (65-65) one day after going above for the first time since July 7, lost for just the eighth time in 24 games.

Dioner Navarro hit a two-run homer in the second to give the Devil Rays an early lead. Navarro, batting just .230 entering the game, added a two-run double in the fifth.

Carlos Pena hit a run-scoring double in the third, scoring Akinori Iwamura from second. The RBI gave Pena a team-leading 82, and ties his season-high set in 2004. B.J. Upton, Delmon Young and Brendan Harris followed with consecutive run-scoring hits to make it 6-0.

After Navarro's double pushed the score to 8-0, Upton added a two-run homer in the sixth and Carl Crawford hit a two-run single in the seventh.

The Athletics put runners in the scoring in the third and the sixth, but Shields wiggled his way out by striking out Jack Hannahan in the third and jamming Mike Piazza for a pop out to shortstop in the sixth.

Notes: Young snapped an 0-for-20 slump with his double in the second, and Harris snapped a 0-for-16 slump with his RBI single in the third. ... CF Rocco Baldelli was shut down after he sat out his Class-A Vero Beach game Wednesday. Manager Joe Maddon said Baldelli is experience all-around soreness since his rehab started. ... Oakland RF Shannon Stewart was given a routine day off. ... SS Marco Scutaro returned to the lineup after being scratched before Thursday's game with a non-baseball condition. ... 2B Mark Ellis extended his hitting to nine games.