Rays rally in 7th, sweep Sawx

ST. PETERSBURG - There's no secret to the success of the Rays this season. Good pitching, solid defense and timely hitting carried them to the top of the AL East standings.

The same winning combination is keeping them there.

Evan Longoria went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs and B.J. Upton made a "Willie Mays-esque" catch in center field to help an improved bullpen hold off Boston 7-6 last night for Tampa Bay's second three-game sweep of the World Series champions this season.

"It's a really good feeling. I can't tell you that I expected it - I'd be lying - but right now ... we do expect to win on a nightly basis," manager Joe Maddon said after the Rays improved the best record in baseball to 52-32.

They did it last night by rallying from a three-run deficit in the seventh inning, extending their lead in the division to a franchise-best 3?? games over the second-place Red Sox, who matched a season high with their fifth consecutive loss.

Tampa Bay is 6-0 at home against Boston, which has swept a pair of three-game series from the Rays at Fenway Park.

"It reaffirms to us that we can play against these guys and we can beat the Red Sox," Maddon said. "Now we have to prove that we can beat them in Fenway Park also."

Longoria had a RBI single off Daisuke Matsuzaka in the first inning, and his two-run double off Craig Hansen (1-3) was the big blow in a six-run seventh and gave the rookie 15 RBIs in his last 10 games.

Jason Bartlett also had a two-run single in the seventh, making it 7-4 and setting off chants of "Sweep! Sweep! Sweep!" among the crowd of 36,048, the Rays' fourth sellout of the season and just the 12th in the club's 11 seasons.

Gary Glover, the third of four Tampa Bay pitchers, allowed one run in 1 2-3 innings for the win.

The Red Sox made it interesting in the ninth for the third straight night, pulling within 7-6 on Kevin Youkilis' sacrifice fly, which Upton ran down to make the catch on the warning track with his back to the plate. - AP

Rays 7 Red Sox 6

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