Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Colby Rasmus cannot catch a two-run double by Tampa Bay Rays' Luke Scott during the third inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 21, 2012, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
September 21, 2012 - 10:28 PM
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - James Shields pitched seven shutout innings and Tampa Bay's suddenly potent offence scored runs in bunches Friday night to help the Rays continue an uphill battle to remain in playoff contention with a 12-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Ben Zobrist and Jose Molina homered in support of Shields (15-9), who limited the Blue Jays to six singles and struck out nine to reach 200 for the second straight year. He fanned J.P. Arencibia leading off the second inning, giving the Rays the American League single-season record for strikeouts.
Luke Scott drove in four runs with a pair of doubles for the Rays, who began the day 5 1/2 games behind Baltimore and Oakland in the wild-card race.
News from © The Associated Press, 2012