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Rays pound Red Sox to end 11-game losing streak (w/video)

 
Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Motter (38) high fives Tampa Bay Rays catcher Curt Casali (19) after scoring on the two run double by by Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Nick Franklin (2) in the first inning of the game between the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays in Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. on Monday, June 27, 2016.
Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Motter (38) high fives Tampa Bay Rays catcher Curt Casali (19) after scoring on the two run double by by Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Nick Franklin (2) in the first inning of the game between the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays in Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. on Monday, June 27, 2016.
Published June 28, 2016

ST. PETERSBURG — There were two-run singles and two-run doubles and five RBIs from Nick Franklin, who also hit a two-run homer. There was a shutdown inning by a Rays starting pitcher. There was a five-run lead. A nine-run lead.

Ultimately, there was a win for the Rays, a losing streak-busting 13-7 victory Monday night against the Red Sox.

The Rays (32-43) snapped an 11-game slide, which was tied for the third-longest in team history, in front of 18,024 at Tropicana Field.

"It's been pretty quiet in here lately," catcher Curt Casali said. "We felt like we had a chance to win a couple of the road games, and unfortunately it didn't fall the way we wanted to. Not to celebrate small victories, but we definitely enjoyed tonight during the game and after the game, for sure."

The Rays smacked a season-high 18 hits and tied their season high for runs in a game this season. The Red Sox (41-35) have lost three straight and eight of their past 12.

Rookie Blake Snell earned his first big-league win.

Newly acquired rightfielder Oswaldo Arcia had three hits for the second straight day. Logan Forsythe, Evan Longoria and Taylor Motter also had three-hit games.

Forsythe and Desmond Jennings hit home runs.

"I think we were just going out and having fun," Franklin said.

"Good win. A needed win," manager Kevin Cash said. "Really happy for the guys because I know they have been grinding through it. A lot of questions have to be answered when you're not playing well, and I think they handled it pretty admirably given the fact what we've gone through and the effort level stayed consistent. We saw tonight that sometimes it takes that type of a performance to break out of a funk."

The few times the Rays had first-inning leads during the losing streak — including three times on an 0-7 road trip — they blew them. On Monday, Snell followed the five-run first by retiring the Red Sox in order in the second inning on 10 pitches. He worked out of a pair of jams and went 51/3 innings for the victory.

Snell became the first AL rookie starter to stop a losing streak of 11 or more games since 2009, when David Price also stopped an 11-game skid for the Rays.

"Very deserving because he's pitched well since he's been up here for us for sure," Cash said.

Snell, who said he should have been more aggressive, called the night "a really great moment that I get to share with my teammates."

Rays vice president of communications Rick Vaughn wore on a chain around his neck Monday a laminated ticket from the Orioles game of April 29, 1988, when they beat the White Sox to snap their American League-record 21 game losing streak.

So the Rays had that talisman going for them along with all the offense.

"Now we need to string a couple of more together," Casali said.

Now what? A winning streak?

"It's the end of something, that's for sure," Cash said. "To say it's the start of anything, hopefully it's the start of us stringing together some wins and playing good baseball."