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Cuddyer Helps Twins Slip Past Royals

POSTED: 6:20 pm CDT July 1, 2009

(Sports Network) - Ricky Romero pitched eight innings of four-hit ball, as the Toronto Blue Jays snapped the Tampa Bay Rays' seven-game winning streak with a 5-0 win in the finale of a three-game set at Rogers Centre.

Rod Barajas, Adam Lind and Scott Rolen each hit a solo homer for Toronto, which snapped a four-game slide.

Romero (6-3) threw 113 pitches, struck out seven and walked four. He lowered his ERA to 2.85 this season.

"It helps a lot when everyone is on your side and everyone on your team is backing you up," Romero said. "It's not a one-man show out there. It's nine guys trying to grind it out and trying to get a win."

Ben Zobrist went 2-for-2 with a pair of walks for the Rays, who despite the setback have won nine of 11 overall, with their previous loss coming to Philadelphia on June 23rd.

"I feel terrible when he's out there just battling his butt off and we can't give him enough runs to win," Zobrist said about Shields. "We know it's going to come around."

James Shields (6-6) was tagged with the loss after allowing five runs -- four earned -- on seven hits and one walk while striking out eight over 7 1/3 innings of work.

Toronto broke through for a run on Shields in the third. After the right- hander retired the first eight batters, Jose Bautista singled up the middle and came around to score when Marco Scutaro doubled down the left-field line.

Lind started the fourth with a double, and, two batters later, Overbay hit a hard grounder to first that went through Carlos Pena's legs for a two-base error, allowing Lind to score for a 2-0 Blue Jays lead.

The Rays threatened in the top of the seventh, loading the bases with one away, but Pat Burrell grounded into a 6-4-3 double-play to end the inning. Then in the home half, Barajas belted a solo shot that just cleared the left- field wall to give the Blue Jays a three-run cushion.

Romero pitched out of some eighth inning trouble in the top half, then Lind and Rolen hit back-to-back homers in the home half to put the hosts up, 5-0.

Jason Frasor came on for the ninth and issued a two-out walk to Zobrist but struck out Burrell to end the game.

Game Notes

Toronto will begin a 10-game road trip at the New York Yankees on Friday, while the Rays play at Texas...This series was the first time these AL East rivals were meeting in 2009, but Tampa Bay took 11 of the 18 meetings between the clubs a year ago...Rolen extended his career-high hitting streak to 19 games...Both teams finished a combined 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

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