Rays 5, Astros 0
Chris Archer pitched a five-hitter for his first career shutout and Desmond Jennings belted a two-run homer as host Tampa Bay won for the 14th time in 16 games.
Kelly Johnson went 3-for-4 and scored twice while rookie Wil Myers recorded two hits and stole a base for the Rays, who took two of three in the series. Archer (4-3) did not walk a batter in his first complete-game effort and struck out eight while throwing a career-high 112 pitches.
The Astros lost have lost 14 of their last 18, including five of seven against Tampa Bay. Houston starter Erik Bedard (3-6) yielded three runs - two earned - on eight hits over five innings to suffer his second loss against the Rays in two weeks.
Jennings led off the first inning with a single and scored on Evan Longoria’s double into the gap in left-center for a 1-0 lead. Johnson raced home in the fourth after Bedard threw away the ball on Jose Lobaton’s bunt single, and another run scored on Jennings' double-play grounder for a 3-0 advantage.
Johnson led off the sixth with a single and Jennings drove an 0-1 pitch from reliever Paul Clemens just over the wall in left-center with two outs to push the lead to 5-0. Archer had perfect innings in the third, fourth, sixth and eighth, while Jennings ran down Jason Castro’s drive to deep center to end the game.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Longoria’s double in the first gave him 341 career extra-base hits, moving him past B.J. Upton for second place on the club’s all-time list. … Houston starts a six-game homestand after the All-Star break on Friday against Seattle. … Tampa Bay SS Yunel Escobar's errorless streak reached 52 games after his miscue on J.D. Martinez's grounder in the second inning was changed to a hit. Escobar is tied with Chris Gomez for the club record of consecutive errorless contests among shortstops.