Crawford sparks Devil Rays' 10-run first inning

— -- ST. PETERSBURG, Florida -- Hideo Nomo and Carl Crawford helped the Tampa Bay Devil Rays do something that they had not done in nearly seven years - sweep the Oakland Athletics. Nomo worked into the eighth inning and Crawford had two hits, scored a run and drove in a run as the Devil Rays completed a three-game sweep of the Athletics with a 2-1 triumph. The Devil Rays had swept the Athletics just once in their eight-year history, with that coming in the third series between the teams from July 24-27, 1998. Prior to this season, Tampa Bay had posted just a 17-49 record against Oakland, its worst mark against any opponent. "This is great because losing every day will wear you out," said Devil Rays shortstop Julio Lugo, who had an RBIs single in the sixth. "Winning is fun." However, the Devil Rays have taken five of six meetings with the A's this season. They pounded out 24 hits - 12 for extra bases - and 19 runs in the first two games of this series. But in this one, Nomo (3-4) made sure that his team could win without an overwhelming offense. The Japanese righthander allowed just a run and five hits in 7 1/3 innings, striking out seven. He walked only two, throwing 70 of 105 pitches for strikes. "Nomo pitched very well, this was the best game he threw all year," Tampa Bay manager Lou Piniella said. "He had good command, hit his spots real well. And the rest of the guys made it stand up. (A sweep) is a good way to start the homestand." "I'm just glad we won," Nomo said through an interpreter. "I'm glad we did well. We were able to do well. I didn't do anything differently, but it is important through the season to stay consistent and pitch good." Nomo cruised into the eighth inning before surrendering a leadoff homer to Marco Scutaro that sliced the Athletics' deficit to 2-1. After Nomo yielded a one-out single to Jason Kendall, Piniella called upon lefthander Trever Miller, who induced Eric Chavez into a groundout before striking out Scott Hatteberg to end the threat. Danys Baez hit a batter and issued a walk with two outs in the ninth but retired Scutaro on a popout to notch his sixth save in nine chances. "Sometimes my mechanics were off a little bit," Baez said. "I threw a couple of balls, but we got the win. That was it." The Athletics, who are 5-17 in May, wasted a solid performance from Dan Haren (1-7), who allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings. After allowing a leadoff single to Crawford, Haren retired 16 consecutive batters until Nick Green tripled with two outs in the sixth. Crawford followed with an RBIs single, stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch before Lugo's base hit gave the Devil Rays a 2-0 lead. "I had my best stuff of the year," said Haren, who tied his career high with his sixth consecutive loss. "I kept the ball down pretty much all day. In a 0-0 game, you have to protect against a run scoring. It's not lack of run support that frustrates me. I frustrate myself. It's a difficult year for me and the team. It's wearing on me." Kendall and Mark Ellis had two hits apiece for the Athletics, who have lost five straight game. Oakland manager Ken Macha said he may consider lineup changes Friday when his struggling squad opens a three-game series Friday at Cleveland. "That was a good, intense ballgame - no errors, no walks," Macha said. "I thought Haren pitched outstanding, particularly after all the runs scored (Wednesday) night. Maybe we'll shuffle the lineup around. We'll see when we get to the ballpark." Piniella agreed that it was a well-played ballgame. "The pitching coach, the hitting coach and the defensive coach is happy. The manager is happy. It was a good day all-around," Piniella said.