Baltimore, MD - Daniel Cabrera tossed seven innings of one- hit ball as the Baltimore Orioles blanked the Tampa Devil Rays, 3-0, in the first of a three-game set at Camden Yards.
Cabrera (7-10) walked five and struck out three to earn his first victory since June 22. Paul Shuey gave up a leadoff walk in the eighth, but got a double play, and Jamie Walker got three outs to complete the two-hitter and earn his second save of the year for Baltimore, which has won three of four.
Chris Gomez had three hits for the Orioles, who honored Cal Ripken Jr. before the game. He will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Sunday.
“For 21 seasons, Cal Ripken made a career of providing lasting memories for Orioles fans and fans of Major League Baseball,” said Orioles owner Peter Angelos in a statement. “His consistency and dependability were complimented by his ability to rise to each and every occasion.”
B.J. Upton had both hits for the Devil Rays, who have lost four in a row and 21 of 26.
Scott Kazmir (7-7) went 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits with three walks and eight strikeouts.
Baltimore got on the board in the sixth when Aubrey Huff singled to left scoring Nick Markakis, who had led-off with a single to center and advanced a base on a groundout.
The Orioles added two more runs in the seventh. After Luis Hernandez singled to center with one out, Kazmir fanned Brian Roberts before issuing three straight walks, the last to Kevin Millar, bringing home a run. Juan Salas entered in relief and walked Ramon Hernandez to give Baltimore a 3-0 lead.
Game Notes
Cabrera improved to 5-0 lifetime against the Devil Rays. He was 0-2 in his past five starts…Tampa Bay was coming off three straight losses to the New York Yankees in it was outscored 45-12…Ripken threw the ceremonial first pitch to former Oriole Eddie Murray, who was inducted into the Hall in 2003…Attendance was 42,579 — the largest crowd at Camden Yards since opening day.
