Kazmir sparks Rays, or is it the rooster?

After the bird arrives, the youngster beats Roger Clemens.

By MARC TOPKIN
Published July 14, 2007

ST. PETERSBURG - The Devil Rays were full of surprises Friday.

There was a starting lineup that not only included B.J. Upton, but Greg Norton and Josh Wilson, who got a huge hit. There was an offense suddenly effective enough to chase Yankees icon Roger Clemens in the sixth inning, and Scott Kazmir was efficient enough to win at home for the first time in more than a year.

There were questionable-at-the-time decisions by manager Joe Maddon to let struggling Dioner Navarro bat with the bases loaded and pull Jay Witasick mid- count for Casey Fossum that worked. There were day-saving diving plays all around the infield. There was an extraordinary relief effort by fill-in closer Gary Glover.

There was even a good-luck rooster statue in the clubhouse.

And then there was this - the Rays hanging on to beat the Yankees 6-4 to thrill most of the Tropicana Field crowd of 29,803.

"This is a great, great win for us right here," Kazmir said. "You see everyone in here is in high spirits right now; just the fact that we competed like that and bounced back because we've gone through a tough stretch. To pull out this win will help us out down the road."

Kazmir was honored to face Clemens, whom he idolized while growing up in Houston, and even more thrilled to win, improving to 6-6 with a 4.18 ERA, his first home win since July 3, 2006, a span of 14 starts.

Kazmir was sharper and showed a better slider, though he still threw 117 pitches matching his season high in six innings. The key was limiting the damage, including a strikeout of Andy Phillips with two on for Kazmir's 500th on his final pitch.

And the difference was he abandoned a series of mechanical adjustments and returned to last year's form.

"Not worrying about throwing strikes or what side of the rubber; just throwing it out there and just let it go," Kazmir said. "As the game went on, I got more and more of that feeling back. It's definitely something to build on, a huge confidence-booster."

The Yankees were confident in Clemens, the 44-year-old future Hall of Famer who hadn't faced the Rays since 2003, before his first retirement.

But Clemens wasn't sharp, especially not for the nearly $1-million he gets per start, allowing five hits and four walks. The big one came with two outs in the second, when Wilson - thrilled to face him for the first time - laced a two-run triple.

"Cut and dry," Clemens said, "that's the game."

The Rays (35-54) extended the lead to 6-2, then hung on after Fossum allowed back-to-back homers in the eighth, Glover getting the last five outs.

"My goodness," Maddon said; "tremendous job."

As for the rooster?

With the Rays having lost 14 of 15, they were seeking anything to change their luck, even on Friday the 13th. Enter Jonny Gomes, who, while refusing to share any details, found a way to help without playing.

"My nickname's The Rooster, and I thought it'd be better than bringing a live one in here to break us out of the streak," he said. "Check it out: We're 1-0."

No surprise.

Rays6

Yankees4

Rocked 'Rocket'

Roger Clemens on Friday allowed more runs to the Devil Rays than in his previous two starts combined:

Opp. IP H ER BB K

Rays 51/3 5 5 4 2

Angels 8 5 1 1 3

Twins 8 2 1 1 4

[Last modified July 14, 2007, 01:53:10]