Upton to the four

The Rays claim a series win over the Mets and coach Maddon praises the team as they come from behind to secure a handsome victory.

Tampa Bay Rays' B.J. Upton doubles to bring home two runs during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Sunday, June 21, 2009, at Citi Field in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) *** Local Caption ***  NYM105_Rays_Mets_Baseball.jpg
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BJ Upton drove in four runs as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Mets 10-6 in a rain-delayed interleague game on Sunday. Upton, who had four hits and scored three runs, levelled the score at 2-2 with a two-run double in the fifth inning. He then put Tampa Bay ahead with a two-run homer in the seventh.

Upton, who tied a career high with his four RBIs, said: "I Just have to stick with it and keep doing what I'm doing." Tampa Bay claimed the series by winning their second consecutive game against the Mets. The Rays, the defending American League champions, hit seven Mets pitchers for 17 hits in a game delayed by rain for 34 minutes in the seventh inning. Tampa Bay scored four runs to take the lead in the fifth inning and tallied four more in the seventh after the National League Mets had taken a 5-4 lead on Brian Schneider's three-run homer in the sixth.

"After we gave up the homer to Schneider and put them back on top, our guys really responded well," the Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "And BJ's home run was magnificent." Maddon said that he thought another big moment was Willy Aybar's pinch-hit single in the fifth, when the Rays trailed 2-0. "That turned the tide right around," Maddon said of the hit, which loaded the bases. "That gave us a strong sense of believing right there and it put them in a totally different mindset."

Upton followed with his two-run double to tie the score. Carl Crawford added three hits for the Rays, while David Wright had three hits for New York. Meanwhile in other action, it was a good day for Albert Pujols as the St Louis Cardinals completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 12-5 victory. Pujols hit two homers and six RBIs to give the Cardinals a game-and-a-half advantage over the Milwaukee Brewers at the top of the National League Central division.

Brandon Inge provided all of his team's offence with a three-run shot as the Detroit Tigers beat the Brewers 3-2, going four games clear at the top of the American League Central in the process as the Minnesota Twins went down 4-1 to the Houston Astros. The Boston Red Sox also have a four game lead in the AL East over the New York Yankees after shortstop Nick Green went deep on the first pitch in the bottom of the ninth to give them a 6-5 win over the Atlanta Braves.

The Yankees were beaten 6-5 by the Florida Marlins, who got home runs from Hanley Ramirez and Cody Ross. * Reuters