PRICE CONTINUES DOMINANCE WITH 2-HIT SHUTOUT OF M'S

Lefty Fans 13; Stretches Double Digit K Streak to 3

ST. PETERSBURG, June 9 (AP) - David Price fired his second straight complete game shutout, blanking the Seattle Mariners on two hits to lead the Tampa Bay Rays to an 8-0 victory at Tropicana Field.  It was the third straight victory for Price who fanned 13 Mariners, marking the third consecutive start in which the Rays left-hander had struck out at least 12 batters.  In his last three starts, covering 26 innings, Price has fanned 39 batters.

The Rays scored all the runs they would need in the bottom of the second off Mariners starter Erasmo Ramirez.  Ben Zobrist led off with a base hit to left and advanced to second when David DeJesus grounded a single to right.  Matt Joyce then drilled a double to the gap in left-center, scoring both runners for a 2-0 Tampa Bay lead.

Ramirez settled down, holding the Rays at bay into the seventh before tiring.  DeJesus led off the inning with a single and Joyce flied out.  Ramirez hit Yunel Escobar with a pitch, putting runners on first and second, and then retired Jose Molina on a long fly to center, with DeJesus tagging and advancing to third.  At that point, Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon, sensing that Ramirez was about out of gas, summoned right-hander Danny Farquhar from the bullpen to record the final out but Desmond Jennings reached on an infield hit, scoring DeJesus to make it 3-0 and moving Escobar to second.  Kevin Kiermaier then cracked a double to right-center, scoring both runners to give the Rays a 5-0 lead before Farquhar retired Evan Longoria on an infield pop fly to finally end the inning with the Mariners now trailing 5-0.

The Rays ended any doubt about the final outcome in the eighth.  Zobrist led off with a base hit and, one out later, pinch hitter Jerry Sands crushed a 2-0 offering from reliever Charlie Furbush into the left field seats for a two-run homer and a 7-0 lead.  Joyce followed by narrowly missing depositing a Furbush pitch into the Rays Tank beyond the right-center field fence.  The solo home run, Joyce's sixth long ball of the season, capped the scoring.

Price, meanwhile was in complete control throughout.  He retired the first 12 batters he faced, striking out half of them, before finally yielding a hit--a lead-off single off the bat of Stefan Romero in the fifth.  He retired another four hitters in a row before plunking Brad Miller with a pitch with one out in the sixth.  After Willie Bloomquist rolled into a fielder's choice, James Jones bounced a single through the right side of the infield putting runners on first and second.  It was the last Seattle batter to reach base safely in the game.  Robinson Cano flied to center to end the inning, beginning a string of 10 straight batters retired to conclude the game.  Five of those batters struck out.

Price is the first pitcher in the major leagues this season to fan 12 or more batters in a game three times.  He and Dallas Keuchel of the Houston Astros are the only pitchers with multiple shutouts this year to date.

6/9/2014, Sea14-TB14, Tropicana Field

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP

2014 Mariners          0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0     0  2  0     3  1

2014 Rays              0  2  0  0  0  0  3  3  x     8 11  0     4  0

Mariners             AB  R  H BI   AVG    Rays                 AB  R  H BI   AVG

Bloomquist        1b  4  0  0  0  .333    Jennings,De       cf  4  1  1  1  .256

Jones,J           cf  4  0  1  0  .266    Kiermaier         rf  4  0  2  2  .286

Cano              2b  4  0  0  0  .307    Longoria          3b  4  0  1  0  .221

Romero            lf  3  0  1  0  .190    Loney             1b  4  1  1  0  .323

Zunino            c   3  0  0  0  .200    Zobrist           2b  4  1  1  0  .240

Seager            3b  3  0  0  0  .272    DeJesus           dh  3  2  2  0  .277

Gillespie         rf  3  0  0  0  .216     Sands            ph  1  1  1  2  .375

Buck              dh  3  0  0  0  .170    Joyce             lf  3  1  2  2  .189

Miller,B          ss  1  0  0  0  .222    Escobar,Y         ss  3  1  0  1  .235

 Smoak            ph  1  0  0  0  .259    Molina,J          c   4  0  0  0  .160

                     29  0  2  0                               34  8 11  8

Mariners                         INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Ramirez,E        L 3-3           6.2  6  4  4  1  4  84  56  3.98

Farquhar                         0.1  2  1  1  0  0  14   8  2.48

Furbush                          0.1  3  3  3  0  0  17  11  4.86

Leone                            0.2  0  0  0  0  0   7   4  3.63

                                 8.0 11  8  8  1  4 122  79

Rays                             INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Price,D          W 8-4           9.0  2  0  0  0 13  95  73  2.80

                                 9.0  2  0  0  0 13  95  73

Sea: Smoak batted for Miller,B in the 8th

     Bloomquist moved to ss in the 8th

     Smoak moved to 1b in the 8th

TB : Sands batted for DeJesus in the 8th

2B-Kiermaier(4), Joyce(5). HR-Joyce(5), Sands(1). RBI-Jennings,De(21),

Kiermaier 2(4), Joyce 2(22), Escobar,Y(20), Sands 2(2). K-Bloomquist 2,

Jones,J 2, Romero 2, Zunino 2, Seager, Buck 2, Miller,B, Smoak, Jennings,De,

Loney, DeJesus, Molina,J. BB-Joyce. HBP-Miller,B, Escobar,Y. HB-Ramirez,E,

Price,D.

GWRBI: Joyce

Temperature: 70, Wind: none.

Attendance: 16,204

Game Time: 2:31