ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., June 28 (UPI) -- Wilson Alvarez combined with two relievers on a five-hitter for his first home win in nearly three years Friday night as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays blanked the Florida Marlins, 4-0.
Alvarez (2-2) allowed three singles and a double in seven innings and recorded his first win at Tropicana Field since Aug. 24, 1999.
The oft-injured lefthander struck out five and walked three to notch his first victory since June 5.
Alvarez was replaced by Travis Phelps, who put two runners on in the eighth but escaped trouble when Derrek Lee flied out to end the inning.
Esteban Yan worked around a single and a walk in a non-save situation in the ninth, getting Luis Castillo to ground out to nail down Tampa Bay's third consecutive win.
The Devil Rays scored three runs in the second inning off starter Ryan Dempster (5-7). Jared Sandberg's seventh homer capped the scoring in the eighth for the Devil Rays, who have taken three of four meetings with their intrastate rivals this season.
