Rays continue to cook at home

Win ninth straight series at The Trop; Sonnanstine wins eighth

By BRITTANY GHIROLI

ST. PETERSBURG,FL - The Rays' bats scored early and held on for a 5-4 win over the Cubs on Wednesday night, as Tampa Bay notched its ninth consecutive series win at Tropicana Field.

Fresh off serving a four-game suspension, Carl Crawford made his presence known immediately. The left fielder plated Akinori Iwamura in the bottom of the first inning, on a two-base error from Chicago left fielder Mark DeRosa.

A rare offensive outburst against Carlos Zambrano that garnered four runs in the third inning put the Cubs starter on the ropes. The Rays batted around -- collecting five hits and two walks -- before Jason Bartlett grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Andy Sonnanstine also got into some early trouble, as Chicago rallied with two outs in the third inning to put up a pair of runs.

Kosuke Fukudome -- new to the leadoff spot with Alfonso Soriano on the disabled list -- delivered a two-out RBI single and scored on a base hit from Ryan Theriot.

The crafty right-hander hit a glitch again in the fifth inning, as Micah Hoffpauir doubled and Sonnanstine issued a pair of rare walks to load the bases. But a key strikeout of slugger Derrek Lee -- followed by Aramis Ramirez's shallow fly -- enabled the Rays to escape with only one run allowed.

With the win, Sonnanstine notched his team-leading eighth win this season, exiting the game after hurling five-plus innings.

For the second night in a row, reliever J.P. Howell dazzled in the middle relief role. The lefty tossed a scoreless two innings, allowing just one hit.