Rays stymied by Anderson, Indians 7-1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) The Tampa Bay Rays were stymied again. This time it was Cleveland rookie Cody Anderson's turn to shut them down.

Anderson took a perfect game into the seventh inning in his second major league start, and the struggling Indians snapped a three-game losing streak with a 7-1 victory over the Rays on Monday night.

''A young pitcher who's in a good groove right now,'' Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said.

Anderson (1-0) didn't allow a baserunner until Grady Sizemore homered against his old team on a 1-2 pitch with one out in the seventh. Evan Longoria followed with a single before the 24-year-old right-hander retired the last four batters he faced.

''He was on,'' Sizemore said. ''Right there you're just trying to battle really, and try to put a good swing on the ball.''

Yan Gomes had three hits, including a solo homer in the eighth for the Indians. Cleveland limped into town after being shut out in both games of a doubleheader at Baltimore on Sunday but bounced back against Tampa Bay rookie Nathan Karns. Michael Brantley also had three hits, including a RBI single, and Jason Kipnis drove in a run off Karns (4-4) with one of his three hits.

It was the second time in less than a week that an opposing pitcher has flirted with a perfect game against the Rays. Toronto's Marco Estrada took a bid into the eighth inning on June 24 before giving up an infield single to Logan Forsythe in a game the Blue Jays eventually won 1-0 in 12 innings.

Karns also started that game for Tampa Bay, which has lost five of seven.

''We haven't come out and hit the ball the way we're capable of,'' Cash said. ''We're going to go through those ruts. We're probably in one right now.''

Anderson, who limited Tampa Bay to six hits over 7 2-3 scoreless innings in his big league debut at Progressive Field on June 21, struck out two without a walk in eight innings. He threw 100 pitches.

''I think around the fourth inning or something I kind of knew that everything was going pretty smooth,'' Anderson said. ''Just tried to keep throwing strikes and keep the approach the same.''

Tampa Bay drafted Anderson in the 2010 amateur draft, but he opted not to sign. The Indians selected him one year later.

Kipnis doubled on the third pitch of the game and scored on Brantley's single. The Cleveland lead-off man then singled in the second, driving in Gomes for a 2-0 lead.

The Indians put together nine hits in six innings against the Tampa Bay starter, but went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position while Karns was on the mound. The Indians pulled away late when Gomes homered off Kirby Yates and then added four more runs in the ninth - two on wild pitches.

Sizemore, playing in his second game since joining the Rays, trimmed Cleveland's lead to 2-1 with his first home run since last Sept. 3 for Philadelphia. A three-time All-Star early in his career with the Indians, Sizemore had three hits in his Tampa Bay debut on Sunday.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Rays: CF Kevin Kiermaier started after being out of the lineup the previous two games with sore legs. ... 1B James Loney (broken left middle finger) took batting practice and could begin a minor league rehab assignment in the next few days. ... RHP Jake Odorizzi (oblique) is scheduled to make a rehab start Wednesday for Class A Charlotte.

MOORE TIME

As expected, Cash said LHP Matt Moore will make his first start since elbow ligament replacement surgery last year on Thursday against the Indians.

UP NEXT

Rays RHP Erasmo Ramirez (6-2) will be making his first start Tuesday night since leaving an outing June 20 against Cleveland with a right groin strain. The Indians counter with RHP Danny Salazar (6-3).