Gast-Ecke » e everyone a chance to assess what they

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Jarred Cosart has spent a lot of time studying David Price. In the last year, the young Houston right-hander has spent a lot of time outpitching him, too. Cosart threw eight shutout innings to beat Tampa Bay once again, and rookie George Springers two-run homer helped the Astros defeat the Rays 3-1 Friday night. Cosart (7-5) gave up six hits in winning his third straight start. He walked one and struck out two, retiring 12 straight at one point. The 24-year-old Cosart topped the Rays last Saturday in Houston, the Astros last victory before losing four in a row. The pitching matchup against Price (5-7) was a rematch of Cosarts major league debut at Tampa Bay last July 12 in which he took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning and finished with eight shutout innings and a win. "Hes a guy Ive watched for years, and hes one of the best in the league and hes proven that, and thats where were all trying to get," Cosart said. "I was trying to compete with him pitch-for-pitch, and you know hes not going to make too many mistakes. Tonight he made one, really." After striking out in his first five at-bats against Price, including his first try Friday night, Springer hit his 13th home run off the D-ring catwalk at Tropicana Field. It came in the third inning after the first of Jose Altuves three hits. "I was a little bit in front of it and just didnt want to hook it," said Springer. "I was actually saying to myself: Just stay fair!" Price "had some success off me the last game and he still has some success off me. It was one of those things where I was just able to hit it," Springer said. Price gave up six hits while striking out 12 in eight innings. It was his fourth straight game with double digits in strikeouts, tying Bostons Jon Lester (in 2010) for the longest such streak since 2008. Price is 1-3 in those four starts for the Rays, who have lost 18 of 24. A second-inning strikeout of Chris Carter was the 1,000th of Prices career. "It (the strikeout) is cool, cant deny that," Price said. "But it stinks. You want to win out there and were not doing that right now so its frustrating." Jonathan Villar added a solo homer for the Astros in the ninth off reliever Juan Carlos Oviedo. The Rays scored an unearned run in the ninth off reliever Chad Qualls, who got his ninth save. Yunel Escobar hit an RBI single with two outs before Ryan Hanigan struck out. Altuve leads the majors with 101 hits. Batting second in front of Springer, the Houston second baseman is 11 for 18 in four games since returning from a hand injury. "It really puts the pressure on the opposing pitcher with a guy that leads the league in hits," Astros manager Bo Porter said. "Hes going to be on base a bunch, and then you have a guy in the batters box that can change the game with one swing. Its a pretty good dynamic for our lineup." Brandon Guyer and Jose Molina each had two of Tampa Bays eight hits, all singles. NOTES: The Astros optioned RHP Paul Clemens to Triple-A Oklahoma City and called up RHP Jake Buchanan, who will start Saturdays game against Tampa Bay RHP Jake Odorizzi. ... Price leads AL pitchers in innings (115 2-3) and strikeouts (133), along with hits (116) and home runs (16) allowed. ... With the signing of LHP Brock Burke, the Rays announced they have signed all 11 of their picks in the first 10 rounds of the draft. 00:23ET 21-06-14 Baltimore Orioles Jerseys . Dr. James Andrews is to operate next week on the 24-year-old pitcher, who made the AL All-Star team last year. Moore will be the first Rays pitcher to undergo Tommy John surgery since Jason Isringhausen in June 2009. Andrew Cashner Jersey . Rudy Gay made the tying basket in regulation and a 3-pointer in overtime that gave Sacramento the lead for good, and Fredette scored a career-high 24 points to help the Kings beat the Knicks 106-101 on Wednesday night. http://www.theoriolesteamshop.com/Oriole...ay-Kids-Jersey/. Chris Heisey connected for his first grand slam and Devin Mesoraco homered and drove in a career high-tying four runs as Cincinnati took advantage of Tampa Bays depleted pitching staff for a 12-4 victory on Sunday. Cal Ripken Jersey . Vettel only needs to finish fifth or better Sunday to wrap up the championship with three races remaining, and bettered his own lap record to claim his third straight pole at Buddh International Circuit. Jim Palmer Jersey . "I wouldnt read anything into what happened Saturday at Torrey Pines," Woods said Tuesday after an 18-hole exhibition for past winners of the Dubai Desert Classic.FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Atlanta tight end Tony Gonzalez put off retirement for one more year with a single goal in mind: winning his first Super Bowl ring. But the Falcons are mired in a three-game losing streak and ravaged by injuries, so it seems more and more likely that Gonzalezs farewell season will wind up being a real bummer. Just dont go telling him that. "As far as Im concerned," Gonzalez said Thursday, "were still in it." Looking at the bleak situation through the rosiest of glasses, the future Hall of Famer insisted he has no regrets about tacking on another season to his already brilliant career, and he flatly denied any interest in being traded to a contender -- with his previous team, the Kansas City Chiefs, being an obvious source of speculation. "This is the team I came back for. These are the guys I came back to play with," Gonzalez said, looking around the Falcons locker room. "Im enjoying myself: win, lose or draw. Obviously, I would rather win. It makes it a lot more fun. But theres no way I would even think about jumping ship, because I love playing for this team and I love playing for this city." Gonzalez and the Falcons (1-4) began the year with a Super Bowl-or-bust mindset, but a devastating string of injuries have helped send them spiraling to their worst losing streak since 2007. Four starters have already gone down with season-ending injuries, including Pro Bowl receiver Julio Jones. Other key players have missed extensive time, including defensive leader Sean Weatherspoon and running back Steven Jackson. Still more are slowed by nagging ailments, most notably star receiver Roddy White. But Gonzalez refuses to believe that all hope is lost. "Im not there yet," he said. "Not even close." The Falcons, who host winless Tampa Bay on Sunday, are coming off a bye week that gave everyone a chance to assess what they must do to turn things around. It also provided ample time for speculation about whether Gonzalez would really want to stick things out if the losing persisted, especially when the Chiefs are off to an 6-0 start. He spent a dozen years in Kansas City before signing off on a trade to Atlanta in 2009. Last season, Gonzalez finally got his first pplayoff win and nearly made it to the Super Bowl, the Falcons coming up 10 yards short of beating San Francisco in the NFC championship game.dddddddddddd The thrilling ride prompted a change on heart on his oft-stated plans to retire, luring him back for a 17th season. Alas, it hasnt gone as expected. "I know theres trade rumours out there," he said. "I would never go and ask them for a trade. If thats something they want to do to help their franchise, thats up to them. But it wouldnt be coming from me. I came back to play with these guys. I have a great relationship with these guys, and the coaches too. These are guys I will call friends for the rest of my life, so Im not going to jump ship." Theres certainly been no drop-off in productivity for the 37-year-old Gonzalez. He ranks second on the Falcons and fourth among all NFL tight ends with 33 receptions, accounting for 339 yards and three touchdowns. At this pace, Gonzalez would end his career with a career-best 106 receptions, which is especially impressive when considering the lengths that opposing defences have gone to in hopes of shutting him down. Most notably, both New England and the New York Jets employed tight double-teaming in an attempt to keep Gonzalez from even getting off the line, a tactic that is normally used to hold up a speedy player from covering punts. With Jones (41 receptions) done for the season because of a foot injury, Gonzalez can expect to draw even more attention from the other side of the line -- especially with White still struggling to get up to speed after sustaining a high ankle sprain in the preseason. "If I get double-teamed or get that punt coverage-style gunner defence again, I would hope and expect my teammates to step up and make plays," Gonzalez said. "Weve still got some real good players on the offensive side of the football. Weve still got Matt Ryan throwing the ball." Those teammates are fully aware of why Gonzalez came back for one more season. They still hope to send him out in style. "Everybody is trying their hardest to make sure we get that done," said rookie tight end Levine Toilolo, one of Gonzalezs backups. "We still have a lot of football left to play." 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