Ichiro’s 4 hits energize Marlins past Rays

MIAMI — Ichiro Suzuki, going strong at age 42, is energizing the Marlins. The veteran outfielder had four singles, one RBI and a run scored on Monday night, and he was in the heart of the club’s eighth-inning rally that lifted Miami to a 7-6 win over the Rays at Marlins Park.

Trailing by a run in the eighth, Cole Gillespie lifted a game-tying sacrifice fly, and Martin Prado’s RBI groundout brought in the go-ahead run. The Marlins claimed the first of their four-game, two-city Citrus Series with Tampa Bay.

The Rays entered the night tied with the Orioles for the Major League lead in home runs with 63. They tacked on two more through Brandon Guyer, who was a triple shy of the cycle, and Taylor Motter, each hitting a solo shot. Motter added an RBI double in the seventh that gave the Rays a 6-5 lead. Marcell Ozuna stayed hot with a solo shot and three hits for Miami.

Both starters struggled and surrendered five earned runs. Miami’s Wei-Yin Chen was tagged for two home runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings, while Tampa Bay’s Matt Moore gave up 10 hits in five innings.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Ichiro remains a hit: No Christian Yelich in left field, no problem for the Marlins. Ichiro, starting his third straight game because of Yelich’s back spasms, collected three hits off Moore and four hits on the night. In the past three games, Ichiro has 10 hits, including a pair of four-hit games. Ichiro now has 2,960 career hits, leaving him 40 shy of 3,000, and is …

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