Final Score: Toronto 5, Tampa Bay 3

St. Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Tanyon Sturtze pitched six solid innings to lift Toronto to a 5-3 win over Tampa Bay in the finale of three-game series at Tropicana Field.

Sturtze (3-1) permitted six hits and two runs -- one earned -- with one walk and three strikeouts to help the Blue Jays avoid a sweep in the series and post their second win in the last eight overall.

Carl Crawford, Marlon Anderson and Rey Ordonez each drove in a run for the Devil Rays, who have split their last six games and were denied their first three-game sweep of the season.

Shannon Stewart contributed three hits, Orlando Hudson drove in two and Kelvim Escobar pitched the ninth inning for his third save of the season for Toronto, which overcame an early two-run deficit.

The Blue Jays scored three in the fifth off Jorge Sosa to go ahead 3-2. Jayson Werth triggered the rally with a two-out double and Chris Woodward walked. After both moved up on a wild pitch, they scored on a hit by Hudson. Stewart's base hit scored Hudson from second.

Sosa (1-2) left after five innings. He absorbed the loss, allowing three runs and three hits while walking three and striking out one.

Toronto extended its lead to 5-2 with two runs in the sixth off reliever Al Levine. Vernon Wells led off with a hit, stole second and moved to third on a grounder. After Josh Phelps was hit by a pitch, the Devil Rays appeared to have the inning-ending double play on Eric Hinske's ground ball to second. But Anderson's toss to second pulled shortstop Ordonez off the bag, permitting Wells to score. Two hitters later, Phelps scored on a ground-rule double by Woodward.

Tampa Bay got within 5-3 in the seventh. Chris Truby singled and Ordonez walked against reliever Aquilino Lopez. After Crawford's fielder's choice grounder put runners at the corners, Truby scored on Anderson's ground ball off Trever Miller.

The Devil Rays posted two runs in the second to take a 2-0 lead. Javier Valentin, who led off the rally with a hit, scored on an errant throw on a potential double-play grounder off the bat of Ordonez. Crawford's two-out single plated Sanchez.

Game Notes

Tampa Bay recalled infielder Felix Escalona from Double A-Orlando before the game...Miller, Jeff Tam and Cliff Politte combined for two shutout innings of relief for the Blue Jays...Sosa dropped to 1-2 in three career starts against Toronto...The Devil Rays' last series sweep came August 30 to September 1, 2002 against Texas...Anderson extended his hitting streak to 10 games...Tampa Bay's Rocco Baldelli has hit in seven straight and 20 of 21.

04/24 22:48:42 ET