Arlington, TX (My Sportsbook) - David Murphy, German Duran, and Ramon Vazquez all homered as the Texas Rangers downed the Tampa Bay Rays, 6-3, to avoid a three-game sweep.

Doug Mathis (2-1) allowed five hits and two runs in 5 1/3 innings to take the win for Texas. Gerald Laird and Marlon Byrd also knocked in a run each for the Rangers, who had dropped three of four and five of seven entering play.

Matt Garza (4-3) was touched for six hits and three runs in four innings with two strikeouts and one walk, and left after a dugout confrontation with catcher Dioner Navarro. B.J. Upton's two-run homer provided the offense for the Rays, who recovered from a frustrating three-game sweep in Boston to take two of three from the Rangers.

Tampa pulled within 4-2 on Upton's homer in the sixth, but the Rangers answered with two insurance runs. Milton Bradley singled to right-center to lead off the seventh, stole second, and scored on Byrd's one-out single to center. Then Vazquez went deep to right to lead off the eighth, giving Texas a four-run edge.

Texas reliever C.J. Wilson ran into trouble in the ninth, with Jason Bartlett plating one run on a one-out sacrifice fly. The Rays had two runners on with two outs for Carl Crawford, but Wilson fanned him to nail down the win.

Batting with two outs and the bases empty in the first, Murphy jumped on an 0-2 fastball left over the inside half of the plate by Garza, and lined it into the seats in right for a 1-0 Rangers lead.

Vazquez singled to left with one out in the fourth, and Duran followed with a blast to dead center field, a two-run homer that boosted Texas to a 3-0 edge. Garza and his battery mate Navarro had an animated discussion on the mound after that home run, and the tempers apparently carried into the dugout.

The two scuffled in the corner of the dugout after the frame, a fight that pushed back into the tunnel leading to the clubhouse. It was unclear if any punches were thrown, but Garza was done for the day after that, replaced on the mound by Jason Hammel.

The Rangers ran their lead to 4-0 on Laird's RBI single to center with one out in the fifth. The Rays cut the lead in half the next inning, however, on Upton's two-run shot to right-center with one out.

Game Notes

The Rangers were without the services of Josh Hamilton, who sat with a viral infection, and Michael Young, who was sidelined by a sore groin...Tampa designated hitter Eric Hinske was ejected in the sixth by home plate umpire James Hoye for arguing a called third strike...The Rangers won despite leaving 11 runners on base.