Rays beat Mariners to move past Yankees in AL East

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Willy Aybar drove in two runs and Rafael Soriano set a team record with his 44th save of the season Friday night as the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Seattle Mariners, 5-3, and took over first place in the AL East. Tampa Bay reduced its magic number to three to clinch the franchise's second playoff berth and moved a half-game ahead of the Yankees.

"That's our goal, man. Our goal is to have the best record, our goal is to have the home-field advantage and our goal is to win the World Series," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

Aybar hit a tiebreaking RBI single and scored on a passed ball during a three-run fifth as the Rays went ahead 5-2. Ben Zobrist drove in the other run with a bunt single. Soriano, the fourth Tampa Bay reliever, pitched the ninth to break Roberto Hernandez's franchise save record set in 1999. "I'm happy with all that's happening this year," Soriano said.

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria is scheduled to miss the three-game series because of a left quadriceps strain and will be evaluated Monday. He underwent an MRI exam that showed no tear. "I don't see this lingering more than five, six days," Longoria said.

Seattle's Jason Vargas (9-12) lost his seventh straight start, which is one off the team record held by Randy Johnson (1992) and Rick Honeycutt (1980). Jeff Niemann (11-7) won for the first time since returning from a strained right shoulder Aug. 25. - AP