MIAMI -- Marlins pitcher Henderson Alvarez heard a teammate yell and realized he had been caught by surprise. Desperate for a run, the Tampa Bay Rays were attempting a delayed steal. So Alvarez wheeled toward second base and threw yet another strike. The right-hander had good command all night long, needing only 88 pitches to toss an eight-hitter for his third shutout this year. He beat Tampa Bay 1-0 on Tuesday, sending the reeling Rays home after a winless eight-game trip. "Henderson took that game over," Miami manager Mike Redmond said. "That was fun to watch." The only run scored when Christian Yelich walked on a 3-2 slider with two out and the bases loaded in the fifth inning. Alvarez (3-3) struck out five and walked none in his third consecutive scoreless outing, a stretch covering 19 innings. He retired his last five batters to close out the win in 2 hours, 10 minutes. "My sinker was working, and thankfully the batters were swinging early," Alvarez said through a translator. "That determines the brevity of the game. I was attacking the strike zone, and they were attacking as well." Alvarezs three shutouts lead the majors. He had been 0-5 in five previous career starts against the Rays, but this time he faced a team in a miserable slump. Kevin Kiermaier had the Rays only extra-base hit when he tripled with two out in the third. They went 0 for 3 with runners in scoring position and are hitless in their past 22 at-bats in those situations. Theyve scored six runs in their past six games. "Were just not able to find that hole," Evan Longoria said. "We just have to keep going, keep fighting, stay positive through the tough times." The Rays eight-game losing streak is their longest since 2009. Theyve lost 10 consecutive road games while being outscored 52-19. Tampa Bay hit into three double plays -- one on a sacrifice attempt -- and had two runners caught stealing, including Yunel Escobar on the delayed steal attempt in the fifth. He singled with one out and took off for second when Alvarez had the ball on the mound before the next batter stepped to the plate, prompting catcher Jeff Mathis to holler at his pitcher. "Escobar caught me by surprise," Alvarez said. "What alerted me was Mathis scream. An easy out. A gift." Chris Archer (3-3) allowed only five hits in seven innings, but Rays starters remained winless in the past 16 games, mostly because of poor run support. Alvarezs past four victories have been shutouts, including a no-hitter on the final day of the 2013 season. He left his previous start last Wednesday after five innings because of a sore elbow, but he had only the Rays feeling any pain Tuesday. Alvarez said his arm felt fine, and he allayed any concerns with excellent velocity from start to finish. His final pitch was a 95 mph fastball. "We could tell early on that he had great stuff and was feeling good," Redmond said. Alvarez helped himself with six assists. The biggest came after a leadoff single in the eighth, when catcher Jose Molina bunted into a 1-6-3 double play. The Marlins needed three singles -- one by Alvarez -- and a walk to score the games only run. After they loaded the bases, Yelich fell behind 0-2 but got a walk when Archer missed with a 3-2 breaking ball. "A great at-bat by Yeli," Redmond said. "I dont know how he laid off a couple of those sliders. For a young kid like that, thats an amazing at-bat." Archer hopped off the mound in dismay at the call, but a TV replay showed the pitch was wide. "Instead of executing a pitch and letting him put it in play, I put it in the umpires hands, and it turns out he made a great call," Archer said. "I should have thrown it over the plate." The four-game, home-and-home series continues with two games in St. Petersburg beginning Wednesday. The Rays play 18 of their next 21 games at home. NOTES: After the game, the Marlins optioned 2B Derek Dietrich to Triple-A New Orleans. ... Miami slugger Giancarlo Stanton broke hit bat when he lined out in the fourth inning, and the barrel sailed into the Marlins on-deck circle and hit Casey McGehee in the stomach. He wasnt hurt. ... RHP Kevin Gregg passed his physical and signed a minor league deal with the Marlins. ... Molina turned 39 Tuesday. ... RHP Tom Koehler (4-5, 3.18 ERA) is scheduled to start Wednesday for Miami against LHP David Price (4-4, 4.27 ERA). Nike Air Max 270 Womens Clearance . The above paragraph could be rewritten, verbatim, with Marcus Stromans name in place of Romeros. After both men had disastrous outings in Tuesdays 18-4 mauling at the hands of the Tigers, its clear that neither is the best option to begin the season in Toronto. Nike Air Max 270 React Hyper Jade . Sundays game against the Colorado Rapids at B.C. Place Stadium has important implications in determining Major League Soccers playoff picture and will also mark the final game in the career of veteran South Korean defender Young-Pyo Lee. http://www.max270cheap.com/.Y. -- In a span of three days, Shabazz Napier and Connecticut knocked out both Philadelphia schools in the NCAA tournament. Nike Air Max 270 Flyknit Cheap . -- Rodney Stuckey scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half, and the Detroit Pistons beat the New York Knicks for the first time in eight meetings, 92-86 on Tuesday night. Air Max 270 Mens Cheap . Icardi is living with the ex-wife of former teammate Maxi Lopez, and the Sampdoria forward refused to shake Icardis hand before kickoff. Walter Samuel and Rodrigo Palacio also scored for Inter while Lopez had a penalty saved. ST. LOUIS -- With Vladimir Tarasenko and T.J. Oshie both out of the St. Louis Blues lineup, captain David Backes stepped up to fill the void. Backes scored twice in the third period, giving him 23 goals on the season, and the Blues skated to a 3-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Monday night. One of Backes goals never even reached the net. He was awarded a goal with 1:11 left when he broke in on the Jets empty goal and was pulled down by Jacob Trouba. "That doesnt happen a whole lot," Backes said. "Sometimes when things arent going perfect for you, you take them any way you can get them. Hopefully, its the start of a little streak here." Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice wasnt too pleased that it happened Monday. "I dont think that game should have gone to 3-1," Maurice said. "I dont think thats an automatic goal. I dont think its a slash. He goes down, maybe they locked feet. But its not unimpeded progress. That game should be still 2-1 in my mind. "But 2-1 is still a deficit for us." Ryan Miller made 16 saves for the Blues, who are 7-0-1 since he was acquired by trade from Buffalo. St. Louis has won three straight and eight of nine. Western Conference-leading St. Louis has an NHL-best 101 points. It is the sixth time in franchise history that the Blues have reached 100 points. Backes has 23 goals this season. Brendan Morrow added a goal, and Jay Bouwmeester had two assists in the Blues win. Eric ODell had the lone goal for Winnipeg, and Al Montoya mmade 23 saves.dddddddddddd Montoya thought his team fell into the Blues trap. "This is what that team does," Montoya said. "They get up by a goal and they hold the fort." Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said his team could easily have had a bigger lead. "We made a game of it because we couldnt pull away in the second period when we had all the scoring chances," Hitchcock said. "We really played well in the second period." Tarasenko is expected to miss six weeks because of a hand injury sustained Saturday against Nashville. Oshie, whose first child was born earlier Monday, should be back for Wednesdays game at Chicago. Backes broke a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal at 13:09 of the third period when he swatted in a rebound of Ian Coles shot. After a listless first period, St. Louis took a 1-0 lead just 1:44 into the second. After Winnipegs Devin Setoguchi failed to control a bouncing puck, Derek Roy took it and broke in on left wing. He centred a pass to Morrow on the right side for a shot into the open net. The Jets took advantage during 4-on-4 play to tie it at 1:55 of the third. Evander Kane skated down left wing with ODell on a 2-on-1 break. Kane centred a pass to ODell, who faked a shot and then beat Miller with a backhand. NOTES: St. Louis is 38-1-5 when scoring first and 30-0-4 when leading after two periods. ... Winnipeg is 8-13-5 against the Central Division. ... Hitchcock moved into sole possession of third place on the teams career win list with 119. ' ' '