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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Bad news was waiting for Joe Maddon in the morning. The Tampa Bay Rays manager said he planned to hit the sack and sleep "like a baby" on Monday night, rather than stay up to see whether his team got the help it needed to remain in the playoff race. No such luck. Tampa Bay beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-3 for its 11th victory in 12 games, an impressive stretch that kept the Rays in the hunt for the second AL wild card -- until Oakland beat Texas 4-3 later Monday night. Baltimore already is assured of being in the playoffs for the first time in 15 years, but still has its sights on outlasting the Yankees for the AL East title. The Orioles fell a game out of first place behind New York when the Yankees beat Boston. "Weve played 12 playoff games and weve won 11 of them," said Maddon, whose team has outscored opponents 80-31 during the surge. "I just love the way our guys are going about their business." Alex Cobb allowed two hits over seven innings, Ben Zobrist hit his 20th homer and Chris Giminez had a two-run double off Wei-Yin Chen as the Rays pulled away from a 1-all tie in the seventh. Cobb (11-9) yielded a fourth-inning single to J.J. Hardy and an opposite-field solo homer to Matt Wieters that tied it in the seventh. Chris Davis homered for the fifth straight game for Baltimore, a two-run shot off Kyle Farnsworth that trimmed Baltimores deficit to 5-3 in the ninth. Fernando Rodney gave up singles to Adam Jones and Wieters to put the potential tying runs on base. The Rays closer struck out Jim Thome and Mark Reynolds before getting Endy Chavez to hit a grounder back to mound to end the game. It was Rodneys 47th save in 49 opportunities. "We didnt take care of our business. We lost," Jones said. "When it comes to the Yankees, we cant control them. We cant control if they win or lose." The Orioles arrived in St. Petersburg for the season-ending series later than expected Sunday night after their plane had to divert to Jacksonville because of a fire in the galley. They clinched at least a wild-card berth when the Los Angeles Angels lost the second game of a doubleheader to the Texas Rangers late Sunday, and manager Buck Showalter, coaches and players celebrated by having a short meeting and toasting the accomplishment at the team hotel. "Weve clinched a spot, but weve got an opportunity to win the East. Thats big," Jones said before the game. "You get to put up a banner at Camden Yards. It speaks something about the team. It means you finished ahead of the Yankees and Boston and Tampa Bay, everybody." Cobb retired 10 in a row before Hardy singled between shortstop and third base for Baltimores first hit. The 24-year-old right-hander walked Jim Thome with one out in the fifth and Nate McLouth with one out in the sixth. McLouth stole second, but was stranded when J.J. Hardy grounded to shortstop and Chris Davis took a called third strike. Wieters career-high 23rd homer cleared the short wall in the left-field corner known as 162 Landing, the spot where Evan Longoria hit the 12th-inning homer that the sent the Rays to the playoffs on the final night of last season. "It is frustrating when its out of your hands, but we put ourselves in that position. We could have held our own destiny," Cobb said. "Even coming into the last road trip we had that chance, but we let a couple slip that we wish we could have had back. But were doing all we can now with what we have." While Maddon was hoping for another dramatic finish, the manager said he wouldnt fret if the Rays fell short of earning their fourth playoff berth in five seasons. "Honestly, it just is what it is. We had opportunities early in the year to win more games, and we did not. But so did everybody else," he said. "Everybody else is going to be bemoaning the same points if they dont get there at this juncture. So for me, its about staying right here, keeping the blinders on. Its about moving it forward, organizationally speaking." NOTES: Chen, who is 0-4 in seven starts since his last win Aug. 19, allowed four runs -- three unearned -- and six hits in 6 2-3 innings. ... Zobrist joined B.J. Upton as the only Rays with at least 20 homers. Zobrist has driven in 21 runs in 28 games since the start of September. ... Baltimore RHP Jason Hammel (sore right knee) threw five innings in the Florida instructional league and could be available to pitch for the Orioles late this week. ... Orioles RF Nick Markakis (broken left thumb) will have surgically inserted pins removed in a week. cheap jerseys . Instead of getting ready for Pittsburghs curtain raiser against the New York Islanders, the locked out Penguins forward spent Thursday coaching his daughters soccer team. cheap jerseys us . England, the 17-point underdog, scored first from a penalty in the 26th minute and was never headed. The All Blacks roared from 15-0 behind after halftime with two converted tries in three minutes to close within one point, and looked set to extend an unbeaten run of 20 tests over the past 16 months.CHICAGO -- Squandering a healthy lead is nothing new to the Charlotte Bobcats -- hanging onto one is. Kemba Walker had 18 points and eight rebounds, and the Bobcats ended an 18-game losing streak with a 91-81 win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday. Gerald Henderson added 16 points and reserve Ben Gordon had 15 to help Charlotte snap the second-longest skid in team history. It was the Bobcats first win in their last 10 road games. "Were a desperate team right now," Henderson said. "This losing streak has been very tough on us." Luol Deng scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Chicago. Carlos Boozer also had a double-double with 19 points and 14 boards. Charlotte fended off several rallies by the Bulls, who never held a lead, to win for the first time since Nov. 24. Tied at 65 heading into the fourth quarter, Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap decided to try something different. "I put the playbook in the freezer and just let our guys go at them," he said. Charlotte went on a 10-0 run to pad its lead as boos began raining down from the irritated Bulls faithful, who have endured inconsistency as they await the return of former MVP Derrick Rose, who is recovering from knee surgery. The Bulls had chipped away at a 12-point deficit in the third quarter, eventually tying the game on Richard Hamiltons second-chance jumper with 39 seconds left, but Chicago went ice-cold from the field in the fourth, shooting 23.1 per cent. Chicago (16-13) shot 35.1 per cent overall and hit just four of 16 3-point attempts. "You can deal with the shots. Some nights youre going to shoot better than others," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "But the defence and rebounding is not where it needs to be." Charlotte led by as many as 21 in the first half Saturday against New Orleans, eventually losing 98-95. It looked to be the same old story for the Bobcats heading into the fourth, but the 10-0 run to start the quarter gave the Bobcats ennough momentum to stop a seemingly never-ending losing streak.dddddddddddd The new year couldnt come quick enough for Charlotte (8-23), which narrowly avoided posting a 0-16 calendar month for the second time in 2012. The Bobcats went 0-16 in April to end last season on a franchise-worst 23-game losing streak. The eight wins already surpasses Charlottes seven wins all of last season. "When you go through an entire month without a win, it really eats at you," Dunlap said. "Its especially hard for our young guys who need to build confidence." Ramon Sessions scored 11 first-half points to give Charlotte a five-point advantage at the break. He finished with 15. The Bobcats shot over 50 per cent from the field in the first half, but struggled from the free throw line, hitting just six of 15 attempts to keep Chicago in the game. The Bulls began intentionally putting Charlotte on the line in hopes of mounting a comeback, to no avail. "They werent shooting free throws well," Thibodeau said. "Youre just searching for anything that can get you going." The Bobcats finished 21 of 38 from the stripe -- worse than mediocre, but enough to get the job done. Chicago has lost three of its last four. "Were in a funk right now, weve been up and down this season," said Taj Gibson, who had eight points and nine rebounds. "Tonight, we let down a lot on defence and we just have to find our way out of it." Notes: Bulls G Kirk Hinrich was ruled out before the game due to "a compilation of things," according to coach Tom Thibodeau. He is considered day-to-day. ... Thibodeau said he was "sad" to hear about the firing of Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith. "You hate to see anyone lose their job, but thats the nature of the beast," he said. ... Bobcats F Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (scratched right cornea) did not play after being poked in the eye during a 98-95 loss to New Orleans on Saturday. ' ' '