Upton blasts help Rays advance to ALCS

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Tampa Bay Rays roared into the American League Championship Series with a 6-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Monday, sealing their division series by a 3-1 margin with a win highlighted by two B.J. Upton homers.

The Rays outfielder blasted two solo shots and first baseman Carlos Pena knocked in two runs to propel the Rays to their first ever postseason series win on their playoffs debut.

"I've gotten back to my strength, kind of got a couple of pitches to hit up in the zone and basically took advantage of them," said Upton, who also had a two-run homer in Game Three on Sunday.

"For us to come in here and win a road game to put us into the next round, it does everything for our confidence," he added.

Before taking the AL East Division crown this year, the 11-year-old club had never finished a regular season in better than fourth place.

Having to contend with division rivals like powerhouses the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox made the Rays' 'worst-to-first' season all the more remarkable.

"What better battle testing can you possibly get than going to Fenway often and going to Yankee Stadium often and of course to Baltimore and Toronto," Rays manager Joe Maddon said of his division rivals.

The series victory over the White Sox marked only the sixth time an expansion team had won its playoffs series debut.

TEAM EFFORT

In a complete team effort, Rays batters chipped away at White Sox pitching throughout the game, scoring runs in five of nine innings. Losing pitcher Gavin Floyd lasted only three innings after allowing four runs on five hits.

Starting pitcher Andy Sonnanstine (1-0) held the White Sox to two runs on three hits through 5-2/3 innings and the Rays bullpen held the home team scoreless the rest of the way.

"We pitched well. We caught the ball on defense once again. We had some timely hits," Maddon said.

"When you keep things simple and you just play the fundamentals of the game appropriately, then good things can happen."

The Rays made their domination count early in the game, with Upton going deep in the first and third innings.

"Getting the runs early is huge for your confidence," Sonnanstine said. "It gives me more leeway and I think it makes me more effective."

Outfielder Carl Crawford scored in the fourth on a double by designated hitter Cliff Floyd. Up next, catcher Dioner Navarro singled to score Floyd before Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen removed his starter.

Pena knocked in two runs with singles in the fifth and seventh frames.

Solo home runs by first baseman Paul Konerko and outfielder Jermaine Dye accounted for Chicago's only runs.

The Rays will face either the Los Angeles Angels or the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS for the right to advance to the World Series.

Boston leads that series 2-1 with Game Four at Fenway Park taking place later on Monday.

(Reporting by Karl Plume; Editing by John O'Brien)