"On a day their ace starter went on the disabled list amid Doomsday predictions, Javier Vazquez provided a saving grace for the Marlins.

Vazquez not only got through the first inning without giving up a run for the first time this season, he delivered seven scoreless innings of three-hit ball Saturday in a 5-3 victory over Tampa Bay at Sun Life Stadium.

The first dominant performance since the veteran right-hander signed a one-year, $7 million contract came hours after Josh Johnson was placed on the 15-day disabled list with inflammation in the back of his pitching shoulder. Johnson and the Marlins are confident the injury is minor and the National League co-leader in ERA will be able to return after a couple of weeks of rest.

Vazquez (3-4) delivered the kind of production the Marlins will need in Johnson's absence and beyond.

"To go out there and be able to give the team seven innings is just good," said Vazquez, who lowered his ERA from 7.55 to 6.41. "It's tough man, what can I say. Any time you go out there and get your butt kicked, it's not fun."

Vazquez's big problem had been getting through the first inning. He had an ERA of 15.25 in the first inning of his previous eight starts. This time he breezed through a 1-2-3 opening frame with two strikeouts. He threw 12 pitches, eight for strikes.

Vazquez struggled only in the second inning when he loaded the bases and appeared to be slipping into the habits that have gotten him in trouble. It took a grounder on a 3-2 pitch to Rays starting pitcher David Price to escape unscathed.

He then settled in and retired 12 of the next 13 Rays, allowing only a single through his legs by Matt Joyce in the third. Hanley Ramirez's leaping snag of John Jasso's liner helped Vazquez escape the seventh after a leadoff double by Casey Kotchman."