The final out was made and the wait began.

The Orioles defeated the Blue Jays 4-2 to complete the doubleheader sweep before an announced crowd of 19,824 at Camden Yards, which left the final home attendance at 1,829,252. The elimination number held at one. But the White Sox hadn’t finished their game in Kansas City.

Players filed into the clubhouse for the usual celebration because they won. Loud music, smoke, guys laughing and shouting over the noise. Be where your feet are at all times. But that mantra has its flaws, like when another team controls your fate.

The Royals scored a tie-breaking run in the seventh inning and defeated Chicago 5-4. The Orioles live another day.

“Obviously, to win two games in the same day is tough to do,” said manager Craig Albernaz. “So proud of our guys, the effort that they showed. They still have the fight, they’re still fighting, and these dudes love to compete for each other. It was a good day.”

Trey Gibson tossed 6 2/3 scoreless innings with only three hits allowed and seven strikeouts. The Blue Jays gave the ball to CJ Van Eyk, a second-round draft pick in 2020 out of Florida State making his first major league start after 6 2/3 relief innings this season.

The Orioles scored three times in the first inning and Christian Encarnacion-Strand homered in the fourth. They weren’t letting him get comfortable.

Gibson hadn’t pitched for the Orioles since June 30, when he faced the White Sox and allowed eight runs with six walks in 2 2/3 innings. His ERA was 7.36. But he retired 10 in a row tonight. He was in total control.

As he warmed for the seventh inning, the Royals had already built a 4-0 lead over the White Sox in the first.

The Orioles were confident in dumping Gibson into a must-win game. He didn’t flinch.

“It’s pretty exciting,” he said. “Just going out there and trying to compete my best really feels good knowing where the team is at. Just try to give them my best.”

The Blue Jays were eliminated in Game 1 and sat Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer in the nightcap. Van Eyk was making his fifth major league appearance.

Eyk struck out two of his first three Orioles, hitting Pete Alonso in between. Coby Mayo doubled to left field at 110.9 mph and both runners scored on Encarnacion-Strand’s nine-pitch double. Colton Cowser followed with a fly ball that fell in left field for a 3-0 lead.

The rookie’s pitch count was 33 after Jeremiah Jackson grounded out.

The out-of-town scoreboard already was set up to be featured attraction.

“Having to watch other games and having your destiny in other peoples’ hands, that sucks,” Alonso said. “It takes a long time to have a good season, and obviously, we’re still not eliminated, which is great. For us to come out, sweep the doubleheader, that’s big time. With where we’re at, for me, I wish we weren’t.

“I know odds are stacked against us, but for me, there is no guarantee of anything and I wish that we could just wholeheartedly say, ‘Yeah, we have postseason baseball. We’ve got October baseball coming back to Camden Yards.’ That’s the goal of the 162, and once you get into the playoffs, you can start thinking about winning the thing, but you’ve got to get in the dance first. It’s frustrating, you know, because I want that in the worst way for this team and this city. And that’s the standard. That’s the standard, and we didn’t meet that as a club.”

Encarnacion-Strand’s 11th homer came on a first-pitch cutter that he pulled over the left field wall. Meanwhile, first pitch at Kauffman Stadium was minutes away.

Gibson, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the organization’s No. 17 prospect, flashed a fastball clocked at 98.2 mph in the second, and he followed a walk by striking out Charles McAdoo at 97.3.

Myles Straw led off the third with an infield hit and Ernie Clement grounded into a double play. Nathan Lukes reached on a hard one-hopper that Gunnar Henderson couldn’t backhand, and Josh Smith flied out.

Alejandro Kirk began the seventh with a single and the Orioles turned another double play. Sean Keys grounded out but was awarded first base on a shift violation error on Jackson, whose heels were on the outfield grass. The play was reviewed while both teams were in the dugout.

Gibson came back out, walked Davis Schneider and left to a standing ovation. Yennier Cano loaded the bases with a walk and struck out Straw.

“To go back to the delivery adjustment and the windup, a small change like that, just proved a lot of results for him,” Albernaz said. “Just the ability to attack the strike zone, to get swing miss. He just pushes the pace and the tempo. He has the ability to get weak contact with, now he has a few fastball shapes, all in the strike zone. You couple that with the curveball, he has the ingredients for sure.

“He has the mentality, too. He doesn’t get flustered, doesn’t get phased, and yeah, he has a bright future ahead.”

Orioles pitching coach Drew French and members of the pitching department laid out a plan for Gibson, adjusting his delivery and arsenal mix.

“It was kind of like cutting out the drop step in my windup and kind of having it pretty much just picking up my leg and going,” Gibson said. “It really simplifies a lot of the moves. It allows me to repeat it a lot easier. Felt really good with it.”

Josh Walker stranded a runner in the eighth while the White Sox scored four times in the third to tie their game. Félix Bautista made his second appearance and surrendered Davis Schneider’s two-run homer with one out in the ninth – a 351-footer down the left field line.

Players returned to the field after the congratulatory handshake line broke up and they headed down the dugout steps. They formed a huge cluster on the grass and raised their caps to salute the crowd.

“They’ve been coming out all year,” Alonso said. “I know this hasn’t been the season that we wanted internally, and it’s not the season that’s expected internally. The people who have supported us, it’s not what they expected or wanted either. For people to still show up, come out to a doubleheader today, and really just show the true support, it’s special, and that should be recognized.

“Alby was like, ‘Hey, guys, come on back out.’ Some people were kind of in the tunnel, so he kind of initiated that. And I was like, just kind of reinforcing what his messaging was. And, I mean, that’s the least we can do. That’s the least we can do after a full year of support. And again, I know it’s a midweek doubleheader, a little chilly out. People didn’t have to show out the way they did, so for people to do that, we appreciate that.”

“The fans, we heard them,” Albernaz said. “They’re in it the whole time. And at the end, the tip of the cap, that was a cool moment. Obviously, frustrating year for the fans, for sure. The record is not where we want it to be, but they came out today. They’ve been coming out. The fans were outstanding.”

The Orioles will arrive in New York later tonight with a 78-81 record and a shot at .500. They moved into fourth place in the American League East. Their goals were set much higher before the season.

They wanted to return to the playoffs. The odds say that, too, will have to wait. But they’re being stubborn about it.