TAMPA – The Rays’ offense entered tonight’s game scorching hot. In four consecutive games, all wins, Tampa had posted at least seven runs.
For the first time in what has felt like a long time, the Rays were stifled. Orioles pitching won the night in Baltimore's 5-1 victory.
All Jordan Westburg has done since returning from the injured list is produce. His second inning double, hit over 110 mph off the bat, set the Orioles up with their first scoring chance of the night. Ryan O’Hearn pushed him to third, and Ramón Laureano brought him home to make it 1-0 Baltimore.
At the time of his double, Westburg’s OPS in the seven games since his return shot up to 1.326.
Dean Kremer’s night didn’t get off to the best start. Four consecutive pitches, three of which were four-seam fastballs, missed the zone against leadoff hitter Josh Lowe. But his defense helped him out.
The next batter, Brandon Lowe, grounded into a double play. An inning later, Jonathan Aranda was gunned down by Laureano after trying to stretch a single into a double. A few batters later, Adley Rutschman came up firing to second on a dribbler right in front of him for a force out.
That’s the kind of high-quality defense required to beat a high-quality team in Tampa Bay. And it allowed Kremer to settle in.
Things got a bit rocky for Kremer in the fourth, though.
Brandon Lowe led off the bottom of the frame with a scorching double down the line in right, putting the Rays in prime position to even the score. They did just that a few batters later as a Junior Caminero single brought him home.
Through five innings, the Birds’ bats had only produced four hits, but they made them count. No Baltimore swing counted for more in the first five frames than Colton Cowser’s solo home run in the fifth. On an 0-2 count, he drove a slider to right-center field to give the Orioles a 2-1 lead.
Westburg’s two-out single in the sixth ignited a mini rally. O’Hearn delivered a base knock too, and Laureano brought Westy home with another RBI-single. Déja vù all over again.
Kremer, despite allowing just one earned run, wouldn’t return for the sixth. A solid night in the box score, with just one earned run, was underscored by some loud outs. For a pitcher that has run into some bad batted-ball luck this season, a regression to the mean was surely welcomed.
The O’s offense didn’t have the loudest night, but they did have a productive one. It was highlighted by a few two-out rallies, of which they had another in the seventh.
Singles from Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson with two down plated Dylan Carlson and extended Baltimore’s lead to 4-1. Henderson’s single marked the tenth hit of the contest for the O’s.
To win this game, the O’s would once again need their bullpen to dazzle.
Over the last 22 games, Orioles relievers have posted a 1.84 ERA, second best in the big leagues over that stretch. Keegan Akin was the first bullpen arm to enter the game in the sixth, and exited with runners on first and second in the seventh after 1 ⅔ innings. Gregory Soto promptly struck out Josh Lowe on four pitches, and onto the eighth we went.
Bryan Baker threw eight pitches in the bottom of the frame. He allowed one hit, recorded three outs, and did not allow a ball. Onto the ninth.
That's where Jackson Holliday added a crucial insurance run. Two more singles in the inning, off the bats of Carlson and Holliday, gave the O's another crooked number in the box score and pushed their lead to 5-1. Despite some traffic on the basepaths, they couldn't tack on more. But it was plenty of breathing room for Félix Bautista.
The Mountain, pitching for the first time since Saturday, cruised through the ninth inning of work to secure the victory.
Baltimore's offense just chipped away. Of their 13 hits on the night, 11 of them were singles. Kremer was solid, the bullpen was excellent, and they had some great defense behind them. The Rays' offense had been scorching offense, and they scored just one run. That's the formula for winning baseball against a good team.
The O's have evened the series with two more left to play down in Florida.