A three-run inning by the Tampa Bay Rays' offense proved to be the difference as the Orioles were unable to complete the sweep.
After winning the first two games of their three-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Baltimore Orioles struggled offensively and fell in the series finale, losing 3-1 on Sunday afternoon.
Baltimore’s Shane Baz took the mound, opposing the Rays’ Nick Martinez in what was a pitching duel until the sixth inning. With two outs and nobody on base, Baz ran into trouble in the top of the sixth.
In a 2-2 count, Yandy Diaz grounded a knuckle-curve from Baz to the right side of the infield, where Jackson Holliday narrowly missed the ball with his glove on a play that seemed very playable. Instead, Diaz reached base with two out, and the struggles began for Baz.
Baz would end up being unable to complete the inning, as he would go on to allow two more singles and a walk. Orioles manager Craig Albernaz then pulled the trigger on his outing, replacing him with reliever Grant Wolfram before the inning’s end.
The three earned runs charged to Baz would end up being the difference on Sunday. He nearly completed a quality start, pitching 5 ⅔ innings in an outing where he struck out three batters and walked three.
“Baz pitched well enough. Definitely well enough for us to win, kept us in it,” Albernaz said, according to Orioles on MASN. "Last inning he pitched, he grinded through it. Baz threw the ball extremely well.”
Though the roller to second base was not ruled an error as it narrowly went under Holliday’s glove and did not touch it, the play was surely a momentum-shifter. Albernaz backed Holliday’s effort on the play and gave him grace.
"We’ve seen Jackie make that play. It’s also not a routine play by any stretch,” Albernaz said. "It’s one of those where we’ve seen Jackie go to a knee and make that play, we’ve seen him stand up. So it was one of those things where he had a great beat on it, it just got underneath his glove."
On the offensive end, the Orioles’ offense went cold against Martinez, who ended up tossing six shutout innings and allowing just one hit.
The entirety of the Orioles’ lineup went hitless outside of one player – Colton Cowser, who had two extra-base hits to his name as Baltimore’s lone hits. Cowser had the lone hit off Martinez with a double and added a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, as the Orioles avoided the shutout.
Sunday’s loss marked the second instance in the last week in which the Orioles had a chance to complete a series sweep of the Rays but dropped the final game, but nonetheless, they have primarily looked dominant against their division rival.
Baltimore will open up a nine-game road trip on Tuesday, as they travel to St. Louis to take on the Cardinals in a three-game set.
