ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The American League might be mediocre, but its middling nature is producing maximum chaos that should result in a wild final six weeks of the season.
The Orioles on Saturday defeated the AL-best Tampa Bay Rays by one run for the second night in a row, holding on for a 4-3 victory in 10 innings. Outfielder Tyler O’Neill and Cam Sanders were the heroes in extras, as the former smacked an RBI single in the top of the 10th and the latter stranded the automatic runner on second base to secure his second one-run save in as many days.
The victory improves Baltimore’s record to 60-63, but this isn’t your parents’ Junior Circuit. That record temporarily has the Orioles in a shocking five-way tie for AL’s third and final wild-card spot. The Toronto Blue Jays, Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers and Orioles — all with .488 winning percentages — are all tied for the coveted last playoff spot.
The Twins and Rangers’ games Saturday had yet to conclude, and if either or both win, that would break the tie and push the Orioles to a half-game back of the playoffs.
Like Friday’s 6-5 triumph, the Orioles took an early lead, smacked two homers, received a solid start and never trailed en route to a win over a team that entered the weekend on a nine-game winning streak. Unlike Friday’s win, the Orioles’ bullpen blew the save in the ninth inning to send the game to extras. Andrew Kittredge retired the first two batters of the frame, but the Rays’ Big Three — Yandy Díaz, Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero — all singled, including Caminero’s game-tying infield chopper, to send the game to extras.
Baltimore’s bats couldn’t come through after O’Neill’s RBI single to lead off the frame, as Dylan Beavers and Christian Encarnacion-Strand both struck out to strand two runners in scoring position. That put Sanders, a reliever Baltimore acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash considerations in mid-July, in a difficult position with the automatic runner on second base, but the unflappable right-hander didn’t blink, striking out Richie Palacios to slam the door on one of the best wins of the season.
About 18 hours before first pitch Saturday, Orioles manager Craig Albernaz let O’Neill know that he’d get the same opportunity that Pete Alonso did Friday. O’Neill on Saturday started a game in the leadoff spot for the first time in his nine-year MLB career after Alonso, an eight-year veteran, did the same the previous night. The unconventional lineups — which have also included Gunnar Henderson batting fifth for the first time since September 2023 — are Albernaz’s way of trying to figure out how to best match up against left-handed starting pitchers and how to combat the strategy of the savvy Rays.
It worked Friday with Alonso going 2 for 5, Henderson smacking four hits with a homer and the offense putting up six runs. It wasn’t as effective Saturday — until O’Neill’s clutch single in extras.
Leody Taveras drew first blood with an RBI single in the second inning to put Baltimore up 1-0. While his overall numbers aren’t great, Taveras has been one of the Orioles’ most clutch hitters this year with a .311 average and .854 OPS with runners in scoring position.
The Rays quickly tied the game in the third inning off starting pitcher Kyle Bradish after a throwing error from catcher Carlos Narváez. The new backstop in Baltimore, Adley Rutschman’s replacement after the blockbuster trade with the Boston Red Sox, tried to back pick Palacios, a former Towson University standout, off third base. He would’ve likely nabbed Palacios with a good throw, but it was too high, tipping off Encarnacion-Strand’s glove to allow Palacios to score.
Bradish wasn’t getting as many swings and misses as usual, tallying a season-low four on the night. But it was his third start against the Rays this season, and Tampa Bay’s offense is known for its contact ability. Bradish still made it through six innings while allowing only two runs — the second of which came on a Cedric Mullins RBI triple in the sixth — to lower the right-hander’s ERA against the Rays this season to 2.60.
Baltimore’s bats didn’t get many base runners off Rays lefty Ian Seymour, who struck out nine batters during his six innings, but it was two big swings from Alonso and Encarnacion-Strand that gave the Orioles their 3-1 lead. The first baseman hit an opposite-field blast in the fifth, while the third baseman clobbered a 418-foot blast in the third. Mullins’ triple then cut the Orioles’ lead in half, making for a stressful three innings for Baltimore’s bullpen.
However, the relief unit answered the call — until it didn’t. Alex Hoppe, Josh Walker and Rico Garcia combined for two scoreless frames to bridge the game to Kittredge in the ninth. After the blown save, though, Sanders picked up Kittredge to continue the former’s strong start to his Orioles career. Sanders, who struggled with the Pirates to begin his career, has been successful in every high-leverage outing with Baltimore, including Friday’s one-pitch save and his two clutch outings in Houston in mid-July.
The Orioles have now won five straight games against the Rays dating to their sweep of Tampa Bay at Camden Yards in late May. They’ve yet to trail in 18 innings this weekend as they’ve handed the Rays back-to-back losses for the first time since July 18-19.
Baltimore has a chance to secure a series win Sunday afternoon with Trevor Rogers on the mound opposite new Rays right-hander Freddy Peralta ahead of the series finale Monday evening.