Kyle Bradish pitched a solid start for the Baltimore Orioles tonight. The Birds of course opened up perhaps the biggest series at Camden Yards in years, in what could be the battle for first place in the AL East with Tampa. Perhaps the battle for the best record in the AL. Bradish’s line: 7.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 5 K.
Bradish pitched better than his numbers indicate. For what it’s worth, the Orioles only have to win one game in this series, and they win the season series with Tampa. In short, Tampa has to sweep the Birds in order to win the season series and own the tie-breaker. And we know how stingy the O’s are about being swept.
The O’s took a 1-0 lead in the last of the second on a solo homer by Ryan O’Hearn. However Tampa decided to play that anything you can do we can do better sort of game. Lowe’s RBI-single in the third tied the game. Later in the inning Arozarena smacked a two-RBI triple, giving Tampa a 3-1 lead.
Because of their pitching, Tampa’s a tough team to play from behind. But the Orioles were able to touch them up again. Rookie-of-the-year candidate Gunnar Henderson smacked a solo homer in the last of the fourth to cut the lead to 3-2. Adam Frazier would then ground into a fielder’s choice-RBI in the fifth that tied the score back up at three.
The issue with that is the Orioles had the bases loaded with nobody out. They did get the one run which tied the game up, but they grounded into a double-play following that, ending the inning. You have to take advantage of these sorts of opportunities.
The game remained tied until the seventh, when Tampa’s Raley smacked a solo homer. The issue with that of course was that Kyle Bradish thought he had Raley struck out, but it was called a ball. He hit the next pitch out of the ballpark…
…and in doing so, Tampa held the lead before the fans and the Oriole dugout had stopped verbally accosting home plate umpire Nick Mahrley. The strike zone was wide all night long. Mahrley decided to tighten it up in the moment, apparently. That didn’t sit right with the Orioles, or the fans.
The loss narrows the Orioles’ division lead to one game. But you have to rely on more than just solo homers to win games. Especially against quality opponents.
The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Jack Flaherty gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Zach Eflin. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.
Birdland Crush 