Rays Battle Back to Defeat Orioles, 4-3

TAMPA, Fla. — In a 4-3 comeback win over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday, the Tampa Bay Rays returned to their roots.

It took grit and the kind of small-ball play that Tampa Bay relied on often for early-season success. It was not easy, as the Rays found themselves down 2-0 quickly when Baltimore’s Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg and Ryan O’Hearn connected off of right-hander Zack Littell. 

Littell and the bullpen stabilized, allowing just one run the rest of the game, but scoring eluded the Rays as they battled against a familiar foe in right-hander Dean Kremer, who had won consecutive starts against Tampa Bay. 

Finally, in the bottom of the seventh inning, Tampa Bay broke through against Kremer after a Josh Lowe groundout brought home Yandy Diaz to make it 2-1.

From there, the Rays seized control.

Kremer’s night ended after the seventh inning, and the Rays took the opportunity to jump on Baltimore’s 25th-ranked bullpen. A lead-off single by Ha-Seong Kim got things going before center fielder Chandler Simpson extended his MLB-best hitting streak to 18 games with an RBI single to tie the game. 

The Rays continued to pressure, forcing the Orioles into walks and errors, which culminated in a three-run eighth inning that ultimately determined the outcome. 

“Good base running, good at-bats, and glad to see us get something going, because we were pretty quiet most of the game,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said after the win.

“We smelled blood in the water, and just capitalized when we needed to,” Littell added. “Obviously, it wasn’t anything flashy.”

With the victory, the Rays earn their first series win since sweeping the Kansas City Royals in late June. It snaps a five-series losing streak and marks the first time Tampa Bay has won back-to-back games since facing the Royals.

Simpson, who continues to play with a relentless motor, credits the All-Star break for Tampa Bay’s ability to reset and get back in the win column.

“It was a good time for us to regroup, and now we have a mindset of just taking it one game at a time,” Simpson said. “Just coming out with our hair on fire.”

With a chance to chip away at the Toronto Blue Jays’ 5.5 game lead for first place in the AL East, the Rays (52-47) will aim to sweep the Orioles (43-54) on Sunday at 12:10 p.m. ET as Ryan Pepiot (6-7, 3.38 ERA) faces Baltimore southpaw Trevor Rogers (2-1, 1.53 ERA). 

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