What else can you say but let the good times roll?
The Orioles put on a show in their four-game sweep of the Rays over the weekend and now boast an incredible MLB-best 31-13 home record, along with an impressive 22-13 mark versus AL East opponents. The O’s now also own a 7-2 advantage over the Rays in the season series to date.
The four-game sweep of Tampa Bay puts the Orioles at a season-high fifteen games above .500 at 45-30 and four games clear of Boston for first place in the division.
Facing a 3-0 deficit early in the series opener on Friday, the O’s responded when J.J. Hardy put the home squad on the board with an RBI single in the fifth inning. Adam Jones would follow up with a solo blast in the same inning to cut the Rays lead to 3-2 before Chris Davis drove a bases-clearing three run single in the sixth inning to give the O’s a 5-3 lead. Manny Machado added an insurance run with his 18th home run of the season in the eighth, and Zach Britton notched his 22nd save on the year to clinch a 6-3 victory.
Finally! Kevin Gausman was the star of the show in Saturday’s matinee during game one of the doubleheader, allowing just four hits over 7.2 sparkling shutout innings with two walks and seven K’s.
The O’s 25-year-old flamethrower earned his long-awaited first win on the campaign after Hardy and Jones both singled in a run in the first inning before Francisco Pena’s RBI single in the sixth and Pedro Alvarez’s two-RBI single in the seventh allowed the O’s to breathe easy and cruise to a 5-0 win.
In the nightcap of the doubleheader on Saturday, Tampa Bay’s sluggers surprisingly hit Orioles ace Chris Tillman hard and put the O’s in a 4-0 hole going into the third inning. Joey Rickard’s RBI single in the third kicked off the O’s offensive output before Matt Wieters cut the deficit to 4-3 with a two-run shot in the fourth. Tampa would add two runs in the fifth to make it 6-3, but it would be the last time that the O’s would trail the rest of the way.
This is about the time that ‘’The Crush & AJ show’’ went live and boosted the ‘’Cardiac O’s’’ to yet another comeback win. Jones and Davis both went yard in the sixth to pull the O’s within one run of the lead before Jones came through again with a game-tying RBI single and Davis with a go-ahead RBI single in the seventh. Wieters would add his second homer of the game to push the O’s lead to 8-6, and then Britton silenced the Rays sluggers yet again in the ninth to register his 23rd save of the season.
It didn’t take the Orioles long to put their stamp on Sunday’s series finale, as Chris Davis deposited a grand slam into the bleachers at Camden Yards in the first inning to hand the O’s an instant 4-0 lead. Jonathan Schoop went yard in the third inning to boost the lead to 6-1 before the Rays tried to launch a counter-attack by way of a solo blast by Oswaldo Arica in the fourth followed by Logan Morrison’s RBI double and Arica again coming through with a two-RBI double in the fifth to cut the O’s advantage to 6-5.
And…Mark Trumbo squashed the Rays’ potential comeback with a two-run blast in the bottom of the fifth inning before the Orioles exploded for four runs in the eighth to blow the game out of the water. Rickard kicked off the late-game outburst with an RBI double, followed by a RBI singles from Machado and Trumbo before Davis scored on a wild pitch from former Oriole Ryan Webb to give the O’s a commanding 12-5 lead.
It’s always nice when you get to bust out the brooms…especially when it’s in your own backyard. With this Orioles squad, you can bet your bottom dollar that they will give 110% in front of the Camden faithful every single night, and this is the ultimate reward for both sides. And it also serves as a great morale boost to a team that is already flying high and on a five-game winning streak to boot. Watch out, MLB.
Now, let’s take a look at the highlights from the Orioles high-quality sweep over the Rays:
– The O’s have continued their excellent form in June and now boast a 17-8 record over their last 25 games. The O’s sluggers have scored a stellar 159 runs (6.3 per game) with 51 homers during that span.
– The bullpen bounced back to their usual dominant ways versus Tampa Bay, allowing just eight hits over 13.0 phenomenal shutout innings with 12 K’s. Over the last ten games, the Orioles relievers have combined for a rock-solid 2.80 ERA.
– The Orioles offense stayed red-hot against their division rivals by posting an outstanding .360 batting average with 31 runs and nine home runs. Over the last eight games in which the Orioles have gone 6-2, the Orioles sluggers are hitting a remarkable .362 while scoring 59 runs (7.3 per game) on 15 home runs.
– Adam Jones stayed in excellent form versus Tampa by going a ridiculous 9-for-16 with five runs, two homers and four RBI over the four-game set. The O’s 30-year-old star is now on an eight-game hitting streak while hitting a crazy .428 (15-for-35) with two homers and eight RBI during that span. Over his last 15 games, the San Diego native is hitting .369 with six home runs and 16 RBI.
– Jonathan Schoop is quietly having one of the biggest breakout seasons in the entire league this year, and the 24-year-old continued his phenomenal run of form by going 7-for-17 with four runs and one RBI versus the Rays. The O’s bright second baseman is currently on a nine-game hitting streak in which he is batting a ridiculous .473 (18-for-38) at the plate with three homers and six RBI.
– After going 8-for-18 with five runs, one homer and two RBI versus Tampa Bay, Manny Machado has continued to add to his early-season MVP bid by owning a current seven-game hitting streak while going an insane 16-for-31 (.516) with one home run and three RBI during that span. Over his last 15 games, the O’s 23-year-old superstar is hitting .391 with three homers and eight RBI.
– Chris Davis had a series to remember against the Rays by finishing 6-for-15 at the dish with five runs, two home runs and eight RBI. Over his last 15 games, the O’s ever dangerous slugger is hitting .309 with four homers and 15 RBI.
– Joey Rickard had another excellent series by going 4-for-12 with three runs, two doubles and two RBI versus his former club. Over his last 15 appearances, the O’s impressive, scrappy rookie is hitting .400 with eight runs, one home run and four RBI.
– How about Matt Wieters massive Eutaw Street blast on Saturday night?!?! The O’s three-time All-Star catcher will now join Pedro Alvarez and Ryan Flaherty on the list of O’s to touch Eutaw this season and it also marks Wieters second career Eutaw Street blast.
That’s all for now, Orioles fans! And remember…
Let the good times roll!
