The Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays wrap up their three-game series on Sunday in Tampa Bay. The Orioles continue their magical run despite making major deals at the deadline that cost the team a couple of key pieces. The Rays are now battling the Orioles for third place in the AL East. The pitching matchup on Sunday will be veteran righty Jordan Lyles (9-8, 4.35) of the Orioles taking on Drew Rasmussen (6-4, 2.96) of the Rays. First pitch is scheduled for 1:40pm EST.
The Orioles keep finding a way to stay in the playoff hunt despite the recent moves that saw the team part ways with long-time Oriole Trey Mancini and closer Jorge Lopez. In fact, since the deadline, the Orioles are 6-2 heading into Saturday's matchup with the Rays. After taking game one of the series, the Orioles were shut down by all-star starter Shane McClanahan and the Rays, 8-2. The Orioles had nine hits in the game but left 10 men on base in the loss. With the loss, the Orioles have now slipped back into fourth place, just a 1/2 game behind the Rays.
First Major League strikeout for DL ?? pic.twitter.com/MJ42Ka3UZd
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) August 13, 2022
The Orioles keep finding ways to win despite management's decision to sell at the deadline rather than bolster their roster for a playoff push. The team is doing it with their bats. Since the trade deadline on August 3rd, the Orioles are hitting .305 as a team and are averaging five runs per game with ten home runs in the eight game span. On the mound in the series finale will be the Orioles de-facto ace, Jordan Lyles. Lyles leads the team in wins, innings pitched, quality starts and strikeouts. In his past five games, Lyles has gone 3-1 with a 4.26 ERA. He has allowed 32 hits in 25 innings pitched including five home runs. He is 1-2 against the Rays this season, allowing 16 hits in 13.1 innings pitched.