Dylan Beavers, Pete Alonso power Orioles past AL East-leading Rays

The Orioles have had a lot of losing to sit through this year, but this week they found a stretch worth staying up for. Over back-to-back nights against the AL East-leading Rays, Baltimore got a signature homer from its big offseason addition, a breakout stretch from its top outfield prospect, and a walk-off finish that summed up the whole vibe of this club right now.

It started fast. Alonso needed all of two pitches to put the Orioles on the board in the series opener, going deep off Rays starter Peralta before most fans had even settled into their seats.

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Took Pete Alonso and the Orioles 2 pitches to get a lead vs the Rays

Dylan Beavers, Baltimore's 2022 first-round pick and No. 2 prospect in the system before his call-up last summer, kept pace. He took Camden Yards deep in that same game for his third straight contest with a home run, a stretch that's been building since his Triple-A Norfolk season (.304, 18 homers) made the promotion feel inevitable.

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3 straight games with a homer for Mr. Beavers in Baltimore

Alonso wasn't done. He added a two-run blast in the fifth inning that traveled 443 feet to deep left-center, his longest homer of the year, and it was his 30th of the season -- making him the seventh active player with seven straight 30-homer campaigns, a club that includes Mike Trout and Manny Machado. The Orioles won that opener 5-3, snapping a four-game skid.

The next night, Alonso kept the streak rolling on a hard-hit ball off Shane McClanahan that pushed his hitting streak to 14 straight games -- a career high, and one he built while batting well over.400 against Tampa Bay in particular.

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14 games in a row with a hit for Pete

That second game turned into a slugfest of its own. The Rays led 2-0 on a Liam Hicks homer and a Junior Caminero RBI single, but rookie Samuel Basallo came off the bench to tie it with a two-run homer in the eighth. Then, in the 10th, Beavers delivered the walk-off double that sealed a 3-2 win and touched off a Camden Yards fireworks show.

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What a win in Birdland! Beavers off the wall and the Os win it!

Baltimore's season has been a mess by its own standards, but stretches like this -- Alonso doing Alonso things at 31, Beavers looking like the real deal a year into his career -- are exactly why Orioles fans keep tuning back in against the best team in their division.