TLDR: Baltimore had three straight wins over Tampa Bay in the bank and a fourth in sight, but the Rays finally found their footing at home when it mattered most.
−McClanahan left last start early with back tightness
−Multiple bullpen arms on the IL
Brandon Young came in 9-3 and rolling, fresh off a win over the Twins where he worked 6 innings and allowed just 1 earned run. Shane McClanahan drew the ball for Tampa Bay on regular rest but hadn't completed a full outing in his last turn, exiting his July 30 start against Texas after just 3 hitless innings with left mid-back tightness. That backdrop made the pitching matchup one to watch even with Baltimore riding all the momentum into St. Petersburg.
Brandon Young
(9-3)·3.38 ERA
Aug 11 @ Twins
W
6.0IP
1ER
4K
3BB
104P
08/17 Lineup
Shane McClanahan
(10-6)·3.19 ERA
Jul 30 vs Rangers
ND
3.0IP
1ER
3K
2BB
49P
08/17 Lineup
The Rays entered the finale having dropped the first 3 games of this set by a combined margin that included two one-run losses and a 10-2 blowout Sunday, so their pitching staff and lineup were both banged up in different ways. Tampa Bay's bullpen had absorbed a beating over the weekend, while Baltimore's lineup had been clicking against a Rays pitching staff that couldn't find swings and misses.
Both clubs came in dealing with thin bullpens — Baltimore without Felix Bautista and Ryan Helsley, Tampa Bay missing multiple relief arms of its own — which made this one of those late-season games where the pen that holds up longer usually wins. That tension between two shorthanded bullpens is exactly why the total on this one carried plenty of weight before first pitch.
Tampa Bay finally broke through with a 3-run 4th and answered again with 3 more in the 7th, the two rallies that flipped a series that had gone entirely Baltimore's way. The Orioles didn't go quietly — they piled up 14 hits and got a 3-run 5th of their own — but Baltimore's bullpen couldn't hold a game that had been well within reach.
It's a game the Orioles will look back on as one that got away, given how thoroughly they'd dominated this series through the first 3 games at 105 degrees under the Trop's roof. For Tampa Bay, avoiding the sweep matters plenty given the shape of the wild card race both clubs are fighting through in August.
Orioles 6, Rays 7: Final Score & Odds Recap — Rays Snap Skid, Deny Orioles the Sweep 7-6 at the Trop
