Tampa Bay rolls into Wednesday at 34-18, which is still the best record in the sport, but the vibes have curdled. They've been shut out, lost 9-7 in 13 innings, and then got punched in the mouth 6-1 by ex-teammate Shane Baz on Tuesday night. First pitch from Camden Yards is 5:35 PM CT, and the Rays are sending Steven Matz (4-1, 3.70) at rookie right-hander Trey Gibson (0-0, 5.40).
This is Matz's second crack at Baltimore in a week. He drew the Orioles on May 20 in his return from an elbow IL stint and went 4 innings, 1 earned, 5 punchouts on a tight 67-pitch leash. Expect another short hook. Gibson, meanwhile, is one of the most interesting arms in the Orioles' system — he debuted at Yankee Stadium on May 3, threw 4.2 innings and gave up 3 runs, and is making just his second big-league start here. Undrafted kid, climbed from High-A Aberdeen to the show in a year. There's no scouting report on him yet, which usually cuts both ways.
The injury list is where this game gets weird. Tampa lost Griffin Jax to a back contusion Tuesday and just put Jesse Scholtens on the 15-day IL after he coughed up the 13-inning loss Monday. That's two more bullpen arms gone on a team already missing Pepiot, Sulser, Wilson, Uceta, and a chunk of the outfield (DeLuca, Fraley, Lux). If Matz is out after 4, Kevin Cash is digging deep into the bag again.
- Day-To-DayGriffin Jax RP — Jax was diagnosed with a back contusion following his removal from Tuesday's game against Baltimore, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
- Day-To-DayTaylor Walls SS — Walls went 1-for-3 with three RBI during the Rays' 7-2 win over the Marlins on Friday.
- Day-To-DayAustin Vernon RP — The Rays have shut Vernon down from throwing due to right elbow soreness, per MLB.com.
- Day-To-DayLogan Driscoll C — The Rays released Driscoll (ankle) on Friday, Ryan Bass of FanDuel Sports Network Sun reports.
- Day-To-DayKeyshawn Askew RP — no
- Day-To-DayTre' Morgan 1B — Triple-A Durham placed Morgan on the 7-day injured list with a quad injury, Sam Dykstra of MLB Pipeline reports.
- Day-To-DayAlfredo Zarraga RP — no
- 10-Day-ILJonny DeLuca RF — DeLuca is expected to miss 6-to-8 weeks after an MRI revealed a Grade 1 right hamstring strain, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.
- Day-To-DayCoby Mayo 3B — Mayo (back) is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Rays.
- Day-To-DayLevi Wells P — Triple-A Norfolk placed Wells on its 7-day injured list Wednesday due to right hip discomfort, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
- Day-To-DayRichard Guasch SP — no
- Day-To-DayWill Robertson LF — The Orioles reassigned Robertson to minor-league camp Wednesday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
- Day-To-DayLuis Vazquez SS — Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Monday that Vazquez has been diagnosed with a broken right thumb, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILDylan Beavers RF — Beavers (oblique) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.
- 15-Day-ILCade Povich SP — Povich (elbow) met with Dr. Keith Meister on Tuesday and is without an official timetable for his return after receiving a cortisone injection, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.
- 15-Day-ILRyan Helsley RP — Helsley (elbow) played catch Friday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Baltimore is 25-30 and has obviously been the lesser team on paper all year, but they've won 4 of 5 and just took the first two of this series. Coby Mayo's back is still keeping him out of the lineup, and the offense without Mountcastle, Westburg, and Kjerstad has mostly been carried by guys like Samuel Basallo, who already homered in this series. Worth noting the books basically see this as a coin flip — Pinnacle has Tampa at -106, Baltimore at -102 — which tells you how much the rotation gap (Matz vs. an unknown rookie) is being undercut by everything happening around the Rays right now.
The total sits at 8.5 with the over juiced to -128. Camden plays big this time of year and Matz/Gibson is a lefty-vs-rookie combo that doesn't scream slugfest, but the Rays' bullpen situation is the wild card. If this turns into a bullpen game by the 5th, the over is in play in a hurry. Either way, Tampa needs a win here or the AL East starts feeling a lot tighter than the standings say.