By Rays Rally Past Orioles as Bryan Baker Records MLB-Leading 35th Save
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Sometimes a team just needs to find a way to win a game.
It doesn’t have to be pretty. It doesn’t have to be easy. And after watching the Tampa Bay Rays lose three straight games to the Baltimore Orioles following a perfect 9-0 road trip, nobody around Tampa Bay was going to complain about style points Monday night.
The Rays needed a win, and they got one.
Tampa Bay rallied from a two-run deficit with three runs in the seventh inning, then turned the game over to Bryan Baker, who recorded the final five outs of a 7-6 victory over Baltimore at Tropicana Field.
The win helped the Rays avoid a four-game sweep and improved them to 75-49.
Bryan Baker once again slammed the door, earning his Major League-leading 35th save and extending his streak to 24 consecutive converted save opportunities.
For a Rays team with postseason expectations, Monday felt bigger than one game in August.
Rays Refuse to Let the Orioles Sweep
Before the game, Rays manager Kevin Cash didn’t try to disguise the urgency.
“We need to find a way to win a game.”
That’s exactly what the Rays did.
The Rays had just spent nine games looking nearly unbeatable, sweeping their way through a perfect road trip. Then they returned home and suddenly couldn’t solve Baltimore.
The Orioles won the first three games of the series and threatened to complete the sweep Monday.
Baltimore took a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the seventh, but the Rays finally answered.
Jonathan Aranda singled home a run against Yennier Cano to cut the deficit to 6-5. Junior Caminero followed with an infield single that helped load the bases.
Then Cash pinch-hit Jonny DeLuca, and he delivered.
DeLuca lined a two-run single to center field off Josh Walker, bringing home the tying and go-ahead runs and sending the Tropicana Field crowd into a frenzy.
It was the fourth lead change of the night.
That’s the kind of response good teams make.
The Rays could have allowed a frustrating weekend to become a four-game sweep. Instead, they punched back.
Then it was time for Bryan Baker
Getting the lead was one thing. Protecting it was another.
Cash didn’t wait until the ninth inning to call Baker’s number.
The Rays closer entered in the eighth with runners at first and third and only one out. It was the type of situation where one Baltimore hit could have erased the Rays lead.
Baker responded like an elite closer.
He struck out Pete Alonso and then got Jackson Holliday to hit into a fielder’s choice, escaping the inning without allowing a run.
Then he came back for the ninth.
Baker finished the game by striking out Leody Taveras and secured his 35th save. He worked 1⅔ scoreless innings with two strikeouts, giving the Rays five enormous outs.
Baker later discussed feeding off the energy of the home crowd during the five-out save.
“You never want to get swept, especially for four games at home, in-division,” Baker said. “That was a different kind of thrill. We really wanted to win that game.”
For Rays fans, Baker has quickly become one of those pitchers who change the feeling of a game when he starts walking toward the mound.
The Rays have had plenty of excellent relievers over the years. Still, Baker is putting together a season that increasingly deserves to be discussed among the best by a closer in franchise history.
Rays Power Helps Keep Them Alive
The comeback wouldn’t have mattered without the Rays staying within striking distance.
Yandy Díaz, Ryan Vilade and Jorge Mateo all homered for the Rays. Mateo’s two-run shot in the fourth was his first home run since joining Tampa Bay and temporarily gave the Rays a 4-3 lead.
That’s an encouraging development for the Rays, who acquired Mateo to provide speed, defense and versatility. Any power he contributes is a bonus.
Baltimore answered with plenty of power of its own.
Coby Mayo crushed a 468-foot home run, while Pete Alonso and Christian Encarnacion-Strand also went deep. Encarnacion-Strand finished with three hits and four RBIs.
The Orioles collected 14 hits, compared with 12 for Tampa Bay in the 7-6 win.
Shane McClanahan Makes His Return
Monday also marked the return of Shane McClanahan, who was activated from the injured list before the game after missing two starts with a back issue.
McClanahan worked 3⅓ innings, allowing three runs on four hits while striking out three without issuing a walk.
The box score wasn’t spectacular, but that’s almost beside the point.
The good news is McClanahan is back.
For a team sitting at 75-49 and thinking well beyond simply making the postseason, getting a healthy McClanahan back into the rotation could become one of the most important developments of the final six weeks.
This One Felt Important
The Rays had lost three straight after winning nine in a row. Baltimore had beaten the Rays repeatedly throughout the weekend.
The Orioles were five outs away from walking out of Tropicana Field with a four-game sweep.
Then, Aranda delivered. Caminero kept the inning alive. DeLuca came off the bench and drove in two runs, and Baker finished it.
That’s what good baseball teams do.
The Rays aren’t going to win nine straight every couple of weeks. They’re going to hit rough patches. They’re going to lose games they should win. They’re going to have nights when the bullpen doesn’t have it, or the offense disappears.
What matters is how quickly they respond. Monday night, they responded.
And for Tampa Bay sports fans who have watched this franchise find ways to win despite never operating like the Yankees or the Dodgers, something felt familiar.
They keep finding a way.
