The Baltimore Orioles are making a very real push in the AL East.
The Orioles, fresh off the franchise’s second ever four-game series win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field, now hold a two-game lead over the Rays in the division entering the last stretch of the season.
It marked the 12th win in 15 games for the Orioles, who haven’t been to the playoffs since 2016 and trailed the Rays in the division by 6.5 games at the start of the month.
“We just played four really good games against a really good team,” manager Brandon Hyde said, . “And [I’m] just really proud of all of our guys’ efforts. Everybody contributed. We did a lot of things well this series, and hopefully, we can keep it rolling.”
The Orioles beat the Rays by a single run after Colton Cowser hit a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning to kick off the series on Thursday. While they got shut out on Friday, the Orioles bounced back after nearly blowing a 5-0 lead on Saturday for a 6-5 win. That officially gave them the lead in the AL East.
First baseman Ryan O’Hearn hit a solo home run in the sixth inning on Sunday night to break a 3-3 tie and give Baltimore the lead. O’Hearn drilled the left-field foul pole with his 331-foot shot, which marked the shortest home run on the team this season and just his fourth career homer against a lefty.
Anthony Santander then hit an RBI single in the seventh inning to push Baltimore to a 5-3 lead, which it rode the rest of the way for the two-run win.
“I’ve said many times how special it is to me to be a part of this team. I’m enjoying every day I get to show up,” O’Hearn said, . “When you contribute, it makes it that much sweeter.”
While the Orioles are on a roll, it’s still very early in the season. They have 63 games left on their schedule, and about two full months before the postseason hits.
Baltimore has seen the playoffs just three times in the past 26 seasons. The Orioles haven’t won the AL East since 2014, the same year they got swept by the Kansas City Royals in the ALCS.
Though plenty can change between now and the end of the season, the Orioles have put themselves in position to win their first divisional title in nearly a decade — and they’ve proved they can hang with the other team that’s in contention, too.
“[That was] two really good teams going at it. It was a grinder every game,” O’Hearn said, . “They’ve got a really good team over there, and so do we. Every pitch matters, every inning matters, every hit. So [we’re] just trying to take it one pitch at a time and play as hard as we can, and [I’m] glad we came out on top.
“Also, yeah, it’s only July, we’ve got a long way to go. But [we’ll] definitely take a win here on the road against these guys and feel good about ourselves.”
