TAMPA -- The Orioles were clutch Tuesday night -- both at the plate and in the bullpen -- and they pulled away with a 5-1 victory against the Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
There were a trio of two-out hits -- a solo home run by Colton Cowser that broke a 1-1 tie, then RBI singles from Ramón Laureano and Gunnar Henderson to pad the lead.
“I think that’s how you win games in the big leagues," said Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino, whose team was 5-for-10 with runners in scoring position. “You beat teams with two-out RBIs. If you have two-out RBIs, and the bullpen throws the ball good, you’re going to win a lot of games in this league."
In the seventh inning, the Orioles escaped the game’s biggest threat. The Rays had a pair of two-out runners on against left-hander Keegan Akin, then the Orioles summoned fellow lefty Gregory Soto to face Josh Lowe, who represented the tying run. Soto collected a four-pitch strikeout, which included Lowe swinging through a pair of nasty sliders.
“Soto looked good last night," Mansolino said. “Tonight we used him in a big spot, and he looked even better."
Overall, the Orioles’ bullpen has compiled a 1.76 ERA over the past 23 games, MLB’s second-lowest mark during that period.
“They’ve been holding it down for the last month now," said Dean Kremer, who worked out of a fourth-inning jam by striking out Jake Mangum and Matt Thaiss with two runners on. “Our back-of-the-bullpen guys are unbelievable, with really good stuff."
The Orioles, who have won 12 of 17 games since May 30, opened the scoring in the second when Jordan Westburg doubled -- narrowly missing a homer off the top of the wall -- and scored on Laureano’s one-out single.
The Rays got the equalizer on Junior Caminero’s fourth-inning RBI single, but they would only have one other runner in scoring position the rest of the night.
After Cowser’s fifth-inning homer made it 2-1, the Orioles tacked on. In the sixth, Laureano picked on a 3-2 sinker from Zack Littell and drove it up the middle for an RBI. In the seventh, it was Henderson who got the two-out single, making it 4-1, and extending his season-high hitting streak to 11 games.
Mansolino said the Orioles (31-41), who were 18 games below .500 after a loss in Game 1 of a doubleheader on May 24, are playing with supreme confidence.
“We’re playing good baseball in all areas," Mansolino said. “I think we’re throwing the ball great. We’re playing great defense. And we’re getting two-out RBIs right now. We’re hitting home runs, too. It just seems like 26 guys who are playing well right now.
“It’s a tough build [to get back into contention], but sure, playing well lately is a huge help. I feel like even going back to 18 games under .500, there was some belief. I think it’s obvious that as you inch closer and win more games, especially against one of the best teams in baseball right now, the belief picks up a bit. I’ve never walked in there and felt like anybody felt like they’re out of it. They’ve had belief since Day 1."
Cowser said the winning formula has been twofold.
“It starts with the pitching," Cowser said. “Our bullpen [has been effective], and our starters have been great, eating up innings, keeping the damage minimal. And we’re putting up runs, too. When you add those things together, good things happen, and I feel like we’ve been able to do that. We’re just going out there and playing our kind of ball."