The Baltimore Orioles defeated the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, 9-3, to take the three-game series down in St. Petersburg, Fla.
After a bad week, they have won five out of their last six games and neutralized a Rays’ team that was fairly hot. Baltimore is now 19-20 on the season, and after what we all saw last year, what a difference it is.
The Orioles may not be contenders yet, but they have played solid baseball over the past week.
Starting pitcher Jake Arrieta (5-1) went six innings against the Rays, allowing just two runs in yet another excellent outing by Baltimore hurler on the mound.
Meanwhile, for the second straight day the offense got going as J.J. Hardy hit a grand slam home run in the in the sixth inning. Since Hardy’s return, he’s been in the middle of everything and has been a spark in the lineup. Robert Andino did a good job; however, with Hardy back in the lineup, he’s had his hand in several key moments during the week.
The Orioles at the plate got 15 hits and Derrek Lee drove in two runs.
The batters for Baltimore would punish Tampa Bay starter Andy Sonnanstine (0-1) and his bullpen on the afternoon.
Nick Markakis – who had three hits on the day and raised his batting average to .245 – slammed his fourth homer of the season in the fourth inning.
Vladmir Guerrero and Brian Roberts both had two hits. Matt Wieters – who had three hits and Mark Reynolds each drove in runs.
This is a good win by the Orioles and hopefully they can maintain their momentum, as they head into Boston for a two-game set. The Red Sox look to be rolling now and youngsters Zach Britton and Chris Tillman get thrown into the belly of beast up in Boston as they pitch on the mound in the series.
Hopefully, all goes well.
The question on my mind – and a lot of fans – is this? Can the Orioles finish at or above .500?
As we’re close to the quarter-mark of the 2011 (unofficially), there have been ups-and-downs with this team.
The starting pitching has been solid for the most part, especially with youngsters Zach Britton and Jake Arrieta leading the pack; however, Jeremy Guthrie needs to get some run support.
In addition, inconsistent performances from Brad Bergesen and Chris Tillman have put them on the bubble for a spot as Brian Matusz will be back with the team soon. The bullpen has been shaky at times, but overall, not terrible.
Now, the offense is another story.
So far, it looks like a retooled Baltimore squad has been very lackluster at the plate throughout much of the season. Right now, it looks like the additions, plus the mainstays of the team over the past few seasons aren’t doing much at all.
Things have looked better over the past few days, but business must pick up if the Orioles are going to contend. I do believe the team still has a chance at .500 or above, especially with the state of the American League East right now.
However, a lot still has to go right in order for that to happen.
