The Tampa Bay Rays (54-40) split a day-night doubleheader with the Baltimore Orioles (28-64) on Saturday in Baltimore.
The first game was a makeup from a game that had been rained out on May 5th, and the Orioles would come away with the win by the score of 2-1. Mike Zunino gave the Rays a 1-0 lead on a solo home run in the third inning, and for a while that looked like all the offense the Rays would need. However, Stevie Wilkerson hit a two-run blast in the bottom of the seventh inning that gave the Orioles a 2-1 advantage, then would hold on for the win. Brendan McKay pitched five innings of shutout baseball for the Rays, allowing just three hits while striking out seven and walking none. In his first three games in the big leagues, McKay has accumulated a 1.69 ERA and continued to impress with his mound presence.
The second game would be a different story altogether, as Tampa Bay blew past the Orioles 12-4. After Tampa Bay took a 3-0 lead with home runs from Michael Brosseau and Yandy Diaz, the Orioles answered with a two-run single from Stevie Wilkerson in the bottom of the fourth inning to pull within 3-2. The Rays blew the game open with a three run output in both the sixth and seventh innings - as if that weren't enough, the Rays added a three-run ninth for good measure to secure a 12-run outburst. All-Star Morton (11-2, 2.35) did more than enough for the Rays to get the win - in six innings he allowed just two runs while allowing six hits and striking out six.
The Rays now look to win the series against the Orioles with the fourth and final game on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 PM - you can hear it all, beginning with Steve Carney and the Inside Pitch, on 95.3 WDAE & AM 620, your home of the Rays.
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