TAMPA, Fla. — For much of this season, it seemed as if the Baltimore Orioles were cursed with runners in scoring position.

How could a team that was baseball’s best clutch-hitting team just two years ago be its worst in those situations this season? That question vexed the Orioles’ players, coaches and fans throughout the first two months as the club floundered.

The performance from the Orioles’ offense in Thursday night’s 5-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays was one that was unfathomable just one month ago.

Baltimore’s bats wore down Tampa Bay’s pitching staff in death-by-a-thousand-cuts fashion, tallying 13 hits and 11 singles. They went 5 for 9 with runners in scoring position, including clutch RBI hits from Ramón Laureano, Gunnar Henderson and Jackson Holliday.

Recording five hits with runners in scoring position is something the Orioles struggled to do in full weeks earlier this season.

After Dean Kremer’s solid five-inning start, his bullpen maintained its dominance with four scoreless frames from Keegan Akin, Gregory Soto, Bryan Baker and Félix Bautista.

Baltimore (31-41) is back to 10 games under .500 after losing Monday’s series opener. The hill the club has to climb is still steep, but it looks more manageable after performances like this.

In the second inning, Jordan Westburg appeared to give the Orioles a 1-0 lead with a 110.8 mph missile to left-center field, but it hit the top of the wall and bounced back into play for a double. Westburg recorded two hits Tuesday to continue his tear since returning from the injured list last week.

Laureano made sure Westburg’s double wasn’t for naught, smacking a ground-ball single off Rays starter Zack Littell that hit off second baseman Brandon Lowe’s glove and brought home Westburg.

After Junior Caminero’s RBI single tied the game in the fourth, Colton Cowser gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead the next inning with a solo shot to right-center field. As he rounded the bases, the contingent of Baltimore fans sitting behind the third base dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field mooed in jubilation. Steinbrenner Field, the Yankees’ spring training facility, is being used as the Rays’ home this season after Hurricane Milton damaged Tropicana Field.

Laureano doubled Baltimore’s advantage in the sixth with another RBI single to score Westburg. In the seventh, Adley Rutschman and Henderson both lined two-out singles, with the latter’s driving in Dylan Carlson to give the Orioles a 4-1 lead. Holliday tacked on an insurance run the bullpen didn’t need with an RBI single to score Carlson in the ninth.

Kremer (6-7) was aided by his defense in the second inning when Laureano threw out Jonathan Aranda trying to stretch a single into a double. Laureano, who has one of the best outfield arms in MLB, was off-balance when he fired a laser to Henderson at the second base bag to nab Aranda.

Three of the first four batters against Kremer in the fourth reached base, but the right-hander didn’t allow the inning to spiral as they have at times earlier this season. With runners on first and second, Kremer struck out Jake Mangum and Matt Thaiss to escape the jam. He then retired the side in order in the fifth to end his day, lowering his ERA to 4.80 (and 3.52 since May).

Kremer tallied four strikeouts to reach 500 in his career — an impressive achievement for a pitcher who struggled to begin his big league career and has since made himself a key part of Baltimore’s rotation.

The Rays (40-33) got two runners on base with one out against Akin in the seventh, but the lefty got Christopher Morel to pop out and southpaw Soto entered to strike out Josh Lowe to end the inning. The Rays went 1 for 6 with runners in scorpion position and left seven men on base.

Instant analysis

Managers are often wary to speak glowingly about their bullpen out of fear of jinxing his relievers. A skipper’s main in-game duty is to manage his bullpen, and baseball people are as superstitious as they come.

Tony Mansolino’s comments before Tuesday’s game had the potential to backfire. But Baltimore’s bullpen showcased that it might be jinx-proof.

“They’ve probably been one of the best units in the game here for a few weeks would be my guess. It’s been electric,” Mansolino said Tuesday afternoon. “They’re the reasons why we’re winning one-run games. It’s two-out hits, it’s two-out RBIs, it’s the bullpen.”

Since the Orioles turned their season around in late May, they’ve had perhaps the best bullpen in baseball. Over the past 20 games entering Tuesday, the Orioles were first in MLB in strikeout rate (35.3%), second in batting average against (.157) and third in ERA (1.89).

After the way Akin, Soto, Baker and Bautista looked against the Rays, it’s easy to understand why the Orioles have won 15 of their past 22 games.

On deck

The last time Trevor Rogers started for the Orioles, their season was circling the drain. Baltimore was 18 games under .500 and seemed destined to see that number reach 19 when Rogers took the mound for his season debut in Boston.

Rogers’ gem that night in late May served as the turning point for the Orioles, who have since been one of MLB’s best teams. The 27-year-old returns Wednesday after spending the past three weeks in Triple-A Norfolk, and this time, he could rejoin the rotation for good.

For that to happen, the much-maligned lefty must continue to pitch the way he has this year and less like he did last year after the Orioles acquired him from the Miami Marlins at the trade deadline.

____

©2025 The Baltimore Sun. Visit at baltimoresun.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.