Rays Hitters Schooled by Dean: Rays 1, Orioles 5

Kremer silences the bats, Cowser robs a game-changing homer, and the Orioles tag Bradley for five runs to win the series.

There were moments of hope and flashes of brilliance for the Tampa Bay Rays, but there was also Dean Kremer on the mound for the Baltimore Orioles. Dean made sure class was in session on how to prevent the other team from winning their third straight series.

The game began with some positivity for the Rays with runners on first and second and one out, thanks to singles from Josh Lowe and Yandy Diaz. Kremer, however, snapped back by retiring Jonathan Aranda and Jake Mangum on a force play to leave both stranded and start a streak of 10 straight retired Rays batters for Kremer.

Baltimore's offense chipped away steadily on Rays' starter Taj Bradley. In the bottom of the second, Ramón Laureano doubled, and Colton Cowser drove him in before a wild pitch advanced him to second base. Bradley responded by retiring nine straight batters and appeared capable of keeping the game in reach.

Then the fifth inning started.

Gary Sánchez singled, Cedric Mullins bunted his way on, Coby Mayo hit a single to center, and just like that, it was a 2‑0 game. A sac fly from Ramón Urías extended the O's lead to three runs. Bradley's command remained shaky with a wild pitch that moved Mayo to third, but a groundout from Gunnar Henderson stopped the bleeding, for the moment.

Bradley had shown flashes, but that fifth inning was the beginning of the unraveling of his momentum and continued into the sixth inning. Ryan O'Hearn doubled, Laureano singled, and ended Bradley’s day. Sánchez delivered an RBI single to welcome Kevin Kelly to the game, and Mullins hit his sac fly to make it a 5-0 game in the Orioles' favor.

Despite the slow start, there was still a chance for the Rays to come back in the game before getting the door shut on them late.

The game‑defining moment came in the eighth inning with the Orioles holding on to their five-run lead, and the Rays in desperate need of a spark. Colton Cowser stood on the wall and unleashed a leap and catch that looked like something out of a comic book film to rob Danny Jansen of a two-run home run. That grab kept the lead just out of single swing distance. This season, with these two teams playing each other, we have seen that no lead is safe.

In the top of the ninth, Felix Bautista took the mound for the Orioles, and the Rays finally got on the board. Brandon Lowe extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a leadoff solo shot as a consolation prize that adds to the impact of Cowser's grab, as this could have been a two-run game but was still a four-run lead for the O's. Yandy Diaz walked, and then Bautista retired the next three Rays with strikeouts to slam the door on any hopes of a comeback as Orioles win 5-1.

Rays return home on Monday to begin their last home series before the All-Star break against the A’s in the battle of displaced teams. Drew Rasmussen is scheduled to start for the Rays with former Ray Jacob Lopez taking the mound for the A’s.