Rays slug 4 homers vs. O's to snap skid

ST. PETERSBURG -- An abundance of Major League scouts were in the house Sunday afternoon to watch Jake Odorizzi pitch, and the Rays right-hander came through with a quality start in a 5-2 win over the Orioles at Tropicana Field.
The Rays' win snapped an eight-game losing streak while also ending the Orioles' four-game winning streak.
"Obviously, feels really good to get a win," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "This club needed it. Happy for the guys."
Odorizzi's name is in play in trade rumors concerning teams that need starting pitching. If anything, his value went up the way he pitched Sunday, coming away with his fourth win of the season after allowing two earned runs in six innings.

"We had him on the ropes a few times and just couldn't cash in," Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph said of Odorizzi. "He made a few quality pitches. This is a hard ballpark to hit in because they've got that gap out there in left-center field. We've hit quite a few balls out there that probably would have gone out at home. It's not an excuse for anything, but you want to take advantage of those situations early in the game when you feel like you're still within reach, and this offense is never out of it. We were in it all day, just couldn't get that clutch hit."
Pacing the Rays' offense were home runs by Evan Longoria, Oswaldo Arcía and Brad Miller -- all of which came against Dylan Bundy, who made his first Major League start and was tagged with the loss. Longoria added another homer in the eighth off Odrisamer Despaigne to push the lead to 5-2.
"Runs early, no matter what you are going through, whether you are losing, is a big deal," Longoria said. "It just gives them that confidence boost."
Manny Machado put the Orioles up, 1-0, with a first-inning sacrifice fly, and Pedro Álvarez cut the Rays' lead to 4-2 with a solo home run off Odorizzi in the sixth. Erasmo Ramírez and Alex Colomé then slammed the door with three scoreless innings of relief.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Bundy's first start: The Orioles rookie, who hadn't thrown more than 57 pitches all year, went 3 1/3 innings and gave up four runs --three homers-- on five hits and three walks. The right-hander threw 70 pitches in his starting debut.

"The Rays are aggressive and were looking to get on that fastball," Bundy said. "One ball, I think, was on the ground, so that's not very good from a starter. I've got to work on movement of it and getting the two-seam over the plate and keep the ball down." More >
No biggies for Odorizzi: Entering Sunday's game, Odorizzi had allowed at least four runs in a single inning five times this season. So the first inning resembled dangerous territory when Adam Jones singled to lead off the game and Jonathan Schoop followed with a double. But Odorizzi came through with some major damage control. Machado had a sacrifice fly, then he struck out Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo. He again dodged trouble in the fifth when the Orioles loaded the bases with two outs, but Odorizzi retired Davis on a flyout to center to end the threat. More >

Longoria rakes vs. O's: Longoria tied the game at 1 with a solo shot off Bundy in the first, and his homer in the eighth gave him 32 in his career against the Orioles. Of those, 31 have come when he played third base. Before Sunday, Alex Rodriguez (32) and Harmon Killebrew (30) were the only third basemen to have more career home runs against the Orioles.

Hart's debut: Orioles lefty Donnie Hart made his Major League debut in the bottom of the sixth inning. Hart, who had his contract purchased before the series started on Friday, recorded the first two outs of the frame. He exited to a mini ovation from the Orioles crowd on hand.

"Darren [O'Day] mentioned something to me earlier in the week about how you aren't going to feel too much except your mechanics," said Hart, who had his twin sister and more than 20 others in attendance for the series. "I kind of told myself, 'Just stay with your mechanics.' Once I got a nice popout, it was a nice breath of fresh air. [I said to myself,] 'Now, I got to get back to work.'"
QUOTABLE
"The thing that we need to do offensively is keep giving the [starting pitching] some support to give them a little breathing room." -- Cash, on the Rays' offense
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
MIller's solo home run off Bundy in the third gave the shortstop 15 for the season, which tied the single-season home run record by a Rays shortstop. He now shares the record with Asdrúbal Cabrera (2015) and Julio Lugo ('03). Every home run he hits pushes his career high to a new mark.

WHAT'S NEXT
Orioles: Baltimore will head north to play the Yankees in a four-game set. Right-hander Kevin Gausman was pushed back from Sunday to Monday so he could face New York, as he has historically been good against the Yankees. The righty went 1-6 with a 4.15 ERA in the first half. First pitch Monday is set for 7:05 p.m. ET at Yankee Stadium. .
Rays:Drew Smyly makes his 18th start of the season when the Rays kick off a nine-game road trip at Coors Field in a 8:40 p.m. ET contest. He is winless (0-6) over his past nine starts. In 12 career Interleague appearances, he has a 1-2 record with a 3.97 ERA.
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