BALTIMORE -- With a sold-out crowd on hand, a postseason-like feel in the air and the American League East lead on the line, Camden Yards was looking for a reason to get rowdy on Friday night.
The Rays wouldn’t allow it.
With a convincing 7-1 win over the Orioles before a crowd of 43,359, their second straight victory to begin this crucial four-game battle for the division lead, the Rays reclaimed a share of first place in the AL East for the first time since July 21.
“It was really important to come here and take care of business, and so far we've done that. We've got to continue that through the weekend,” said starter Zach Eflin, who sailed through seven dominant innings on 84 pitches. “It's a huge series for us, and so are the rest of their games along the way.”
- Games remaining 13: at BAL (2), vs. LAA (3), vs. TOR (3), at BOS (2), at TOR (3)
- Standings update: The Rays (92-57) have a share of first place in the AL East with the Orioles (91-56). However, Baltimore currently leads the season series, 6-5, so Tampa Bay must sweep this four-game series to claim the tiebreaker and thus land atop the division if they finish the regular season with identical records. Both clubs would have a comfortable lead in the AL Wild Card race.
But Rays manager Kevin Cash acknowledged afterward that Friday night was arguably “the biggest game of the year for us,” and Tampa Bay turned in a total team effort worthy of the moment.
Eflin carried a no-hitter into the sixth and allowed just one hit all night. Brandon Lowe homered, Manuel Margot had three hits in his return to the lineup and Randy Arozarena continued his assault on Baltimore pitching with three hits of his own. Then Harold Ramírez punctuated the whole thing with a pinch-hit, three-run homer to cap a four-run sixth.
“We know there's huge implications,” Lowe said. “To get that playoff-type atmosphere in September, to see how people react to it -- [I] feel like everybody's just passing with flying colors at this point.”
Nobody more so than Eflin, whom Lowe dubbed “the stoic starter that we needed.”
The veteran right-hander, seasoned by last year’s postseason run with the Phillies, seemed completely unfazed by the atmosphere or the significance of the situation. Eflin struck out eight without a walk, recorded at least one swinging strike on each of his six pitches and earned his AL-leading 15th win.
“I've been dying for an outing like that,” Eflin said. “Looking back at it, I think pretty much everything felt really good. It was just kind of one of those games where [catcher René] Pinto would call a pitch, and I'd most of the time execute it -- which is what I try to do every time, but I haven't been able to do that the past couple outings.”
Orioles leadoff man Gunnar Henderson reached in the first inning on an error by third baseman Isaac Paredes, but Eflin erased him with an inning-ending double play, then retired the next 12 Orioles in a row. Rookie Heston Kjerstad broke up Eflin’s no-hit bid with a homer to lead off the sixth.
“I don’t think he threw a ball where he didn’t want to the entire night,” said Orioles manager Brandon Hyde, whose club has lost a season-high-tying four straight games. “He pretty much carved us up.”
Orioles starter Jack Flaherty held the Rays in check for three innings, but they broke through in a big way after that. Lowe opened the scoring in the fourth by launching his 20th homer of the season. Margot tacked on another run with a single to left in his first start since coming off the injured list due to an elbow injury.
“Tremendous,” Margot said through interpreter Manny Navarro. “I was a little anxious to get out here, and I'm glad I was able to help out the team.”
The Rays pulled ahead by three on a fifth-inning sacrifice fly by Lowe, then broke the game open in the sixth, a welcome change of pace after playing 10 straight games decided by three runs or fewer.
With two on and nobody out in the sixth, the Rays sent up Ramírez to pinch-hit. The Orioles countered with right-hander Bryan Baker, and Ramírez promptly pummeled the first pitch he saw, a 96.2 mph fastball, out to left-center for a three-run homer. With an exit velocity of 112.5 mph, according to Statcast, it was the hardest-hit homer of Ramírez’s career.
“I just enjoyed it a lot, because I know I got that ball pretty good,” he said. “Every game is very important for us. For that reason, I just feel very excited.”
After watching the ball zip out of the park, Ramírez let loose an uncharacteristically emphatic bat toss about halfway down the first-base line -- a high-flying exclamation point on a statement victory for the Rays.
“That was freaking awesome,” Lowe said, grinning. “You do that, you can bat-flip however you like.”