BALTIMORE -- Shane Baz is beginning to show exactly why the Orioles made him the highest-paid pitcher in franchise history. And lately, the 26-year-old right-hander’s success is coming against a team that knows him quite well.
For the second consecutive start, Baz was terrific against the American League East-leading Rays. On Tuesday night, he racked up a season-high nine strikeouts while tossing seven innings of one-run ball and helping guide the O’s to a 6-1 victory at Camden Yards.
Baz has a 2.25 ERA over his past three starts, lowering his season mark from 5.48 to 4.48 during that span. His previous outing also came against Tampa Bay -- which traded him to Baltimore on Dec. 19 -- working six innings of one-run ball last Wednesday at Tropicana Field.
“I think what we're seeing is that Shane learned from those bad outings,” catcher Samuel Basallo said via team interpreter Brandon Quinones. "And I think, right now, we're seeing the pitcher that we all know Shane can be.”
The Orioles have raved about the upside and potential of Baz, who signed a five-year, $68 million extension on March 27, before he even debuted for the team. He had a bumpy start to the season, but the righty has recently found his groove.
Baz said he feels his work with the pitching coaches and catchers is yielding results.
“I feel like we’ve kind of started putting together good game plans and stuff and just being a little bit more comfortable,” he said.
The only Rays’ run against Baz this time came early, as Chandler Simpson opened the game with a double and scored on Jonathan Aranda’s single two batters later. Although Baz gave up seven hits, six were singles. He also stranded seven men on base, as Tampa Bay went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
It can be challenging to face the same lineup twice in six days -- especially a team that has a reputation of being able to manufacture offense like the Rays -- but Baz again successfully navigated a group of hitters who used to be his teammates.
“It’s definitely not easy,” Baz said. “You’ve kind of got to take some things from the first outing and apply them and try and use your eyes and watch a lot of the at-bats over again. But I’m just happy that I was able to give us a chance today.”
Baz generated 10 whiffs during his 99-pitch, 69-strike outing, six of which came against his knuckle curve. He finished strong, retiring eight of the final nine batters he faced.
Manager Craig Albernaz praised the increased usage of Baz’s changeup, which he threw nine times (9.1%). But it was the knuckle curve that was the talk of the visiting clubhouse, as Baz threw that offering a whopping 37 times (37.4%), the same amount as his four-seam fastball.
“He's spamming that curveball,” Rays second baseman Richie Palacios said. “That was the pitch that he was getting us out on."
“I think it’s his best pitch,” Tampa Bay designated hitter Yandy Díaz said via an interpreter.
“I thought his curveball was good at our ballpark [last week],” Rays manager Kevin Cash added. “It might have been a little bit better today, a little bit firmer."
The O’s plated three runs in both the second and fifth, capitalizing on a trio of Rays errors (making all six runs charged to Tampa Bay pitchers unearned). The Rays have committed seven errors over the first two games of this series.
The game was broken open on Basallo’s three-run home run in the fifth, which pushed the Orioles’ lead to 6-1. It was the eighth homer of the season for the 21-year-old rookie catcher.
After getting swept during last week’s three-game series at Tropicana Field, the O’s will have an opportunity to return the favor on Wednesday night, when they’ll go for a three-game sweep of the Rays. This has the potential to be the start of a hot streak for the Orioles (25-30), who have won four of the first five contests to open a season-long 10-game homestand.
It’s also worth noting that this was the first time Baltimore had a win that felt like a possible turning point and didn’t follow it up with a loss.
On April 13, the Orioles had a remarkable come-from-behind 9-7 win over the D-backs. They lost the next day and six of their next eight.
On May 13, the O’s beat the Yankees 7-0 to win a series against their AL East rival. They lost the next day and five of their next six.
After Monday’s 9-7, 13-inning walk-off win over Tampa Bay, Baltimore built on the momentum -- and it could potentially keep doing so.
“We have been playing a lot better, and we feel really good about the way we've been playing,” Basallo said. “All we want to do is continue playing hard, playing the right way, and hope to keep this thing going.”