Baltimore Orioles at Tampa Bay Rays

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
BAL	0	1	0	2	3	0	0	0	0	6	14	1
TB	0	0	1	3	0	0	3	0	—	7	12	0

Brandon Young came in 9-3 and rolling, fresh off a win over the Twins where he worked 6 innings and allowed just 1 earned run. Shane McClanahan drew the ball for Tampa Bay on regular rest but hadn't completed a full outing in his last turn, exiting his July 30 start against Texas after just 3 hitless innings with left mid-back tightness. That backdrop made the pitching matchup one to watch even with Baltimore riding all the momentum into St. Petersburg.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Orioles(61-63)

WWWLW

6

+1.5-147+153o7.5-108

Rays(74-49)

LLLWW

7

-1.5+144-156u7.5+115

Best BetOrioles +150

Postgame

The Orioles' bats did their part with 14 hits and 6 runs, so the offensive case held up fine. But Tampa Bay's bullpen and lineup finally clicked at the right moment, scoring 3 in the 4th and 3 more in the 7th to flip the game late — the exact kind of letdown from Baltimore's relief corps that the bear case worried about.

Pregame

Baltimore's the underdog on paper, but they've now beaten this exact Rays team three times running, and Brandon Young has been the sharper arm in this matchup all series. Backing the Orioles is a bet that the version of Tampa Bay from the last 3 games — a bullpen that's been rocked in every one of them — shows up again before McClanahan's return actually stabilizes things. It's a live dog in a spot where the favorite hasn't looked like a division leader in a week.

The Rays entered the finale having dropped the first 3 games of this set by a combined margin that included two one-run losses and a 10-2 blowout Sunday, so their pitching staff and lineup were both banged up in different ways. Tampa Bay's bullpen had absorbed a beating over the weekend, while Baltimore's lineup had been clicking against a Rays pitching staff that couldn't find swings and misses.

Brandon Young

(9-3)·3.52 ERA

Aug 11 @ Twins

W

6.0IP

1ER

4K

3BB

104P

08/17 Lineup

Shane McClanahan

(9-6)·3.25 ERA

Jul 30 vs Rangers

ND

3.0IP

1ER

3K

2BB

49P

08/17 Lineup

Both clubs came in dealing with thin bullpens — Baltimore without Felix Bautista and Ryan Helsley, Tampa Bay missing multiple relief arms of its own — which made this one of those late-season games where the pen that holds up longer usually wins. That tension between two shorthanded bullpens is exactly why the total on this one carried plenty of weight before first pitch.

Baltimore Orioles

(61-63)

Aug 16W@ Rays10-2

Aug 15W@ Rays4-3

Aug 14W@ Rays6-5

Aug 12L@ Twins5-7

Aug 11W@ Twins5-2

Tampa Bay Rays

(74-49)

Aug 16Lvs Orioles2-10

Aug 15Lvs Orioles3-4

Aug 14Lvs Orioles5-6

Aug 12W@ Athletics8-4

Aug 12W@ Athletics12-4

Tampa Bay finally broke through with a 3-run 4th and answered again with 3 more in the 7th, the two rallies that flipped a series that had gone entirely Baltimore's way. The Orioles didn't go quietly — they piled up 14 hits and got a 3-run 5th of their own — but Baltimore's bullpen couldn't hold a game that had been well within reach.

Baltimore Orioles

(9)

• 10-Day-ILSamuel Basallo (C) — Basallo (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Norfolk on Sunday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.08/15
• 10-Day-ILBlaze Alexander (3B) — Alexander (hand) hit in the batting cage Friday, per MLB.com.08/15
• 60-Day-ILFelix Bautista (RP) — Bautista (shoulder) could begin a minor-league rehab assignment in late August, per MLB.com.08/16
• 60-Day-ILRyan Helsley (RP) — Helsley (elbow) said Sunday that he's about a week into his throwing program but is likely a couple of weeks away from getting back on a mound, Andy Kostka of TheBanner.com reports.08/10
• 60-Day-ILColin Selby (RP) — Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias said Friday that Selby underwent right shoulder surgery Tuesday to repair his labrum and rotator cuff, Andy Kostka of TheBanner.com reports.07/31
• 60-Day-ILRyan Mountcastle (1B) — The Orioles announced that Mountcastle (foot) suffered a "significant" oblique strain while warming up for his first rehab game and will now be out a couple more months, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.07/31
• 60-Day-ILKeegan Akin (RP) — Akin (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.07/15
• 60-Day-ILJordan Westburg (3B) — Westburg (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Andrew Golden of TheBanner.com reports.05/15
• 60-Day-ILZach Eflin (SP) — Eflin underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08

Tampa Bay Rays

(9)

• 10-Day-ILBen Williamson (2B) — The Rays placed Williamson on the 10-day injured list Friday, retroactive to Thursday, due to a right hamstring strain.08/07
• 15-Day-ILCole Sulser (RP) — Sulser (back) faced hitters Friday, per MLB.com.08/15
• 15-Day-ILGriffin Jax (SP) — Jax (elbow) threw from 120 feet out Friday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.08/14
• 60-Day-ILManuel Rodriguez (RP) — Rodriguez (elbow) has a 6.14 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 13:3 K:BB over 7.1 innings during his minor-league rehab assignment.08/17
• 60-Day-ILEdwin Uceta (RP) — Uceta (shoulder) is playing catch from 75 feet, per MLB.com.08/15
• 60-Day-ILJake Fraley (RF) — Manager Kevin Cash said Friday that Fraley (hernia) is scheduled to play a few games at the team's complex in Florida before beginning a rehab assignment at Triple-A Durham, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.08/14
• 60-Day-ILGavin Lux (LF) — Lux (shoulder) is unlikely to return this season, per MLB.com.08/11
• 60-Day-ILJonathan Heasley (RP) — Heasley was returned to the major-league roster and placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with a right elbow stress reaction.06/08
• 60-Day-ILRyan Pepiot (SP) — Pepiot will undergo surgery on his right hip May 13 and miss the rest of the 2026 season, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.05/08

It's a game the Orioles will look back on as one that got away, given how thoroughly they'd dominated this series through the first 3 games at 105 degrees under the Trop's roof. For Tampa Bay, avoiding the sweep matters plenty given the shape of the wild card race both clubs are fighting through in August.