O’s look to extend winning streak against Rays

Following their third straight series sweep, the red hot Baltimore Orioles travel to Tropicana Field to face the Tampa Bay Rays for three games.

Winners of their last 10 games, the Orioles now send their best pitcher, Tyler Wells, to begin this series. Behind Wells will be Dean Kremer in game two and a TBD starter for game three.

The pitching staff as a whole has been on fire over this winning streak, and they have maybe their toughest challenge during the streak so far in the Rays.

Tampa Bay will counter with Luis Patiño, a TBD starter in game two and Corey Kluber to wrap up the series in game three.

The offense stayed hot in Chicago, scoring 11 runs total in the two games. Austin Hays finally got back on track, recording a four-hit game in game two against the Cubs.

If Austin Hays can regain his June self, while the rest of this team is clicking on all cylinders, then that is a scary thought for any team not named the Orioles.

❌-FACTOR:

Our ❌-FACTOR in this series is going to be the bottom of the lineup. That includes Ramón Urías, Jorge Mateo, Rougned Odor and possibly Tyler Nevin.

While the rest of the lineup is hot, it is very important these bats can create production and get on base for the top of the lineup. The Rays can score some runs pretty easily, and we must be able to match that production one through nine.

With both Urías and Mateo having big series in Chicago and previously against the Angels in Baltimore, the bottom of the order could be key to extending this winning streak to 11 or more.

Game 1 Starting Lineup:

This AL East series matchup begins Friday night at 7:10 p.m. EST. You can catch each game on MASN or on your local Orioles Radio Network station.

UPDATE: As first reported by MASN’s Roch Kubatko, Jordan Lyles has officially been announced as Sunday’s starter.

How do you see this series playing out? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook and Twitter! And make sure to use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content to show your Birdland swag!

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