Adley Rutschman will look to continue his torrid hitting on Friday when the Baltimore Orioles play the opener of a four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Rutschman belted a solo homer in the sixth inning and a two-run shot in the eighth of Baltimore’s 6-5 road setback to the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday afternoon. He is 15-for-42 (.357) with three homers and 10 RBIs during a 10-game hitting streak.
“He’s been so consistent,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said of Rutschman. “He takes good at-bats almost every time out. Good from the right and left (side of the plate), great from right this year. … He gives you a great at-bat every time. He competes, and he can really hit.”
Rutschman went 5-for-13 to help the Orioles win two of three games against the Rays during the teams’ series in Baltimore last weekend. Ryan Mountcastle went 5-for-12 with two homers, four RBIs and three runs in that series.
Tampa Bay right-hander Aaron Civale (2-4, 5.37 ERA) will be tasked with keeping Rutschman, Mountcastle and the rest of the Orioles in check when he makes the start on Friday.
Civale, 28, fared well in his latest outing, allowing one run on six hits in 5 1/3 innings during a no-decision at Baltimore on May 31. He is 2-0 with a 5.48 ERA in four career starts vs. the Orioles.
The Rays recorded their third straight win and fifth in seven outings with a 5-3 victory over the host Miami Marlins on Wednesday.
“You’ve got to feel good about how we’ve played here as of late,” Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said.
Isaac Paredes led the way on Wednesday with a pair of doubles and three RBIs. He has five extra-base hits (four doubles, homer) with eight RBIs and five runs during his seven-game hitting streak.
Randy Arozarena has shown signs of getting it together at the plate, going 4-for-11 with six walks in his last four games. He also was hit by pitches twice in that span.
“Randy’s at-bats over the last three or four games have been really impressive,” Cash said. “That might be the most encouraging thing, the way he is seeing the ball. He’s taking good swings and driving some balls down the line.”
The Orioles named left-hander Cole Irvin (5-2, 2.84 ERA) the starter for Friday’s series opener.
Kyle Bradish initially was in line to start on Thursday before seeing left-hander Cade Povich make his major league debut instead. Hyde said a little extra rest was his reason for delaying Bradish, who was shredded for five runs on seven hits with three walks in 2 2/3 innings of a no-decision against the Rays on Saturday.
Like Civale, Irvin received a no-decision despite pitching well in his latest encounter with his Friday opponent. Irvin permitted two runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings vs. the Rays on Sunday.
Irvin, 30, is 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA in five career appearances (four starts) against Tampa Bay.
–Field Level Media
