AL East Division foes will clash on Thursday afternoon, when the Baltimore Orioles and the Tampa Bay Rays wrap up their series from Tropicana Field. The Orioles (38-81) are in the midst of a 14-game losing streak and own the worst overall record in the majors. Last night, Ryan Mountcastle and Cedric Mullins each went deep during an 8-4 road loss.
Twenty-eight year old righty Jorge Lopez (3-13 6.14 ERA) will make his 25th start of the season for the Orioles. Last time out, Lopez was tagged for seven runs and recorded just ten outs during a 16-2 road loss against Boston.
The Tampa Bay Rays have won 38 of their first 60 home games and hold a 5.5 game lead for first place. On Wednesday, rookie SS Wander Franco collected three hits and drove in a pair of runs to spark the Tampa Bay offense. Ryan Yarbrough tossed five scoreless innings and allowed just one hit for the Rays, who improved to 74-47 on the year.
Rookie left-hander Shane McClanahan (7-4 3.73 ERA) will make his 19th career major league start for the Rays. Tampa Bay has won McClanahan’s last three starts and he has allowed seven runs (6 ER) over his last 18 plus frames.
