Field Level Media
Aug 27, 2021
Mike Zunino hit a three-run homer and the visiting Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Baltimore Orioles 6-3 on Friday night for their fifth consecutive win.
Shane McClanahan (9-4) won his fifth straight start for the Rays, who have 25 victories in their past 34 games to become the first American League team to 80 wins. He threw six innings of two-run ball.
The Rays beat the Orioles for the 16th time in 17 meetings this year.
Austin Hays and Cedric Mullins each had a homer and a single for Baltimore, which had won two straight after losing 19 in a row.
Tampa Bay rookie Wander Franco saw his nine-game hitting streak end, but he extended his on-base streak to 27 games with a walk. Franco scored a run for the 10th straight game.
Baltimore's Ryan Mountcastle went 0-for-5 to snap his 17-game on-base streak.
McClanahan gave up eight hits, struck out four and didn't walk a batter. Chris Mazza worked the final three innings, yielding one run, for his first career save.
Orioles starter Matt Harvey (6-14) settled in after a three-run first inning and retired the final 16 batters he faced. Harvey allowed three runs on four hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out four.
Harvey struck out Brandon Lowe and Nelson Cruz to start the game but then ran into trouble. He walked Franco, who went to third on Austin Meadows' single. Franco scored on a single by Yandy Diaz, and after Joey Wendle singled to load the bases, Manuel Margot's two-run single made it 3-0.
The Orioles pulled within 3-2 in the fourth. Trey Mancini singled off McClanahan with one out. After a flyout, Hays homered to center on a full-count slider.
Tampa Bay pulled away in the seventh against Tanner Scott. With one out, Margot was hit by a pitch. Kevin Kiermaier walked, and Zunino homered to center, his 27th of the season, to make it 6-2.
Mullins hit a solo homer with two outs in the ninth, his 23rd long ball of the season.
--Field Level Media