Nick Martinez gave the Rays exactly what they needed Sunday: a shutdown start, a short escape from a rough run, and a win that kept the AL East cushion intact.
Martinez worked six innings of one-hit ball, and Tampa Bay used a three-run sixth to beat the Orioles 3-1 in the series finale. The Rays avoided a three-game sweep and kept a three-game lead in the American League East before heading to Detroit.
The outing was a sharp response from a club that had dropped seven of its previous nine games and three straight series. It also came against an Orioles team that had taken eight of the last nine meetings between the clubs entering Sunday.
Former Ray Shane Baz gave Baltimore a strong start of his own. He carried a one-hit line into the sixth inning, with both hits he allowed going as singles that were wiped away on the basepaths, and he issued two walks.
Martinez, though, was even cleaner. The right-hander retired 18 of the 19 batters he faced, allowing only a one-out double to Colton Cowser in the third inning while striking out four.
It was Tampa Bay’s first quality start since Ian Seymour allowed three runs in six innings on Aug. 15.
Martinez has been the steady veteran voice in the Rays’ clubhouse all season, and he kept leaning into perspective during the recent slide. He shared part of that message with the team on Saturday afternoon.
“At this time of year, and looking at our schedule, we're facing a lot of guys whose backs are up against the wall, right?” he said. “They have to win every game for them to make it to the playoffs, so we’ve just got to match the energy, bring the energy and keep playing to win ballgames.
“Keep doing what the game's asking us to do and playing our style, and things will turn around. Obviously you want to be winning every game you can, but the most important games are still in front of us.”
Tampa Bay finally found the opening it needed in the sixth, and it came with two outs. Yandy Díaz punched a two-strike single to right field, then moved to third when Jonathan Aranda followed with another hit.
With Junior Caminero at the plate, Baz bounced a two-strike curveball into the other batter’s box, and the ball caromed off catcher Samuel Basallo’s mask and rolled away. Díaz raced home for the first run.
Aranda moved up to second on the wild pitch and later scored when Caminero lined a single into center. After Liam Hicks drew a walk, the fourth straight batter to reach against Baz, Chandler Simpson capped the inning with another two-out, two-strike single to center off left-hander Grant Wolfram.
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