O's game blog: Kevin Gausman starts series opener against Tampa

Perhaps energized by a series win over Kansas City where they scored 23 runs on 37 hits and hit seven home runs, the Orioles host Tampa Bay tonight. It's the start of a three-day, four-game series that includes Saturday's single-admission doubleheader.

The O's are 10-27 after last night's 11-6 win. They fell behind 6-3 in the second and then scored the game's final eight runs. The Orioles went 6-for-7 with runners in scoring position last night after going 3-for-7 on Wednesday. They went 11-for-24 with RISP in the three-game series.

The Orioles bullpen, which was needed to throw 19 2/3 in the series, pitched 10 2/3 scoreless innings in wins the past two nights.

The Orioles now have their second two-game win streak of 2018. They won back-to-back games April 5-6 at New York before doing so the last two nights.

Right-hander Kevin Gausman (2-2, 3.30 ERA) will make his eighth start. Gausman has lowered his ERA after each start going from 13.50 to 8.00, 6.60, 5.57, 4.66, 4.15 and to 3.30.

On Saturday at Oakland, Gausman pitched nine scoreless on two hits, but the Orioles lost in extra innings. It was the ninth loss in team history in which the Orioles starting pitcher threw at least nine scoreless.

Over his past three starts he has pitched to an ERA of 1.19. Over his last five starts, he is 2-1 with a 2.08 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 34 2/3.

Tampa Bay, which beat the Orioles two straight earlier in a rain-shortened series, is 15-19. The Rays have lost three in a row, five of seven and six of nine games. This stretch follows an eight-game winning streak. The Rays have scored just three runs the last three games.

With Wednesday's loss against Atlanta, the Rays dropped to 5-12 (.294) in one-run games. Six of their last eight games have been decided by a one-run margin and they are 1-5 in those games. The Rays have played a majors-most 17 games decided by one run. So far for Tampa Bay, 50.0 percent of its games have been decided by a run, compared to 29.2 percent of games in the majors.

The Rays have hit one homer in their last four games and three in the last six. This comes on the heels of home runs in eight consecutive games from April 21-30, totaling 19 over that span, including multiple homers in six games and three or more in four games.

Kevin Cash is in his fourth season as Rays manager. At age 40, he is the majors' youngest active skipper - five months younger than San Diego's Andy Green.

Right-hander Jake Faria (3-1, 4.15 ERA) will make his eighth start. On April 25 he allowed four runs over 4 1/3 against the Orioles. But in two starts since he has given up just one run and six hits over 13 1/3 innings.