Rickard remains in lineup, seeks solution to slump (O's lose 3-1)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Orioles manager Buck Showalter said he was tempted to start Hyun Soo Kim in left field tonight but decided to keep Rule 5 pick Joey Rickard in the lineup.

Kim's chances become more limited with the Rays starting left-hander Matt Moore on Wednesday and the White Sox starting three southpaws in a four-game series at Camden Yards.

"I consider everybody getting in there," Showalter said. "I thought about it because three of the next four games' (starters) are left-handed. I considered it. I thought it was important that Joey stay out there, especially in this ballpark, as big as it is in the outfield."

Rickard is 1-for-16 after a scorching start that saw his average climb to .350 on Thursday.

"He hit some balls good last night," Showalter said. "They just caught them."

Rickard has to make sure opposing pitchers aren't catching up to him.

"I think right now pitchers are adjusting," he said. "They're watching what I can do and they're constantly making adjustments to try to stay a step ahead of me. And they've been successful."

What kind of adjustments?

"They're a lot more aggressive," Rickard said. "They're not trying to mess around with me, just knowing who's behind me. Kind of just mixing it up - in and out, in and out a lot.

"It's a battle and they're the best in the world at it, so it's a challenge."

Showalter hasn't lost confidence in Rickard, the evidence presented with tonight's lineup. Still starting and still atop the order.

"It's a long year, so whatever he thinks is going to give us the best chance to win, and right now he feels like that," Rickard said. "It's a little bit of a confidence booster."

Showalter is giving Rickard a pass of sorts by considering the competition.

"He's facing some (strong) pitching," Showalter said. "We just faced (Yordano) Ventura and (Chris) Archer, O.K? I try to keep that in mind. It's good that he does. The only thing that I tell him is that, 'You're not going to see those guys every night.'

"Frankly, I thought about running Kim out there tonight, but I think it's in our team's best interests to go this way right now. There are so many variables that come into play every day. I don't like the idea of some guy sitting for three of the next four days, but we're trying to win tonight's game."

Rickard is playing at Tropicana Field for the first time despite spending four seasons in their minor league system. The Rays left him exposed in the Rule 5 draft and the Orioles pounced.

"Just knowing they're thinking I'm going to be in the other dugout for the last couple of years, it's kind of shocking to know that I'm in the away dugout," Rickard said. "But other than that, it's just fun and it's baseball."

It's a little more complicated beneath the dome.

"With the lights in a different spot, I think that's the big one," Rickard said. "You'll lose the ball if it's up there high enough, but you know, you take some reps out there and by game time, you should be OK."

Update: The Rays loaded the bases in the third inning and broke a scoreless tie with Desmond Jennings' sacrifice fly to deep center field.

Ubaldo Jimenez escaped jams in the first two innings, when the Rays put a runner on third base. Jimenez has thrown 56 pitches in three innings.

Jake Odorizzi has thrown 71 pitches in three innings. The Orioles haven't scored in their last 20.

Rickard is 0-for-2, but he's worked Odorizzi for 14 pitches.

Update II: The Orioles tied the game in the top of the fourth on Mark Trumbo's RBI single, but they failed to score again after loading the bases with no outs.

Chris Davis led off with a double, hustling to second base after poking the ball up the third base line against the shift. He raced home on Trumbo's single into left field.

Trumbo has an 11-game hitting streak. The Orioles' scoreless innings streak ended at 20.

Odorizzi is up to 89 pitches.

Update III: Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-run homer with two outs in the sixth and Jimenez ahead 0-2 in the count. Rays 3, Orioles 1

Jimenez is at 102 pitches.

Update IV: The Orioles' offense remained in shutdown mode in a 3-1 loss to the Rays.

The Orioles have scored one run in their last 26 innings. They're 4-8 since winning their first seven games.