Urías home run sparks 5-3 win and moves Orioles above .500 (updated)

Shane McClanahan, the American League’s starter in the All-Star Game, threw one pitch tonight and watched the ball land on the flag court in right field. Cedric Mullins wasn’t going to let the Baltimore native get too comfortable in his hometown.

Anthony Santander belted his team-leading 17^th home run in the fourth inning, the Orioles’ first hit since Mullins’ blast. McClanahan retired the next 10 batters, with the two solo shots the only hits he allowed through seven innings.

He was cruising.

And then he was gone, with manager Kevin Cash deciding 81 pitches were enough.

Also gone was the Rays’ slim lead.

Adley Rutschman greeted reliever Colin Poche with a single and Ramón Urías turned on a two-strike fastball and cleared the left field wall in the Orioles' dramatic 5-3 victory over the Rays at Camden Yards.

Trey Mancini remained hitless in his last 25 at-bats after flying out to deep right-center field in the eighth, but his sacrifice fly off former Orioles reliever Shawn Armstrong provided a big tack-on run.

Jorge Mateo doubled off Poche and stole third base, Mullins walked and stole second, and Mancini made hard contact. He settled for it.

The Orioles bullpen followed six scoreless innings last night with 3 2/3 tonight, and they rose to fourth place in the American League East. The Guardians defeated the Red Sox.

"It's one game at a time," said manager Brandon Hyde. "A lot of season left. We're just really focused on trying to win the series tomorrow."

Urías’ 11^th home run moved the Orioles above .500 again at 49-48.

"Ramón getting huge hits for us," Hyde said. "Continues to do it."

"I'm just trusting my plan and things are going well," Urías said. "I just feel really good at the plate right now."

Urías has improved his launch angle and unlocked his power.

"It's cool," he said. "Whenever they're not catching the ball, that's great."

McClanahan seemed to be headed for a complete game. The Rays didn’t look like a team headed to defeat.

"He started an All-Star Game for a reason," Hyde said. "He's got a great arm, one of the best pitchers in the American League. He's a left-hander who throws 98 with a nasty curveball, really good changeup, and we had a tough time with him."

Asked if he could feel the game changing after McClanahan's departure, Hyde said, "I think maybe after Rutschman's single, but they have a great bullpen. And Poche is somebody who's given us problems since I've been here. ... It's not an easy task to score on Tampa."

Spenser Watkins didn’t record an out against the Rays on May 22, allowing two singles and being nailed in the right elbow by Ji-Man Choi’s line drive. He didn’t pitch for the Orioles again until a month later.

Tonight was much kinder to Watkins. He was able to stay for 5 1/3 innings, though he allowed a career-high 10 hits. Only three runs against him, however.

Joey Krehbiel stranded a Watkins runner and one of his own in the sixth. His 2 1/3 scoreless innings lowered his ERA to 2.45 in 34 appearances.

Jorge López notched his 19^th save after the Orioles twice failed to turn double plays. Keegan Akin earned the win by striking out the only batter he faced.

"If you just look at our bullpen numbers, everybody's having a good year," Hyde said. "I had a bunch of guys that I did not want to use today, and Joey Krehbiel for me going 2 1/3, giving up one hit, won us the game. In years past we might not have been able to bridge very well, but Krehbiel won us the game by getting into the eighth inning, and then Akin with a big out."

Watkins threw 13 strikes among 16 pitches in the first inning, getting two groundball outs, allowing a ground ball single and striking out Choi. The Rays tied the game in the third on three singles, the last a bouncer from Randy Arozarena that eluded Rougned Odor’s glove.

Brandon Lowe went first to third on the play, Arozarena tried for second and was thrown out 9-5-6.

Isaac Paredes launched a cutter over the left field wall in the fourth for a 2-1 lead. Luke Raley reached on an infield single, moved up when Urías caught Christian Bethancourt’s line drive on his knees and bounced a throw past first baseman Mancini, and scored on Roman Quinn’s double.

Watkins hadn’t allowed more than one earned run in four starts since his return.

"It's a common theme with a lot of these interviews is, I just want to give my team a chance to win," he said. "Understanding I may not have my best stuff tonight, so whatever I could to go deep in the game, give the bullpen a chance to eat up just a few innings and not have to eat up a whole lot, and give the team a chance to win. And the boys took what I was able to give and came out on top."

Mullins has 13 career leadoff home runs, the last before tonight coming on June 7 against the Cubs. He hadn’t hit a home run since July 4.

Santander’s home run would have been the Orioles’ third of the night except for Raley’s leaping catch in right that robbed Ryan Mountcastle in the first.

The Orioles were the first team to score more than one earned run against McClanahan since the White Sox on June 3. Before that was Seattle on May 5.

"He's been the frontrunner for the Cy Young all year, so we knew he was going to come out and attack us," Watkins said. "But how much more impressive for Ced to come out and start the game off hot? He's a great pitcher, but our guys battled really well and had a good plan going into those later innings."

The Orioles have won 25 of their last 38 games. They've won 14 of 18 at home. And they aren't in last place anymore.

"I don't think there was a single time tonight that I thought we didn't have a chance to win the game, and I think everybody throughout the clubhouse thinks that, as well," Watkins said. "As long as there's an out up on the board, we have a chance. A ton of confidence in these guys. It's almost like you put that out into the world that, hey, we're going to win, and these guys just do it. It's pretty impressive. It's fun to watch."

Notes: The Orioles announced more draft signings that brought their total to 15 out of 22: catcher Silas Ardoin (fourth round), right-hander Trace Bright (fifth), outfielder Douglas Hodo III (sixth), right-hander Preston Johnson (seventh), right-hander Cameron Weston (eighth), infielder Adam Crampton (ninth), right-hander Wyatt Cheney (10th), right-hander Bradley Brehmer (12th), left-hander Jared Beck (13th), catcher Adam Retzbach (14th), right-hander Graham Firoved (16th) and right-hander Reese Sharp (20th).

First-overall pick Jackson Holliday will be at Camden Yards on Wednesday as the 16^th signing.

MLB.com’s Jim Callis first reported that Ardoin signed for the exact slot value of $571,400.

Triple-A Norfolk left-hander DL Hall lasted only two-thirds of an inning tonight in his start in Memphis, removed after 35 pitches and charged with six runs and six hits. He surrendered two home runs.

Two runs scored after Hall left the game.

Jordan Westburg was hit on the left foot, exited the game and will undergo further evaluation.