O's game blog: Tampa Bay in town as 11-game homestand begins

Now within one game of the American League East lead while leading the chase for the No. 1 AL wild card spot by one game, the Orioles open an 11-game homestand tonight. It's the last homestand of the regular season, as they host Tampa Bay and Boston for four games Arizona for three.

Tonight the Orioles, 80-65 overall and 29-29 in the second half, host the Rays (62-83) to start a four-game series at Camden Yards.

The Orioles have the best record of any AL East team versus Tampa Bay this year. The Rays are 4-11 against the Orioles (0-6 in Baltimore), 7-9 against New York and Boston and 11-8 against Toronto. Tampa Bay just took two of three at Rogers Centre, where they went 6-3 this season. Tampa Bay is the only AL East team with a winning record against Toronto and has won the season series in eight of the last nine years against the Blue Jays.

The Orioles are 34-28 against AL East opponents, and that includes a record of 19-11 at home against division foes. They have won four straight series overall and three straight versus division opponents.

The Orioles have won four of five games, went 6-3 on their nine-game road trip and are 10-6 the last 16 games. The Orioles rank third in the AL and sixth in the majors with 45 wins at home. At 45-25 (.643), the Orioles rank third in the AL and fourth in the majors for the best home record. They've hit 118 home runs at home this season to lead the majors.

Tonight's pitching matchup features veteran right-hander Yovani Gallardo (5-7, 5.44 ERA) facing 23-year-old rookie left-hander Blake Snell (5-6, 3.62 ERA).

Gallardo is pitching on eight days rest since he worked on Sept. 6 on the road against Tampa Bay. He went five innings, allowing five hits and two runs (one earned) on 95 pitches. He is 1-0 with a 4.11 ERA in three 2016 starts against the Rays. He is 3-1 with a 3.55 ERA in six career starts. In eight home starts this year, Gallardo is 2-2 with a 3.80 ERA.

Snell has pitched 3 2/3 innings or less in four of his last six starts. His ERA is 6.95 in that span. In seven road starts he is 1-4 with 3.98 ERA.

Snell is averaging 19.4 pitches per inning, most in the majors (min. 50 IP) and in line for the highest mark in club history. He is 3-3 with a 4.55 ERA in seven starts against AL East opponents. That breaks down to 3-1 with a 3.98 ERA at home and 0-2 with a 5.79 ERA on the road.

According to Inside Edge, Orioles hitters have come to the plate with runners in scoring position this season just 21.4% (1,162 times in 5,429 plate appearances) of the time, fewest in the majors. The league average is 24.9%. Despite the fewest opportunities, the Orioles rank fifth in the American League with a .269 batting average with runners in scoring position.

In a fluky turn of events in the Boston series, the Orioles did not have an at-bat with a runner in scoring position either Monday or Wednesday. They scored all three runs those nights on solo homers. Also, the Orioles did not hit one double or triple in the Red Sox series.