O's game blog: The homestand begins against Tampa Bay

After completing a 3-4 road trip to Detroit and New York, the Orioles are back home tonight at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. They begin a three-game series against Tampa Bay, which is part of a six-game homestand.

The Orioles (38-69) went 2-2 at Detroit and 1-2 at Yankee Stadium. The Orioles are 17-31 at home and went 4-1 on their last homestand against Washington and Miami.

The Orioles are 14-21 in series-opening games and are 6-10 in series-opening games at home.

The Orioles beat the Yankees 7-1 Monday night before losing the last two games by 13-1 and 10-3 scores. The Orioles scored 11 runs on 24 hits in that series in the Bronx with five doubles and five homers, and they went 2-for-21 with runners in scoring position. They are just 7-for-48 in RISP over their past seven games.

On the mound tonight is lefty John Means (5-3, 2.84 ERA). Means allowed nine runs in 11 2/3 innings in his first two starts off the injured list, but then threw a very strong game Saturday night at Detroit. In a 5-2 win, he allowed four hits and one run over six innings with one walk and six strikeouts on 99 pitches.

"For me, John Means looked like he did in April. This was early-season form," manager Brandon Hyde said after that outing.

Said Means: "Yeah, that was definitely nice to see. Definitely still have some things to work on, but as far as the results go, I liked it. I liked the changeup tonight. Pretty satisfying. That was my favorite part, getting close to 100 (pitches) again. Being able to get to that point."

That ended a stretch of seven starts Means made without getting a win - a run interrupted by his stay on the injured list - dating back to his no-hitter May 5 at Seattle. The Orioles are 7-8 in Means' starts this year, going 2-0 in the last two.

Lefty batters hit .212 with a .590 OPS versus Means, while right-handers hit .188/.609.

Means has a homer rate of 2.88 per every nine innings in home games and just 1.27 on the road. That is one reason why he is 1-1 with a 5.04 ERA in five home starts while going 4-2 with a 1.98 ERA over his 10 road starts.

In two starts this season against the Rays, he is 0-1 with a 7.15 ERA, allowing nine earned runs in 11 1/3 innings. In seven career games (six starts), he is 3-2 with a 4.38 ERA.

Left-hander Ryan Yarbrough (6-4, 4.58 ERA) will make his 17th start and fourth versus the Orioles. For the year, over 21 appearances, he has thrown 114 innings, allowing 114 hits with 21 walks to 94 strikeouts. Yarbrough, 29, has allowed 1.184 WHIP with a 1.7 walk rate and 7.4 strikeout rate.

The Rays are 65-44 and lost the first two games of their last series, winning the finale against Seattle. They have won five of seven and 10 of 15 games and are 12-7 since the All-Star game. The Rays are 18-8 since July 4 and 46-25 since May 13.

The O's Ryan Mountcastle has hit safely in seven straight games, including recording an extra-base hit in four straight, with two homers and three doubles. Mountcastle has driven in a run in six straight games, tied for the longest active streak in the majors. It is the second-longest streak of his career behind an eight-game RBI streak from May 31-June 9, 2021, and the eight-game stretch is tied for the longest in the majors this season. His 14 RBIs since the All-Star break lead the O's. Mountcastle's 19 home runs currently rank as the eighth-most in O's history by a rookie. Cal Ripken Jr.'s set the club record with 28 in 1982.