If Gunnar Henderson didn’t think the ball was out of here, the Camden Yards crowd did. The fans stood and roared for a would-be breakthrough with runners in scoring position, watching as the ball arced toward the right-center-field wall.
Jose Siri tracked that arc, too, and as he neared the wall he peaked at how much room he had. He judged his approach, slowing before bursting into a leap — straining to his full extension to rob Henderson and the Orioles of a three-run homer in the fourth inning Saturday.
Henderson tipped his helmet, then slammed it. The fans deflated as quickly as they had erupted, with hands on heads after they had been raised in the air. And Siri pounded his chest twice, having saved what became a 7-1 victory for the Tampa Bay Rays.
“The ball was hit so high; he timed it really well and took three runs off the board from us,” manager Brandon Hyde said.
And, with the Orioles’ loss, the New York Yankees take a half-game lead in the American League East with 19 games remaining.
The Orioles had nothing but opportunities in the second, third and fourth innings, but only Henderson came close to cashing in on them. Baltimore stranded seven runners in those three frames as right-hander Ryan Pepiot danced out of danger.
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In the second, the bases were loaded with one out just for Emmanuel Rivera to strike out and James McCann to fly out. There were two on with one out in the third, but the heart of the Orioles’ lineup didn’t come through — Anthony Santander popped up, and Colton Cowser looked at strike three.
“You’ve got to take advantage of opportunities there early to swing the game, get a little momentum going early,” Hyde said. “But just didn’t do it.”
Then it was Henderson’s turn in the fourth.
Amid an offensive downturn since July, the hitting with runners in scoring position has been especially scarce. The Orioles entered with a .238 average in those situations — ranking 24th in the majors — although Henderson has been on a recent surge. He has hits in five straight games, a span that includes seven runs batted in.
He thought he had a chance at another three RBIs. The full-count swing looked to have just enough distance to push the Orioles into the lead, but Siri’s heroics kept the Rays’ two-run lead intact.
“It was an unbelievable play,” Henderson said. “Obviously, wanted it to go over the fence, seeing how it was still a two-run ballgame. ... I wouldn’t say it changed the whole outcome, but it’s definitely not fun whenever a three-run homer turns into an out. Obviously, we could have had a lot more opportunities, but it definitely kind of halted the momentum.”
Tampa Bay jumped ahead off right-hander Zach Eflin immediately with a leadoff homer from Yandy Díaz. And Eflin allowed his first multihomer game since June 16 when Taylor Walls lifted a solo shot to right-center field.
On both of them, Eflin uncharacteristically left balls in the heart of the plate. A sweeper to Díaz fluttered in the strike zone rather than cutting outside. And Walls took advantage of a first-pitch fastball left middle-middle.
“I feel like both those pitches, they did what they should have with them,” Eflin said. “At the end of the day, I kind of fell behind a lot of guys and I really just feel like I couldn’t hit the corners like I normally did. I kind of kept a lot of pitches thigh-line, could have done a little better north and south. And they had a good approach against me today. They worked me. Tough day for us.”
Walls plated the third run against Eflin in the sixth with an opposite-field single. Still, if the three runs against Eflin in 5 2/3 innings became Eflin’s worst outing since arriving in Baltimore, it says more about how consistent he’s been since the trade deadline. Eflin didn’t complete six innings for the first time in six starts, and the two homers marked just his third multihomer game this year.
Still, it was the kind of effort that deserved more from his offense. Besides a solo home run from Cedric Mullins, the Orioles were held in check.
The deficit grew against the bullpen. Left-hander Gregory Soto, who hadn’t allowed a run in 9 1/3 innings, conceded one earned run after leaving with the bases loaded. Right-hander Matt Bowman nearly escaped the jam, but a two-out, hard-hit grounder ate up Ryan O’Hearn at first base. To compound the first mistake, O’Hearn attempted to flip the ball to Bowman but overshot the target, allowing a second run to score.
Two more scored off right-handers Burch Smith and Craig Kimbrel, leaving the Orioles well out of it.
How different might things have been had Henderson’s blast escaped the reach of Siri? Instead, the inconsistencies with the offense meant Eflin had no wiggle room and the bullpen let things slip further. Since the All-Star break, the Orioles are 24-23. They’re still in the thick of a division race, but the play of late has been mediocre at best.
“I think it’s just honestly maintaining positivity and showing up every day expecting to win a baseball game,” Eflin said. “It’s really all we can control. There’s no lack of energy or effort or anything. It’s more so just getting the job done. I’m not worried at all. I think we’re gonna be just fine.”
Minor league return
The Orioles reunited with utilityman Terrin Vavra days after he elected to be released from his deal with the Seattle Mariners, who had designated him for assignment. Vavra was designated Aug. 21 by Baltimore, was claimed two days later by the Mariners and is now back where he started.
Vavra provides minor league depth at every infield position and in the corner outfield. The 27-year-old is hitting .242 with a .691 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in the minors this year between Seattle and Baltimore.
Vavra first joined the organization as part of a trade that sent right-hander Mychal Givens to the Colorado Rockies.
