Orioles' Gunnar Henderson shows Rays his value in lineup

Baltimore Orioles spark plug Gunnar Henderson demonstrated in the series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays that wherever he bats in the lineup, he is going to hit.

After a 4-for-4 night Friday that started oddly when the batting order was announced, Henderson likely will move up from the No. 5 spot for the Orioles on Saturday evening when they continue their four-game series with the Rays in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Baltimore manager Craig Albernaz took an unusual approach on Friday: slotting slugger Pete Alonso into the leadoff spot, from which he was 2-for-5.

He had a swinging strikeout in the first inning against former New York Mets teammate Steven Matz. The game marked the first time Alonso has been at the top of the order in his 1,130th career game.

The first-year Orioles player was in a joking mood pregame, especially when he compared himself to Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber, who has 162 home runs in 545 starts from the leadoff spot.

"I guess I can be the right-handed Schwarber," Alonso said. "This could be fun."

It was more fun for Henderson, who had batted first, second or third in every game on every lineup card this season but did not view slipping to fifth on Friday as a demotion.

Henderson responded to his new spot with a crucial two-run homer in the eighth inning, giving Baltimore a 6-2 lead. The extra runs gave the Orioles enough to withstand a ninth-inning Rays rally and walk away with a 6-5 win.

"It was definitely weird not having to be ready within the first three batters," said Henderson, who has 20 home runs and 51 RBIs this season.

Tampa Bay's nine-game winning streak ended with the loss.

On Saturday, Kyle Bradish (7-11, 3.69 ERA) will look to break a two-game losing streak in his 24th start. The right-hander is 2-4 with a 5.10 ERA in nine career starts against the Rays.

Two of those came earlier this season when Bradish faced the Rays in back-to-back starts. On May 19, he took a 4-2 loss on the road. And in Baltimore on May 25, with Bradish on the mound, the Rays won 9-7 in 13 innings, but he was long gone from the game.

He pitched a combined 11 1/3 innings, allowing three earned runs on nine hits.

In a season of incredible individual and team efforts as the American League's top club, the Rays might be witnessing their best story on the pitching side simply emerge from nowhere with the strong production from Ian Seymour.

The left-hander, who made his first start on May 15 against the Miami Marlins in an opener role, will make his 10th start since then on Saturday when his club tries to square the series against its American League East rival.

Baltimore holds a 4-3 edge in the season series.

Somewhat remarkably, Seymour has a 9-3 record with a 4.08 ERA, overtaking Shane McClanahan for third-most victories on the staff in 11 fewer starts, though Seymour has made 29 relief appearances.

The 27-year-old Seymour is 4-2 with a 4.43 ERA as a starter and 5-1 with a 3.81 ERA as a reliever. However, two of the five wins out of the bullpen occurred when Seymour entered in the second inning working behind an opener and went deep into the later frames.

He was credited with a 4-1 win in his most recent start Sunday in Seattle. He threw six innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts and gave rest to the relief corps.

"He was awesome for us," manager Kevin Cash said after Seymour beat the Mariners. "I think he knew given how the bullpen (had) been used that he really needed to step up. ... Just a tremendous effort by him."

Seymour has no record, a 2.61 ERA and one save in five relief appearances against the Orioles. Three of those have come this season, and he combined to give up two unearned runs on two hits and two intentional walks in 4 1/3 innings.

--Field Level Media