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Rays look to hand Orioles first series loss

BALTIMORE -- The Tampa Bay Rays can become the first team to win a series against the Baltimore Orioles this year when the teams meet in the finale of a three-game set Wednesday at Camden Yards.

The Rays rebounded from a loss in the series opener with a 2-0 victory on Tuesday. Tampa Bay (11-11) won for only the second time in nine road games and improved to 3-9 in Baltimore since the beginning of the 2016 season.

"This team is playing really well right now," Rays manager Kevin Cash said about the Orioles. "For us to be able to play well with them, that's our goal to win series."

To get the series win over the Orioles, the Rays will have to go through right-hander Dylan Bundy (3-1, 1.37 ERA).

Bundy has been the Orioles' most dominant pitcher over the past month. In his last outing, Friday against the Boston Red Sox, Bundy pitched seven shutout innings, allowing six hits with three strikeouts and just one walk.

The second-year starter was the Orioles' top prospect and is showing he can be the ace of the staff.

"I don't know if it means a whole lot to me, but just more to the team," Bundy said about his solid start to the season. "Like I've said before, I always want to go six innings and just try to give my team a chance to win. I was able to do my job (against Boston)."

Bundy, however, struggled in his short history vs. the Rays. In three appearances (two starts), he is 0-1 with an 8.10 ERA.

The Rays will counter with Alex Cobb (1-2, 4.88 ERA). The right-hander has lost two of his past three starts and given up at least one home run in all four of his appearances this season.

Cobb took the loss Friday against the Houston Astros when he allowed four runs on nine hits with seven strikeouts and one walk over six innings. He acknowledged there will be little margin for error against Baltimore's powerful lineup.

"Those are established hitters one through nine," said Cobb, who is 4-1 with a 1.84 ERA in eight career appearances against the Orioles. "They are about as deep as it gets. They even have guys on the bench who can come off and do some damage. The key is going to come down to not walking people, making them put the ball in play and using our defense."

The Rays have battled injuries throughout the season, especially in the bullpen. Cash hopes his starters can go deeper into the game to take some pressure off the relievers.

Nonetheless, the Rays' bullpen is rising to the challenge. In the win Tuesday, Tampa Bay's relievers retired 17 consecutive batters before Orioles first baseman Chris Davis earned a two-out walk in the ninth.

"There's no doubt we have to start getting some length from our starting pitchers," Cash said. "At the end of the day, our starters take a lot of responsibility for going deeper and they will."

The Orioles are 6-0-1 in series so far this year. However, the Rays have proven to be a big challenge, and they have the potential to end that impressive run.

"You've got to tip your hat to them," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said.

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