Game 1: Dave Rose was dealing again the Rays beat the Sunbirds 4-1 at Sunbirdsdome to open their 3-game set. Rose (12-7) was a sterling 7 6 1 1 2 7 and Mario Berumen continued his season turnaround with a two-whiff 1-2-3 9th for save #22. They scored twice in the first and got a solo homer from Jose Machado (#6) which was more than Rose needed.
Game 2: The Rays blew leads of 3-1 and 4-3 but still ended up prevailing by scoring 3 in the 10th to take a 7-4 win over Oklahoma City. Vinny Colon homered (#16) and Dantel Chinchilla knocked in a pair to put them up early but Steve Swords couldn't hold either lead and finished 5.2 7 4 3 2 4. So we went on until the 10th when Angel Gonzales delivered a 2-out, 2-run double to break the deadlock and Mario Berumen (6-7) got the job done again, going the final 1 2/3 and fanning 4 to earn the win.
Game 3: The bullpen did not do Tampa Bay any favors in the finale, turning a 3-2 lead into a 5-4 loss as the Sunbirds avoided the sweep. Randy Mastropietro turned in his usual solid-but-short start at 5 5 2 2 1 5 and left with the lead before Danny Sanchez gave up a game-tying homer in the 7th and Jake Cid surrendered a two-run shot to lose it in the 8th. A 9th-inning rally got the Rays back within one but that was all they'd get. Dave Gonzalez was 2-4 with a pair of doubles and an RBI as today's offensive standout.
Team record: 84-50. The Orioles lost 2 of 3 to fall 8 behind the Rays and reduce their magic number to 21. Next up: An off-day then we return home for 3 against the White Sox.
A pair of Rays were recognized for their play in the month of August:
