Baltimore Orioles Daily: Birds set for rubber game after Cashner’s rough start

ST PETERSBURG, FL - MAY 26: Andrew Cashner #54 of the Baltimore Orioles throws a pitch in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 26, 2018 at Tropicana Field in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
ST PETERSBURG, FL - MAY 26: Andrew Cashner #54 of the Baltimore Orioles throws a pitch in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 26, 2018 at Tropicana Field in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /
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After struggling to score on Saturday, the Baltimore Orioles are ready for a rubber game against the Tampa Bay Rays.

With just three runs scored over two games, the Baltimore Orioles have been struggling on offense from the moment they arrived at Tropicana Field. They managed just three hits during yesterday’s contest, resulting in a 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.

Baltimore got another mediocre start from Andrew Cashner, who surrendered all five runs in the first two innings. He settled down from there, but the damage was done — the only Bird to cross the plate all afternoon was Manny Machado, who scored on a Chris Davis single in the seventh inning.

The O’s will try to finish their road trip on a high note by winning today’s rubber game. Game time is set for 1:10 p.m. Until then, here’s what you might have missed yesterday.

More from Birds Watcher

Best of Orioles news and analysis across the web from 5/26/18

Orioles blame own weak bats, not Rays’ weird experiment, after latest loss: The Rays’ “opener” strategy has been the talk of baseball, but don’t attribute the Birds’ offensive struggles to that gimmick. Buck Showalter may have said it best: “I wish I could use that as an excuse.” Eduardo A. Encina has the full story.

Orioles reliever Tanner Scott’s growth on display with bases-loaded rescue against Rays: The Birds may have lost on Saturday, but Scott still came up big, fighting his way out of Andrew Cashner’s bases-loaded jam without surrendering a single run. Encina talked to Showalter about the lefty’s development.

Schmuck: Orioles’ Manny Machado, Nationals’ Bryce Harper take different roads to free agency: While Harper has been loathe to discuss his pending free agency, Machado has participated in group interviews in a number of markets where he could land this offseason. Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun breaks down the two contrasting approaches.

Next: The top 5 strikeout pitchers in Orioles history

Will the Orioles win today’s rubber game? Let us know on social media, and keep it here at Birds Watcher for more updates on the Baltimore Orioles.