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Orioles-Rays Preview

Sep 28, 2009 - 2:53 AM By ALAN FERGUSON STATS Writer

Baltimore (60-94) at Tampa Bay (78-76), 7:08 p.m. EDT

The Tampa Bay Rays won't return to the postseason, but they still have a shot at a milestone with a few more wins.

The Rays have a good chance for one of those victories Monday night against the woeful Baltimore Orioles, losers of a season-high 10 straight.

This season won't be as memorable as last year's run to the AL East title and their first pennant, but if the Rays win four of their final seven, they'll become the eighth major league team to win 180 games over two seasons after losing 180 in the previous two years.

The 2006-07 Detroit Tigers were the most recent club to pull off that feat, and the Rays (79-76) moved a step closer by rallying from a five-run deficit Sunday for a 7-6 win at Texas.

Ben Zobrist matched a career high with four RBIs and Fernando Perez drove in the go-ahead run with a squeeze bunt in the ninth inning as Tampa Bay avoided a three-game sweep.

"I love the fact that we didn't quit, that we kept fighting and eventually won," manager Joe Maddon said. "It's a tough circumstance to play in and I love what we did. Last road game, we'd done nothing good against a team that's trying to get into the playoffs. And we come back to win."

Jeff Niemann (12-6, 3.81 ERA) also has a chance to give the Rays back-to-back rookies of the year after third baseman Evan Longoria won last season's honor. The right-hander leads AL rookies in ERA and is second to Detroit's Rick Porcello in victories.

Niemann has split his four starts against the Orioles while posting a 6.14 ERA, but earned a win in his only home matchup Aug. 19 by allowing one run over 7 1-3 innings.

He'll face a Baltimore team suffering through its second 10-game losing streak in as many years and trying to avoid its longest skid since dropping 12 in a row from Aug. 16-28, 2004.

In Sunday's 9-0 loss in Cleveland, the Orioles (60-95) gave up six runs in the first inning and managed five hits.

"It's been a rough 10 games for us," Baltimore manager Dave Trembley said. "I think when the game turns hard in one direction it has a way of snowballing and getting out of line."

Baltimore's previous win, however, was Sept. 16 against Tampa Bay that salvaged a split of a four-game home series, and the teams have split their 14 games. Tampa Bay, which won 15 of 18 meetings last season, holds a slim 3-2 edge at Tropicana Field.

The Orioles, though, are winless in former Rays pitcher Mark Hendrickson's four road starts, in which Hendrickson (5-5, 4.37) is 0-3 with a 5.03 ERA.

The left-hander is 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA in three starts this season against Tampa Bay and 3-5 with a 5.33 ERA in 10 career starts.

Baltimore, enduring its fourth straight 90-loss season, has not had a 100-loss year since finishing 54-107 in 1988, when it started a major league-worst 0-21.