Randy, Rays' comeback have October feel

The way things have been going for the Rays lately, you can’t count them out of any game. Not after they fall behind early. Not if they’re facing a pitcher who’s been one of the best in the American League this season. And certainly not when they have Randy Arozarena playing like it’s already October.

Down five runs entering the fifth inning Wednesday night in Baltimore, Arozarena and the resilient Rays stormed back to beat the Orioles, 9-7, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Arozarena hit two home runs and robbed another, drove in four runs and played a big part in another collective comeback effort by Tampa Bay’s suddenly sizzling lineup.

“This was a really great game, obviously -- not only for me but for my team as well. Glad that we came out and we got the victory,” Arozarena said through interpreter Manny Navarro. “And yeah, definitely reminded me of the postseason from last year.”

This all might feel a little familiar for anyone who's seen the Rays ride a hot streak over the last few seasons. They've won six straight games and 12 of their last 16 to improve to 25-19 on the year. They’ve outscored their opponents, 53-22, and overcome multiple-run deficits three times during that six-game streak. And they’ve scored at least seven runs in four straight games, including their 12th come-from-behind victory of the season on Wednesday night.

“This was a big win. We're going against a guy that's pitched as good as anybody in baseball,” manager Kevin Cash said. “Everybody again played a role, and that's ultimately why we kind of came out on top.”

The Orioles scored five runs in the first two innings against left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, who later allowed a sixth run on Trey Mancini’s second homer of the night. Just like that, the Rays were facing a steep uphill climb against lefty John Means, who was only one start removed from his May 5 no-hitter in Seattle.

But Tampa Bay pulled within two runs in the fifth, when Mike Brosseau and Arozarena clubbed back-to-back homers off the Orioles lefty. It was more of the same for Brosseau, who improved to 5-for-11 with four homers in matchups with Means, and just the beginning of a big night for Arozarena.

Pat Valaika lofted a fly ball deep to left off Yarbrough with one out in the sixth. Arozarena drifted back toward the wall and leaped at just the right time, coming down with a home run robbery and earning a tip of the cap from Yarbrough. Arozarena had some fun with the grab, too.

After falling to the warning track, Arozarena stood up and pretended to point toward the stands, as if he hadn’t made the catch. He didn’t actually think he fooled anyone, but the grin on his face when he turned around said it all.

“That's just part of my game. I like to have fun,” Arozarena said. “I like to kind of be relaxed out there a little bit, and it was a good catch. I enjoyed it.”

Fresh off the 10-day injured list, Kevin Kiermaier sparked the Rays’ game-tying rally in the seventh by legging out a double against Means and scoring on Ji-Man Choi’s pinch-hit single off reliever Adam Plutko. There was a bit of an odd backstory behind that hit, too, as Choi said he ran "pretty much half a mile" from the visitors' batting cage at Camden Yards and went straight to the plate to bat for Brosseau.

“I don't know how much I ran, but I was out of breath,” said Choi, who delivered two run-scoring hits off the bench on his 30th birthday, through interpreter Steve Nam. “I don't know what I was thinking. They told me just go up to the plate, and I just swung at the ball.”

Up came Arozarena, who smashed a first-pitch cutter a projected 427 feet out to left-center field to tie the game. It was Arozarena's third career multihomer game and his first since Sept. 23 against the Mets. And the same cast of characters led Tampa Bay’s go-ahead rally in the eighth.

Willy Adames and Kiermaier walked, then Choi smacked another RBI single to center and Kiermaier scored on a wild pitch. Then there was Arozarena again, blasting an RBI double off the left-field wall. By the time it was over, the Rays had gone from trailing by five to leading by three.

“Down five runs in the early part of the game, I mean, some teams just put their heads down and call it a night,” Choi said. “But as you see, our team just doesn't give up, and we always try to win until the final out.”

At what point of the night did Arozarena think the Rays realistically had a chance to come back and win the way they did?

“Ever since the beginning of the game,” he said. “We go in there knowing we're going to win a game.”