The Baltimore Orioles will try to wrap up a challenging road trip with a three-game sweep.

That’s the scenario going into Thursday night’s game against the Miami Marlins, who have had their own troubles.

“We’re just focusing on ourselves,” Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said. “That’s all we’re focusing on.”

Baltimore has won consecutive contests following a five-game losing streak; four of the defeats came on the road. Miami has dropped four games in a row and five of its last six.

The Orioles are looking to wipe away some of their early struggles, and they realize the big picture still can be bright.

“It’s May 6, and there (are) 100-plus games left.” Albernaz said on Wednesday. “It’s a small blip in the season. We’re just trying to be the best version of ourselves each and every night and we’ll see what happens.”

Marlins manager Clayton McCullough’s team is 11-11 at home. Thursday’s game will be the seventh contest in a 10-game homestand.

The Orioles used big hits from Pete Alonso and Adley Rutschman in Wednesday night’s 7-4 victory. No Marlins player had more than one hit.

Alonso slugged his seventh home run of the season and pushed his RBI total to 20, so even though he started slowly this season, his numbers are perking up. Alonso is second on the team in both home runs and RBIs.

“We all know he can hit,” Albernaz said. “We all know the power is real. The at-bat quality has been outstanding.”

The Marlins might be in a mode of trying to manufacture runs, and McCullough said he won’t be shy with digging into the roster to do so. That should lead to more opportunities for Esteury Ruiz, even as a pinch runner.

“We’ll continue to try to find as many ways we can use Ruiz to impact games even when he’s not starting,” McCullough said.

Otto Lopez is batting .336 to lead the Marlins. The infielder was used as a pinch hitter, and he came through with a run-scoring double in the seventh inning Wednesday. He owns a nine-game hitting streak.

On the mound on Thursday, the Orioles will start left-hander Cade Povich (1-1, 4.41 ERA), who returned from the minor leagues Friday and was tagged for five runs in four innings of a 7-2 loss to the New York Yankees. This will be the first time Povich faces the Marlins.

Miami is set to send out right-hander Max Meyer (2-0, 2.68), who didn’t allow an earned run in either of his last two starts that covered 12 total innings. He blanked the Philadelphia Phillies for seven innings Saturday while allowing only one hit and compiling seven strikeouts in a 4-0 victory.

Meyer has yet to face the Orioles in his four seasons in the major leagues.

The Marlins used pitcher Dax Fulton for four innings in relief in his big-league debut Wednesday. He gave up two runs and three hits, walking two and striking out three.

“I’m extremely excited to be here and incredibly blessed and hopefully we can get some wins,” Fulton said.

Orioles catcher/designated hitter Samuel Basallo has at least one hit in six of his last seven road games.

–Field Level Media

When the Philadelphia Phillies were 9-19, it seemed as if nothing was going their way.

The rejuvenated Phillies are happy to have some luck on their side as they head into Thursday night’s home game against the Athletics.

Since Don Mattingly replaced Rob Thomson as Philadelphia’s manager, the team is 8-1. The Phillies swept the San Francisco Giants last week and took three of four from the Miami Marlins before capturing their first two games against the Athletics this week.

The Phillies trailed Wednesday’s game 3-2 in the eighth before an error by A’s second baseman Jeff McNeil opened the door for a four-run inning. Edmundo Sosa had the go-ahead, two-run single in the frame, and Philadelphia went on to win 6-3.

“If you’re looking at some of the things that were happening early, it felt like every time we made a mistake, (the other team) capitalized,” Mattingly said. “Now we’re getting a break here and there, and we’re capitalizing. So when you’re catching some breaks and getting some big hits, you just want to ride this as long as you can.”

Brandon Marsh had three hits, including a triple, to lead the Phillies’ offensive attack. He enters Thursday’s contest with a hit in 12 of his last 13 games, including back-to-back three-hit efforts to open this series vs. the A’s.

“We talk about him every night, almost, right now, so we want to keep riding that,” Mattingly said of Marsh. “He’s swinging the bat good. He’s a big part of what we’re doing right now.”

The A’s, meanwhile, have lost four of their last five games and have given up an average of 9.3 runs in those four defeats. Jeffrey Springs put them in position to win Wednesday’s contest, as the left-hander allowed two runs in 5 1/3 innings before the bullpen ran into trouble.

“Physically, I felt like the stuff was still pretty good,” said Springs, who threw 75 pitches after leaving his previous start with hip soreness. “Obviously I understand (manager Mark Kotsay’s) decision. That’s his call.”

Jack Perkins and Hogan Harris combined to allow four runs in the eighth inning, although McNeil’s error played a major role in the bullpen meltdown.

“Bullpen’s been doing well, but tonight we just couldn’t finish the game,” Kotsay said.

On Thursday, the Phillies will start rookie right-hander Andrew Painter (1-3, 5.28 ERA), who has yet to work six innings in any of his first six major league appearances. He allowed three runs in five innings Saturday in a 4-0 loss to the Marlins, although he gave up seven hits and three walks in an up-and-down performance.

“They’ve been close,” Painter said, referring to outings in which he’s been one pitch away from getting out of a key jam. “Today, I just shot myself in the foot.”

In his first career start against the A’s, Painter will oppose right-hander J.T. Ginn (0-1, 4.30 ERA), who will start against the Phillies for the first time.

Ginn allowed a season-worst five runs in 4 1/3 innings Friday against the Cleveland Guardians. He gave up five hits and a season-high five walks in an 8-5 setback.

“He tried to work out of trouble all night,” Kotsay said. “It just wasn’t his night tonight.”

A’s first baseman Nick Kurtz enters Thursday’s matchup with a 30-game on-base streak. He went 2-for-4 on Wednesday.

–Field Level Media

It has been a good week for both the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays.

The American League East rivals will look to build on recent sweeps as they collide for the first time this season, opening a four-game series on Thursday night in Boston.

Amid their teams’ momentum, two starting pitchers who are quite new to their roles are set to take the mound. Boston interim manager Chad Tracy will hand the ball to rookie left-hander Jake Bennett (1-0, 1.80 ERA) for only his second career start, while Tampa Bay will have right-hander Griffin Jax (1-2, 5.14) continuing his recent transition from the bullpen.

Bennett made a solid first impression on Friday, earning a 3-1 victory after holding the Houston Astros to a solo home run and stranding six of his seven baserunners across five innings.

That game also marked Tracy’s managerial debut at Fenway Park. (The Red Sox fired Alex Cora as manager on April 25.)

“There’s comfort with that for me, for sure, because I know the kid,” Tracy said of Bennett, who also began the season at Triple-A Worcester. “I know him better than anybody here as far as watching him and what he’s capable of doing.”

Tracy’s club bounced back from a 1-4 slump to win three games in a row, completing a road sweep of the Detroit Tigers with a 4-0 victory on Wednesday. It was Boston’s fifth shutout of the season, which ties for the most in baseball.

While a pair of two-run innings and just four total hits got it done in the Detroit finale, the first two games of the series featured a one-run win and a 10-run outburst. The Red Sox are 6-4 under the new skipper.

“Just try to keep being as consistent as possible,” third baseman Caleb Durbin said. “As a lineup, we’re working really hard, and we expect a lot of ourselves. This series was great, but it’s on to Tampa Bay.”

The Rays, however, will present a tall task, having banked consecutive three-game sweeps against the San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays during a six-game homestand before arriving in Boston. Their five series sweeps are the most in MLB this season.

“It’s a really fun place to work right now,” starting pitcher Shane McClanahan said after his 5 2/3-inning start in a 3-0 win over Toronto on Wednesday. “I come into the field each day, and I’m like, ‘Man, I’ve got a lot of my friends just hanging out, and we’re gonna go to war for each other.’ I can’t say enough good things.”

Complete baseball has been the key to Tampa Bay’s recent run of 12 wins in the last 13 games. Not once during that stretch have the Rays allowed more than three runs.

With such dominant pitching and defensive play, the runs do not need to come in bunches.

On Wednesday, Jonny DeLuca’s fourth-inning RBI double was all the Rays needed vs. the Blue Jays. The center fielder has 10 RBIs and 10 runs since April 8.

Jax will look to keep the line of strong pitching moving in his third straight start since moving into the rotation, though he is 0-1 with a 7.27 ERA in 14 career appearances (one start) against the Red Sox.

After allowing 11 runs (eight earned) across 11 relief appearances to start the season, Jax has been sharp since helping the Rays’ injury-depleted staff in a starting role, pitching five innings of shutout, two-hit ball over two starts.

“They’re on a good run, no doubt,” Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said of his team. “They’re setting the bar really high for themselves, and they should all be feeling pretty good about how individually they’re contributing.”

–Field Level Media