Niemann, long balls lift Rays past Orioles

Jeff Niemann turned in another solid start Wednesday night, and three solo homers from three different players provided all the scoring the Tampa Bay Rays needed.

But if it wasn't for the play Jason Bartlett's instincts led him to make with the bases loaded in the fifth inning, the 3-1 Rays victory against the Orioles that eventually went in the books might not have come to be.

"Everybody's talking about the three homers," Manager Joe Maddon said afterward, "but the play that he made pretty much probably saved that game."

The Orioles had mounted their first real threat against Niemann, collecting three consecutive hits to open the fifth before Cesar Izturis came to the plate with nobody out. The Rays led 1-0 at the time, and it looked as if that edge was about to disappear when Izturis sent a sinking liner to the left of the second base bag and toward center field.

Bartlett was positioned in the hole toward third but was able to range to his left and lay out as Melvin Mora ducked out of the ball's path. Fully airborne, Bartlett knocked the ball down and picked it up with his back to the plate before whirling to fire a strike to Gregg Zaun and force out Matt Wieters at home.

"It was inches," an appreciative Niemann said. "Inches from being a two-run base hit."

Bartlett said his decision to turn and throw home just came naturally, as he knew the trajectory of the ball off the bat probably meant Wieters would have to hold at third for a moment or two to make sure it wasn't caught.

"To be honest with you, I thought it was going to catch it," Bartlett said. "I didn't, and I knew Wieters probably thought I was going to catch it as well, so he wasn't too far off the bag. I got up, took my time, and made a good throw home."

To top it all off, Niemann then induced a Brian Roberts grounder to Bartlett, who started a double play - only the fourth Baltimore's leadoff man has hit into in more than 500 plate appearances this year - that allowed the Rays to escape the inning unscathed.

Niemann deserved plenty of credit for his overall showing in 7 1/3 innings, as he picked up his team-leading 11th win and continued to impress with his consitency. The Orioles' first and only run against the right-hander came on the last pitch he threw, a solo homer to right-center by Roberts with one out in the eighth.

But that shot was easily overtaken by the three long balls the Rays launched against Orioles starter Chris Tillman, a 21-year-old making his fifth big-league appearance. Pat Burrell in the fourth, Ben Zobrist in the sixth and B.J. Upton in the seventh all sent the first pitch they saw from Tillman over one fence or another.

When it came down to a turning point, though, there was little disagreement Wednesday night.

"Niemann should take Bartlett out to dinner tonight," said Orioles manager Dave Trembley, "because he made the play of the game."