O's lose 15th straight to bring road trip to end

ST. PETERSBURG -- If the Orioles are going to break this losing streak, they’ll have to do it at home.

The team on Thursday extended the second-longest losing streak in franchise history, its 15th straight loss a 7-2 series finale defeat to the Rays that also prompted concern about one of the team's regular starters. Jorge López’s velocity dipped across the board over an erratic and ineffective two-inning start opposite Shane McClanahan, the Baltimore native who pitched five innings of one-run ball to beat the O’s for the third time this season.

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“We’ve been trying to reset for a while now,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “It’s not easy right now. We’re not in many games, and that’s hard.”

The Orioles are just the third team in the Modern Era (since 1900) to record two losing streaks of at least 14 games in the same season, following the 1911 and 1935 Boston Braves. They are now six off their franchise record of 21, set to begin the 1988 season, which is also the American League record. They were outscored by 26 (34-8) over this four-game series to the Rays, and have lost 15 of 16 to Tampa Bay this season.

“One thing I was proud of the last couple years, a lot of our losses, we made them close,” Hyde said. “We may have blown the lead late or done some things to lose, but we played a lot of close games. Right now we’re not even in the game.”

Things don’t get much easier from here. The Orioles return home on Friday to welcome the National League East-leading Braves for a three-game weekend series at Camden Yards, then they host the Angels for three and play nine against the Rays, Blue Jays and Yankees. At least three of those teams are likely postseason-bound. The O’s have been outscored by 96 (138-42) during their current skid, with the losses coming against the Yankees, Tigers, Red Sox and Rays.

Tough day for Jorge

López’s season-long struggles appeared to hit a nadir on Thursday, when he allowed his first four batters to reach and hit or walked three of the 12 he faced over two innings. His command was shaky from the start. He plunked the second hitter, Wander Franco, with a fastball and was missing glove-side with that pitch with regularity. In the second, his velocity dipped into the mid-80s, as much as 10 mph down from his 95 mph fastball season average.

The dip prompted Hyde and head trainer Brian Ebel to visit the mound in the second, but López finished the inning and did not come back out for the third. His 14 losses and 6.35 ERA both lead the Majors (minimum 100 innings).

Hyde said it is too early to determine whether López will make his next start.

“He’s working through some things right now,” Hyde said. “We just saw the velocity drastically drop and wanted to make sure he was OK. He states he was OK physically. He just wasn’t himself today.”

“I worked my entire life to get here, and the last thing I’m going to do is give up,” López said. “I have to come back stronger, with the right mentality.”

Diamond in the rough

There is a bright spot in the bullpen, and it is rookie right-hander Marcos Diplán. After logging 1 1/3 innings of middle relief on Thursday, Diplán has yet to allow an earned run over his first nine career innings. He is the seventh pitcher since the team moved to Baltimore in 1954 to not allow an earned run over his first six career appearances.

On Thursday, Diplán struck out three of the seven batters he faced, two of them after inheriting a bases-loaded, one-out situation from Fernando Abad in the third. The righty punched out Nelson Cruz but walked Austin Meadows to force in a run, then allowed Ji-Man Choi’s two-run single before whiffing Randy Arozarena to end the frame. The inherited runners were charged to Abad; Diplán has struck out 10 and walked two to date.

That’s a positive sign for a bullpen that’s allowed 68 earned runs in 69 2/3 innings this month, and is weathering rough stretches from some of its most reliable arms. One other exception is Cole Sulser, whose scoreless inning on Thursday sliced his season ERA to 2.80 in 44 games. He’s struck out 56 batters and allowed only four homers in 46 innings.