Eddie Matz, ESPN Senior Writer 8y

Orioles send message to AL East with sweep of Rays

BALTIMORE -- Apparently, having all your players helps.

For the first time in two months, the Baltimore Orioles played an entire series with both Manny Machado and JJ Hardy on the field. In related news, Baltimore swept its four-game set with the division rival Tampa Bay Rays and won the finale 12-5. The sweep leaves the Birds a season-high 15 games over .500 and sends a crystal clear message that the Orioles -- who have been underestimated since day one and seem to have to keep sending repeated messages -- aren’t going away any time soon.

Not that Buck Showalter is putting too much stock in the past four days.

“We caught them when they've got a lot of people hurt,” Showalter said in trying to downplay the significance of the broom service his club delivered to the Rays. “You're hoping to take advantage of it before they get out of town because the next time we seem them, trust me, they'll be a different club. But we had to scratch and claw to get them.”

Scratch and claw? With a 31-14 combined margin of victory in the series, the only thing the Orioles were scratching was home plate -- every time they dragged their cleats across the dish. The only clawing going on was a result of the Birds' digging their talons into the shoulders of the Red Sox as they climbed to four games up in the division, their largest lead of the season.

Sure, there were a couple victories in which, technically, the Orioles came back from being down. Yes, one of those (Saturday’s 8-6 doubleheader nightcap) was of the dramatic, late-inning variety. But for the most part, the Orioles controlled the entire series and looked very much like the first-place team they’ve been for the majority of the season.

Knock the rotation all you want. Even though it continues to be shaky (O’s starters worked to an ugly 5.48 ERA in the series), it continues to not matter because A) the offense continue to score runs in bunches, B) the bullpen continues to be filthy (13 scoreless innings versus Tampa Bay) and C) the defense continues to catch the ball. Although B has been a constant all year, A and C got a boost with the returns of Machado and Hardy.

On the offensive side, Machado -- who returned from his four-game suspension in Friday’s series opener -- collected eight hits in 18 at-bats and, along with Adam Jones (9-for-16, 2 HRs, 5 RBIs), seemed to be in the middle of every O’s rally. Defensively, after the team committed 30 errors in 47 games without Hardy (broken foot), Baltimore made just one gaffe in four contests with its Gold Glove shortstop back on the job.

“Manny did a great job filling in at short,” catcher Matt Wieters said, “but I think all those guys feel most comfortable out there when JJ’s playing short.”

The guys with the gloves aren’t the only ones whose minds are eased by Machado's and Hardy's returns.

It's a comforting feeling,” said Showalter, whose club is still without setup man Darren O'Day (hamstring), long reliever Vance Worley (groin) and backup catcher Caleb Joseph (testicular injury). "Having guys out there that you know what to expect, it makes us a better club.”

Of course, Showalter was quick to point out that, whether it’s Machado subbing in for Hardy at short, Ryan Flaherty filling in for Machado at third or John Doe filling in for Don Joe wherever, his team is always dangerous.

“We always think we're at full strength, whoever we put out there," he said. "Now we get to take the show west.”

That is not an inconsequential detail. If there’s one knock against these O’s (besides the starting pitching), it’s that they’ve done the majority of their damage on their own turf. The Birds, who have played more home games than any team in baseball, are 31-13 at Camden Yards, compared to just 14-17 on the road. Now they travel across the country for nine games against the San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Not that they’re worried.

“This was a good homestand for us,” said Chris Davis, who hit his seventh career grand slam on Sunday. “I thought we were playing good, clean baseball, and that’s what we needed, getting ready to go on the West Coast trip. We’re going to try to keep the momentum going.”

Having all the players should only help.

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