By ,
Published January 08, 2015
Baltimore, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - The lively bats of the Baltimore Orioles backed an effective Wei-Yin Chen in a 7-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Camden Yards.
Matt Wieters and J.J. Hardy each had three hits with two runs scored and an RBI for Baltimore, which has won four of its last six games.
Chen (2-1) got the starting assignment in the opener of this three-game set and threw 6 1/3 innings. The left-hander didn't allow a hit until James Loney's one-out double in fifth and gave up only four more hits in his outing, including Evan Longoria's two-out RBI single in the sixth.
It wasn't a smooth performance for Tampa Bay starter Chris Archer (1-1), who was roughed up for seven runs and 12 hits over five innings.
"It is humbling. It motivates you to work harder," Archer said.
The Rays fell to 3-4 on their nine-game road trip.
Baltimore scored in each of the first three innings, building a 6-0 lead.
A two-out single to shallow center field by Wieters scored Nelson Cruz in the first inning.
The O's smacked a combined five doubles over the next two frames and three of them produced runs.
Hardy doubled to open the second and was on third base when Ryan Flaherty blooped a ball over Longoria's head for an RBI single. Cruz and Davis hit consecutive two-out doubles to increase the lead to 4-0.
Wieters led off third with an extra-base hit and scored on another by Hardy. Steve Lombardozzi followed with a single to plate Hardy.
"A lot of big two-out hits, a lot of big RBI with guys on second," Wieters said.
Flaherty added a second run-scoring single in the fifth.
Game Notes
The Rays were 13-6 against the O's last season ... Tampa Bay has scored three runs or less in seven of its last eight games ... Chen issued his first two walks of the season ... Archer recorded six strikeouts ... Baltimore was 6- for-13 with runners in scoring position ... Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis went 0-for-5 to snap an eight-game hitting streak.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/chen-solid-as-orioles-handle-rays