Orioles sit through long rain delay and lose; Straily hit hard; Davis making progress

BALTIMORE—After a rain delay of an hour, 49 minutes, the Los Angeles Angels and the Orioles began playing again, just after 11 p.m. Only a few hundred fans were in the stands, and it felt eerie.

The sound from the television play-by-play could be heard from the deserted concourses, and individual fans could clearly be heard.

“It felt like the Florida State League,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “It’s so weird when you can hear everything. You can hear the other side and you can hear the fans yelling in the outfield. Yeah, that’s just a weird feeling.”

Friday night’s announced crowd was 14,495 and those who stayed through the delay were invited to take any unoccupied seat in the lower seating bow. A few fans stayed in their original seats in left field, hoping for a home run ball.

Chris Davis hit a home run when play resumed, but it went to the right-center field bleachers, where a handful of fans stayed on.

The Angels beat the Orioles, 8-3, and Davis’ run was only one that occurred after play resumed in the top of the seventh. The Orioles began a stretch of 20 consecutive games in as many days with a game that wasn’t competitive.

Mike Trout, who hit his first career home run in Baltimore nearly eight years ago, hit a two-run shot in the third  and added a double in a five-run fifth.

Dan Straily, who was signed by the Orioles to give them an innings eater, continued his string of disappointing starts, lasting just 4 1/3 innings, allowing six runs and throwing 95 pitches.

Straily’s ERA has swelled to an unsightly 8.23, and he’s allowed nine home runs in 27 1/3 innings. In six starts, he’s never pitched past five innings, and in his last three has pitched four innings twice and 4 1/3 twice.

“I feel l need to change something,” Straily said. “I feel like my pitches are moving right where I want them to be. My command’s there. I’m just not getting the result.

“I feel like I should look at some pitch selections. I really do feel like my stuff is moving, and I feel like I’m commanding it the way I want to.”

Evan Phillips followed Straily and allowed two runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings.

Miguel Castro saved the Orioles with three scoreless innings after play resumed.

Trey Mancini, who nearly won Wednesday night’s game with a home run until Boston’s Jackie Bradley Jr. snared it far over the center field fence, hit his seventh.

“He was yelling that when he came into the dugout, ‘Catch that one!’” Hyde said. “It was awesome. He squared that up. That’s strong when you hit a line drive into center field like that.”

Designated hitter Renato Nunez went 0-for-4 and is now in a 1-for-27 slump.

Davis getting closer to Mendoza line: Besides his home run, Davis had an RBI single, and is batting .193, his high point since the end of the 2017 season.

“It means a lot,” Davis said. “I feel like I’ve made strides in the right direction really the last couple of weeks and just continue to work with [ hitting coaches] Don (Long) and Howie (Clark) and try to fine-tune it as much as we can every day.

“Felt good today in BP in the cage and felt like I was swinging the bat well and felt good in the game. I felt like I was calm and ready, so I was glad to see it translate.”

Davis’ single was to left, and it seems that he’s trying to go to the opposite field more often.

“Yes and no. I’m just trying to hit the ball where it’s pitched and not do too much with it,” Davis said. “I think a lot of times when you see me yank pitches that are on the outer half to the right side, that’s when I’m really struggling or when I’m really scuffling. Just really trying to see the ball and let it travel and put a good swing on it.”

Walk streak broken: The Orioles struck out 22 times without a walk in 12 innings on Wednesday, and didn’t draw a walk until Davis drew one with two outs in the ninth.

Bleier throws again: Richard Bleier pitched a scoreless inning for Double-A Bowie in his second rehab outing. He allowed a hit and a walk, and threw 14 pitches, the same number he threw on Tuesday in his first rehab outing.

In Frederick, Blaine Knight’s High-A debut will have to wait. The Keys were rained out after Knight was called up from Low-A Delmarva.