O's happy to have closer Ryan Helsley back, face M's in finale

With the Baltimore Orioles leading by three runs in the top of the ninth inning Wednesday at Seattle, closer Ryan Helsley began warming up.

Activated from the injured list a day earlier after being out since late April with right elbow inflammation, Helsley was eager to build on his strong start to the season. He was 7-for-7 in save opportunities with a 2.53 ERA before the injury.

When teammate Jackson Holliday homered with two outs in the ninth, Helsley no longer had a chance to get a save.

Maybe that caused Helsley to lose a bit of focus, as he allowed back-to-back homers to the first two batters he faced -- Dominic Canzone and Cole Young. But Helsley bounced back to retire the next three in order, closing with a pair of strikeouts.

The three-game series wraps up Thursday afternoon in Seattle.

"I'm pain-free, and (the rehabilitation assignment) was about making sure I could bounce back and feel kind of like my normal self," said Helsley, who signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the Orioles in the offseason.

"It'll probably take a couple of outings to feel like that here in the big leagues. You can't replicate that, but overall I feel really good and I'm just excited to be back up on the team."

Baltimore manager Craig Albernaz stressed the importance of Helsley rejoining the bullpen.

"Getting Helsley back right now, it trickles everyone down," Albernaz said. "Even though the bullpen did an outstanding job navigating these two months, it feels good having Helsley back. His rehab outings were very bullish on what he can bring to the back end of the 'pen, and also now it kind of sets the rest of the guys up into certain pockets of hitters, and also innings as well, so it'll be a nice little trick in that effect for us."

Gunnar Henderson also went deep and Kyle Bradish allowed one run on five hits over 7 2/3 innings, with a career-high 12 strikeouts, as the Orioles snapped a three-game skid.

The ailing Mariners, without first baseman Josh Naylor (wrist) and outfielder Luke Raley (back) for the second straight game, got another scare when center fielder Julio Rodriguez left after six innings with what manager Dan Wilson called a "little bit of a spasm in his hamstring."

Rodriguez apparently tweaked the hamstring when making a leaping catch of a ball hit by Adley Rutschman to start the sixth.

"We thought it best to get him out with what we've got going on right now in terms of injuries," Wilson said. "We thought it was smart to get him out of there and give it a little bit of a rest."

The Mariners activated catcher Cal Raleigh (oblique) and third baseman J.P. Crawford (hand) from the injured list Tuesday, while losing left fielder Randy Arozarena (hamstring).

"Injuries are just part of the season," Wilson said. "It happens to every team. It seems to have happened kind of simultaneously here with us, with a lot of different guys, but that's just the way the game goes."

The series finale will feature a pair of right-handers in the Orioles' Shane Baz (4-6, 4.06 ERA) and the Mariners' Bryan Woo (5-5, 4.28).

Baz hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his past five starts, going 3-1. He beat visiting San Diego 7-3 on Friday as he gave up three runs (two earned) on six hits over five innings. Baz is 1-0 in one career start against Seattle, pitching six scoreless innings last September.

Woo has dropped two straight decisions and three of four. He suffered a 7-5 loss last Thursday in Baltimore as he gave up seven runs on seven hits over five innings. He's 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in two career starts against the Orioles, including a seven-run outing on June 11.

--Field Level Media