Carl Crawford

For much of the past decade, the season finale at Camden Yards has been a simple affair, several thousand fans politely ushering in autumn with another lost season completed. On Wednesday, in the Orioles' 4-3, come-from-behind, no-way-that-happened win over the Boston Red Sox, the vibe at Camden Yards was different -- tense moments, jump-to-your-feet excitement, a pennant-race atmosphere for a cellar-dwelling club that began the night 29 games out of first place. The Orioles' season ended with walk-off single by Robert Andino against Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who struck out his first two batters before giving up the 3-2 lead on consecutive doubles by Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold.

All eyes on Dodgers Mandy Housenick Morning Call The Braves' acquisitions of the Upton brothers have some people believing that's enough to bring a World Series back to Atlanta. The Nationals, anchored by their young pitching staff, could be on the verge of a National League dynasty. But I can't see how all eyes won't be on the Dodgers. Los Angeles spent a boatload of money and resources at the deadline last year and this offseason with the hope of winning a World Series in 2013.

The Orioles get another shot at slowing budding superstar Evan Longoria, who leads the American League in doubles, RBIs, total bases, extra-base hits and slugging percentage, and is second to teammate Carlos Pena in home runs. Longoria is hitting .476 (10-for-21) with three doubles, four homers and nine RBIs in five games against the Orioles. Carl Crawford hasn't been thrown out in 22 steal attempts. Center fielder B.J. Upton is looking for his first home run of the season. The Orioles are 3-2 against the Rays and are one win from eclipsing their win total against them during all last year.

BOSTON - The Orioles arrived at Fenway Park on Friday focused on continuing their march toward the playoffs. The Boston Red Sox were waiting, their focus and motivation an open question after a season gone terribly awry. So, what exactly is anyone to expect of this three-game series or the one next weekend at Camden Yards with such important playoff implications for the Orioles and so little at stake for the Red Sox, other than the opportunity to make life less comfortable for the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year?

All eyes on Dodgers Mandy Housenick Morning Call The Braves' acquisitions of the Upton brothers have some people believing that's enough to bring a World Series back to Atlanta. The Nationals, anchored by their young pitching staff, could be on the verge of a National League dynasty. But I can't see how all eyes won't be on the Dodgers. Los Angeles spent a boatload of money and resources at the deadline last year and this offseason with the hope of winning a World Series in 2013.

The reigning American League champions have plummeted out of playoff contention and have dropped 11 straight games - including two losses Sunday to the Boston Red Sox in which they managed just one total run - entering the four-game series against the Orioles. It's the longest losing streak for Tampa Bay since an 11-game slide in 2007. The Rays are without slugging first baseman Carlos Pena, who is out for the rest of the season after having surgery to repair two broken fingers on his left hand.

How it happened: This one was over early. Orioles starter Brad Bergesen had gotten one out in the top of the first inning when Carl Crawford hit a routine infield pop-up. Orioles third baseman Miguel Tejada and shortstop Cesar Izturis failed to communicate, however, and the ball fell to the dirt. Crawford reached first safely, and Tejada was charged with a fielding error. Bergesen walked Evan Longoria two batters later, and then Carlos Pena slammed a home run to put the Rays ahead 3-0. That would have been more than enough for Tampa Bay, but Bergesen went on to allow five more runs, including three on B.J. Upton's first of two homers in the game, in going just three innings.

The Cardinals aren't sure how much time Brendan Ryan (above) will miss as his right wrist heals, but they aren't expected to sign Felipe Lopez or trade for a shortstop. Manager Tony La Russa loves Ryan, who won the job a year ago, and has Julio Lugo available if Ryan opens the year on the DL. … The Nationals seem likely to use Chien-Ming Wang as trade bait if he bounces back. They signed him for only one season, meaning he will be an expensive five-plus arbitration case after 2010.

A recap of the Orioles' 10-5 loss to the Rays last night: BULLPEN LOSES LEAD Jeremy Guthrie did his job, allowing only two runs through six innings and then getting the first out in the seventh before leaving with a 5-2 lead. With three consecutive left-handed hitters up for Tampa Bay, Orioles manager Dave Trembley brought on situational left-hander Jamie Walker. However, the normally reliable Walker couldn't get an out, allowing an infield single to Akinori Iwamura, a bloop single to Carl Crawford (the 1,000 hit of his career)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Cliff Lee validated his distinction as a hired gun Wednesday when he deflected the Rays' best shot. Lee escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first inning en route to a seven-inning, no-walk, 10-strikeout performance that vaulted the Rangers to a 5-1 victory in Game 1 of their AL Division Series. "I like pitching on the big stage," said Lee, who improved to 5-0 with a 1.52 ERA in six postseason starts, five with the Phillies last season. Lee led a trio of midseason acquisitions that enabled the Rangers, making their first postseason appearance since 1999, to snap a nine-game playoff losing streak.

It might be too soon to proclaim that the Orioles have returned to respectability in the American League East, but it's not too soon to take notice of the rapidly changing landscape in baseball's toughest division. The Orioles have held their own against the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox during the early weeks of the season - 9-5 after Saturday's victory at Fenway Park - and are off to a very encouraging start. The only team looking down on them in the standings is Tampa Bay, as the Rays continue to defy the conventional wisdom that you have to pay to play in this neighborhood.

Second baseman Robert Andino and his band of upstart, red-hot, second-place Orioles swear they're facing just another tough divisional rival on the road this weekend. It's not a big deal, Andino says, that Friday will be the first time his club plays a regular-season game against the Boston Red Sox since Sept. 28, 2011 - when Andino's two-out, ninth-inning single at Camden Yards gave the Orioles an unforgettable comeback. No big deal, although that one hit - combined with a nearly simultaneous 12th-inning homer by the Tampa Bay Rays' Evan Longoria against the New York Yankees in Florida - capped a historic collapse by the Red Sox, extinguishing their playoff chances on the last day of the season while igniting a tumultuous offseason in Boston that resulted in the termination of their respected manager and the departure of their ballyhooed general manager.

For much of the past decade, the season finale at Camden Yards has been a simple affair, several thousand fans politely ushering in autumn with another lost season completed. On Wednesday, in the Orioles' 4-3, come-from-behind, no-way-that-happened win over the Boston Red Sox, the vibe at Camden Yards was different -- tense moments, jump-to-your-feet excitement, a pennant-race atmosphere for a cellar-dwelling club that began the night 29 games out of first place. The Orioles' season ended with walk-off single by Robert Andino against Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who struck out his first two batters before giving up the 3-2 lead on consecutive doubles by Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold.

If the suddenly stumbling and bumbling Boston Red Sox fail to make the playoffs, some credit must go to the perennial basement dwellers of the American League East. For the seventh time in nine games, the last-place Orioles inexplicably have beaten a playoff contender. On Wednesday night, before an increasingly nervous, sellout crowd of 38,004 at Fenway Park, Mark Reynolds hit two homers and the Orioles beat the AL wild-card-leading Red Sox, 6-4. "Our guys have had a good look on their face for about two weeks now," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said.

If the last few days are any indication, it sure will be fun to see what comes out of Buck Showalter's mouth this season. Who knew the Orioles manager was a world-class trash-talker? Who knew we had a Rex Ryan-clone — well, minus the donut-pounding physique and foot fetish — in our midst? Maybe you heard Showalter made national headlines the other day for taking a shot at Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees and Theo Epstein of the Boston Red Sox. In the April issue of Men's Journal, he ripped the Yankees' veteran shortstop for delivering an Oscar-winning performance on inside pitches.

Some good decisions just keep paying off. The Rangers made one of the boldest moves in their history immediately after the 2005 season, making 28-year-old Jon Daniels their general manager. The Rays fired Chuck LaMar a month later to turn that dismal franchise over to Andrew Friedman, who is only about nine months older than Daniels. It's fair to say those two executives, among the most under the gun this offseason, have done extraordinary work. The Rays had been a horrific 317-491 in the last five years of the LaMar administration and have gone 404-406 since.

This is a frustrating time for Rafael Soriano and the glut of free-agent relievers. The market froze after the Tigers gave Joaquin Benoit $16.5 million over three years, with agents seeking bigger contracts for those with better credentials. Teams aren't budging as the large supply includes Kevin Gregg, Kerry Wood, Jesse Crain, Arthur Rhodes, Brian Fuentes, Frank Francisco, Matt Guerrier, Bobby Jenks, Hideki Okajima and another 10 guys you would like to have but are relatively interchangeable.

This is a frustrating time for Rafael Soriano and the glut of free-agent relievers. The market froze after the Tigers gave Joaquin Benoit $16.5 million over three years, with agents seeking bigger contracts for those with better credentials. Teams aren't budging as the large supply includes Kevin Gregg, Kerry Wood, Jesse Crain, Arthur Rhodes, Brian Fuentes, Frank Francisco, Matt Guerrier, Bobby Jenks, Hideki Okajima and another 10 guys you would like to have but are relatively interchangeable.

In the Andy MacPhail era, which is marking its fourth offseason this winter, the Orioles have never been a major player in free agency, preferring to give shorter, more conservative contracts to role players and former stars looking for resurgence. The largest free-agent deal the Orioles have doled out since MacPhail took over as president of baseball operations in June 2007 was the two-year, $12 million contract signed by reliever Michael Gonzalez last winter. This offseason, that philosophy could change, albeit slightly, because MacPhail and the Orioles are searching for a legitimate power bat — and that could be pricey.