BALTIMORE — For half an hour six days ago, it appeared Dean Kremer’s season might be over.

The Orioles pitcher was struck on the forearm with a 103.1-mph line drive. The ball was hit so hard it ricocheted off Kremer’s arm and went all the way to Gunnar Henderson at shortstop. Within seconds, a large welt appeared on Kremer’s throwing arm, forcing him out of the game and raising concern about whether he suffered a fracture.

The team quickly revealed it was just a bruise — a nasty one at that. It was assumed he would either land on the injured list or at the very least miss his next start.

Somehow, Kremer didn’t need any extra time off, showing up to Camden Yards on Friday night for his regularly scheduled start with the seams from the baseball still visible on his forearm. And he continued defying the odds by flirting with a no-hitter through six innings.

Kremer’s stellar and gutsy performance — one of the best starts by an Oriole this season — propelled Baltimore to a 2-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Jackson Holliday and Gunnar Henderson both drove in a run, while Yennier Cano’s heroics in escaping a bases-loaded jam protected Kremer’s gem and Seranthony Domínguez’s tight-rope save in the ninth saved the game.

Manager Brandon Hyde said Saturday after Kremer suffered the bruise that he “would be surprised” if the right-hander would be able to make his next start. Hyde said before Friday’s game that he “jumped the gun” on that determination.

“Our medical staff and Dean did an amazing job of treating that thing this week,” Hyde said. “He’s a quick healer. And he’s unbelievably tough. But he wants the ball.”

Kremer took it and twirled the best start of his up-and-down season. He scattered three walks across the first six no-hit innings, barely allowing any hard contact and striking out seven.

The 28-year-old is the second Orioles starting pitcher to carry a no-hit bid into the seventh inning this season after Kyle Bradish, Kremer’s best friend on the team, did so May 26 against the Chicago White Sox.

Kremer generated 17 swings-and-misses for the third-most in his 91 career starts — only one off his high of 18. Ten came on his fastballs (a four-seamer and a cutter), while five others were against his splitter — a new grip this season that’s helped power Kremer’s successful outings in the second half.

Kremer (7-9) has delivered a quality start in four of his past five outings — the lone poor one when he exited after taking the liner off his arm. He’s allowed a total of five runs across 24 innings in those four starts, furthering his standing as a pitcher who is better in the second half. Last year, Kremer’s excellent second half — and clutch starts in both clinch wins — propelled the Orioles to their first American League East title in nearly a decade.

Rays starter Shane Baz carried a no-no into the fourth, but Henderson broke it up with a leadoff single. An inning later, Holliday drove home Colton Cowser, who walked to lead off the frame, with a sacrifice fly. An inning after that, Henderson blasted a solo homer to right field — the superstar shortstop’s 36th of the season — with Cal Ripken Jr. in attendance having served as “Iron Splash” in the Bird Bath Splash Zone earlier in the game. Henderson passed Ripken on Wednesday for the most homers by an Orioles shortstop in a single season, and now the 23-year-old is making a push for 40.

Top prospect Junior Caminero broke up Kremer’s no-hit bid to lead off the seventh, and two more Rays reached on a single and an error by Henderson to chase the Orioles starter. Cano then doubled as a magician to escape the jam, striking out Jonny DeLuca and Jose Caballero before getting Ben Rortvedt to pop out.

Cionel Pérez delivered a scoreless eighth, and Domínguez stranded two runners in the ninth for his eighth save as the Orioles’ new closer.

Baltimore is 82-60 to remain in sole possession atop the AL East, half a game ahead of the New York Yankees.

Around the horn

— Hyde opened his pregame news conference in a fitting way. “OK, let’s talk about injuries,” he quipped, referencing the skipper’s least favorite topic to discuss. Reliever Jacob Webb (right elbow inflammation), who struggled in his second minor league rehabilitation outing Wednesday, might have another soon before returning. First baseman Ryan Mountcastle (sprained left wrist) is hitting off a tee but still isn’t progressing the way the Orioles originally hoped. Infielder Jordan Westburg (fractured right hand) has not yet started hitting, but that was expected and his timeline hasn’t changed. Third baseman Ramón Urías (sprained right ankle) has made “huge strides,” Hyde said. Urías, who is optimistic he will return later this month, said he’s walking now without crutches and expects to begin baseball activities in the next few days.

— Outfielder Heston Kjerstad will begin his minor league rehab assignment Saturday with High-A Aberdeen. Kjerstad was placed on the injured list in mid-July after he was hit by a pitch in the head. He returned a week later, struggled at the plate and was optioned back to Triple-A. The 25-year-old then reported to the team that his concussion symptoms had returned, and he was placed on Baltimore’s 10-day IL.

— Left-hander Trevor Rogers delivered his second straight quality start for Triple-A Norfolk after he surrendered 10 runs in his first outing back in the minors. The trade acquisition scattered six hits across 6 2/3 innings of three-run ball with nine strikeouts Friday night.

©2024 The Baltimore Sun. Visit at baltimoresun.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.