The surprising Baltimore Orioles have taken over first place in the American League East. It's the first time the Orioles have lorded over their division after the All-Star break in seven years. Not only that, but Baltimore became just the eighth team in AL/NL history to avoid the broom in 70 straight series.

As of Wednesday, the Orioles' 58-37 win-loss record has them 21 games above .500. Their .611 winning percentage is 0.05 percentage point better than their closest pursuer, the Tampa Bay Rays.

Baltimore's recent resurgence has helped the team overtake Tampa Bay in the AL East. The former has won eight of its past 10 games. In sharp contrast, the Rays have won just three of their past 10 outings.

If the Orioles eventually win their division, their 8-5 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday was the turning point of their season.

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Baltimore's offense heated up in a timely manner against Dodgers lefty Julio Urias. The beleaguered pitcher surrendered those eight runs over five innings on Wednesday.

Infielders Ramon Urias and Gunnar Henderson led the charge for the Orioles against the Dodgers. The former had two doubles and three RBIs while the latter belted his 15th home run of the season. Henderson's dinger in the bottom of the fifth inning capped off Baltimore's scoring binge.

Henderson's stellar rookie campaign has helped Baltimore become postseason contenders. Gunnar became just the third rookie in franchise history to record four hits and five RBIs in a game two weeks ago.

The stage is now set for the Orioles' pivotal four-game set against the Rays. The crucial series kicks off at Tampa Bay's Tropicana Field on Thursday with AL East supremacy on the line. It will be an interesting battle, for sure.