TAMPA, Fla. — The Orioles have played more than 11,000 baseball games since moving to Baltimore in 1954. What they did Wednesday night has only been done two other times.

The Orioles exploded for eight runs in the second inning against the Rays to take an 8-0 lead. What followed was just the latest disaster in what’s been a calamitous season.

Baltimore’s pitching staff imploded, allowing 18 hits and 12 unanswered runs in a 12-8 defeat. It marked just the third time in team history that the Orioles have squandered an eight-run lead (1956, 2017), while the eight-run comeback is tied for the biggest in Rays history.

The Orioles lost 24-2 on Easter. They were swept in doubleheaders in Detroit and against the Twins. They lost 19-5 in Boston. And, somehow, they’ve found a way to turn what once looked like a blowout win into another ignominious loss. Baltimore is 31-42, and the playoffs seem unreachable.

After Tuesday’s 5-1 win, it appeared as if the Orioles would cruise to victory without breaking a sweat. But the muggy temperature in Tampa and the scrappy Rays quickly made the Orioles perspirate profusely.

Little this season has come easy for the Orioles, who’ve been perhaps the most disappointing team in baseball as a result of injuries, bad luck and poor play. Wednesday, it was poor play — ineffective pitching and silent bats in the final seven innings.

Before the wheels fell off, Baltimore’s bats put together their best inning of the season. In the second, the Orioles scored eight runs and batted around while recording only one out against right-hander Taj Bradley.

Ryan O’Hearn walked. Gary Sánchez singled. Colton Cowser homered for a quick 3-0 lead. Cedric Mullins then went deep. Jackson Holliday singled, Jordan Westburg reached on an error, Gunnar Henderson smacked an RBI single and Ramón Laureano made it 8-0 with the Orioles’ third long ball of the inning.

Cowser’s big fly was his fourth since returning from the injured list earlier this month. Mullins’ was his team-leading 12th of the season. Laureano’s was his ninth as he continues to quietly establish himself as one of Baltimore’s best players.

The long frame was great for the offense. It was detrimental to starter Trevor Rogers.

The left-hander sat in the dugout for about 30 minutes. When he returned, the Rays’ offense wore him down, working deep counts, taking close pitches and drawing two walks. After an excellent first inning, Rogers, the much-maligned lefty who rejoined the rotation Wednesday, needed 36 pitches to get through the second, escaping a bases-loaded jam to do so.

Even worse than the long second inning was the Orioles offense’s short third — three-up, three-down on 10 pitches. Rogers only had about five minutes to catch his breath before going back out for the third, and it was clear that he was running out of gas. The 27-year-old walked only two batters in his previous 22 2/3 innings (between his revelatory start in Boston in late May and three outings in Triple-A Norfolk) but he lost his command Wednesday and allowed three walks.

Rogers gave up three runs in the third to put a quarter in the Rays’ merry-go-round. The Orioles’ bullpen, which was MLB’s best over the past three weeks, then imploded. Scott Blewett allowed one run in 1 2/3 innings. Yennier Cano gave up four hits and four runs in the fifth. Andrew Kittredge did the same in the seventh.

As the Rays stormed back, it was clear that the Orioles’ offense would need to tack on more runs. They couldn’t come close. After smacking six hits in the second inning, the bats didn’t muster a single knock in the final seven frames.

On deck

The Orioles have one more game in the Florida heat before mercifully heading north to face the New York Yankees this weekend. The last starter to deal with pitching at Steinbrenner Field (until the Orioles return in July) is 41-year-old Charlie Morton (3-7, 6.05 ERA). He will pitch opposite right-hander Drew Rasmussen (6-4, 2.55 ERA).

Have a news tip? Contact Jacob Calvin Meyer at jameyer@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/JCalvinMeyer.