BALTIMORE — Nick Martinez retired 18 of the 19 batters he faced across six innings of one-hit ball, and a three-run sixth inning carried the Tampa Bay Rays to a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards in a series finale that snapped a brutal stretch for the club.

The win halted a slide in which Tampa Bay had lost seven of its past nine games and three straight series. The Rays maintained a three-game lead in the American League East heading into a series at Detroit.

“Every game counts. Every game matters,” third baseman Junior Caminero said through interpreter Kevin Vera. “Winning today to kind of give us strong momentum toward the end of this road [trip] against Detroit and, again, just get us on the right track, it was super important.”

Martinez, 36, allowed only a one-out double by Colton Cowser in the third inning, struck out four and limited Baltimore to five hard-hit balls on 86 pitches, 60 of them strikes. The outing was Tampa Bay’s first quality start since Ian Seymour allowed three runs in six innings on Aug. 15.

“Overall, he was just excellent for us,” manager Kevin Cash said. “We needed a big start, obviously, for the obvious reasons, and Nick provided that.”

Martinez has been the Rays’ most reliable arm all season, compiling a 13-4 record with a 2.93 ERA that ranks fifth among qualified American League starters. He said he entered the start with conviction behind all his pitches and preached positivity to teammates throughout the recent skid.

“At this time of year, and looking at our schedule, we’re facing a lot of guys whose backs are up against the wall, right?” Martinez said. “They have to win every game for them to make it to the playoffs, so we’ve just got to match the energy, bring the energy and keep playing to win ballgames. Keep doing what the game’s asking us to do and playing our style, and things will turn around. Obviously you want to be winning every game you can, but the most important games are still in front of us.”

The Rays’ offense broke through in the sixth against former Ray Shane Baz, who had allowed only two hits through five-plus innings. DH Yandy Díaz slapped a two-strike single to right field and hustled to third on a hit by Jonathan Aranda. A wild pitch by Baz that caromed off catcher Samuel Basallo’s mask scored Díaz for the game’s first run. Caminero followed with a two-strike single to center, and Chandler Simpson added another two-strike single off reliever Grant Wolfram to cap the three-run frame.

“Every time Martinez pitches for us, he brings a ton of energy, and we all rally behind him,” Díaz said through Vera. “He’s done a great job all year, so it’s not surprising what he was able to do today. Again, he just pushed us forward to the win.”

Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Martinez paired his pitches particularly well, making it difficult for Baltimore’s surging offense to square him up. The Orioles had won eight of their past nine matchups against Tampa Bay entering the finale.

“A bunch of guys played a role in that inning,” Cash said of the sixth. “I don’t think we’re firing on all cylinders right now, but you’ll take it however you can get it.”

The Rays head to Detroit for their next series, looking to build on the momentum before the final stretch of the regular season.