It was deep in the falling action when Friday turned into Saturday at SunTrust Park and Manny Machado homered in the 15th inning to send the Orioles to an eventual 10-7 win over the Atlanta Braves.
And the wild ninth inning that preceded it made even that advantage an uncomfortable one. Two hours earlier, the Orioles (22-52) bust out to turn a two-run deficit in the ninth into a four-run lead, only for it to turn into a tie game with the Braves' potential winning run thrown out at the plate.
A dramatic climax awaited.