Davis sets hitless at-bats record in Orioles' 12-4 win (with quotes)

Each trip to the plate tonight was met with applause, many fans standing, not a single audible objector in the crowd. It wasn't at a level that would make a player step out of the box and raise his helmet, but the support represented a new shift in Chris Davis' baseball life.

Nothing else had been working. Perhaps it was possible to cheer away a slump.

Davis lined to right field in the second inning and left field in the third, tying him with Eugenio Vélez for the major league record for most consecutive at-bats without a hit by a non-pitcher with 46. His luck hadn't changed.

The record would be his alone in the fifth after lining to left field against Yusmeiro Petit, who replaced starter Marco Estrada. Robbie Grossman raced to the edge of the track and made the catch on a ball clocked by Statcast with an exit velocity of 103.5 mph.

The night ended with Davis striking out twice to make him hitless in 49 straight at-bats and 56 plate appearances to close in on Tony Bernazard's record of 57, but the Orioles tried to turn it into a footnote by snapping a four-game losing streak with a 12-4 victory over the Athletics before an announced crowd of 6,585.

Trey Mancini and Jonathan Villar homered and Cedric Mullins tripled twice, the first Orioles player to accomplish the feat since Alejandro De Aza on Sept. 12, 2014 - and the only player in club history to have his first career triples come in the same game.

Mullins trotted home on Villar's two-run shot in the fourth that increased the lead to 6-2. Mancini already had hit his fifth home run, an opposite-field shot in the first inning that gave Andrew Cashner an early lead.

The Athletics loaded the bases against Jimmy Yacabonis with one out in the eighth and the Orioles ahead 7-4, but Mychal Givens struck out Mark Canha and retired Chad Pinder on a ground ball with the counts full.

Villar had a two-run single, Mancini an RBI single and Hanser Alberto a two-run single off Fernando Rodney in the bottom half of the inning and Nate Karns finished up in the ninth.

The bottom of the order enabled the Orioles to tack on three runs in the second.

Jesús Sucre and Richie Martin singled and Mullins lined his first triple into the right field corner. Mullins bolted to his feet and raced home on an errant throw from second baseman Jurickson Profar, a head-first slide across the plate completing the Little League home run and upping the lead to 4-0.

Martin and Mullins were a combined 4-for-45 before tonight. Martin, taken from the Athletics organization in the Rule 5 draft, hit his first career triple in the sixth and scored on Mullins' sacrifice fly for a 7-4 lead.

Three RBIs for Mullins are a career high. Martin finished with three hits.

The Orioles hadn't collected three triples in the same game since April 29, 1993 versus the Twins.

Josh Phegley hit a two-run shot off Cashner in the top of the third to reduce the Orioles' lead to 4-2. Matt Chapman singled with one out, but was cut down trying to steal on a perfect throw from Sucre as Stephen Piscotty struck out.

Opponents didn't have a stolen base against the Orioles this season until Profar swiped second base in the sixth and advanced on Sucre's throwing error, the ball arriving in plenty of time but taking one hop past Villar.

A run scored on the play after Yacabonis replaced Cashner who was charged with four (three earned) and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Cashner got ahead of the game's first two batters 1-2 and 0-2 and gave up singles. Piscotty lined to left and Alberto dived to his left to rob Khris Davis and start a 5-4-3 double play. Alberto also robbed Chapman in the seventh by again lunging to his left and throwing across the diamond.

Is there anything that Alberto can't do? He hits, he fields, he throws fastballs that resemble curveballs.

Avoiding the waiver wire has been a chore, but the Orioles seem intent on keeping him around for a while.

Alberto was charged with an error in the fifth following Canha's 436-foot blast to left-center field that reduced the lead to 6-3, but his bounced throw past Davis came after another diving stop to his left. That's a tough error.

Davis saved Martin from committing an error in the second by scooping a throw in the dirt after the Rule 5 infielder bobbled Kendrys Morales' grounder and whiffed on his first attempt to pick it up. Villar made a diving stop and throw to rob Profar and end the second inning and dived up the middle in the sixth to get the force at second base. Davis made a sprawling stop along the line and flipped to Cashner to deny Morales in the fourth.

Orioles pitching has allowed 16 home runs on the homestand. Tough to win at that rate, but they did it tonight. And the only record they care about is 5-5.

Manager Brandon Hyde on bottom of lineup: "They sparked us all night. Three triples, making things happen. Great to see Richie Martin after ... Both those guys have not had the start they wanted and the way they swung the bats tonight was outstanding. I'm just really happy for both of them. I know tonight made them feel good. I know they were pressing a little bit and to get some big hits, that was huge."

Hyde on Davis having another tough night: "From a box score standpoint, but he hit three balls on the nose. The first three at-bats were really good, so I'm taking that as a positive moving forward. How about the defense he played? Made a diving play, made a couple really nice plays, so he helped us win the game.

"To go through what he's going through and to still play the defense he's playing and to still have the attitude he has speaks really highly of his character. Tough to put yourself in his shoes and what he's going through and I admire him for being out there and playing his butt off and throwing the defense out there that he's throwing out there. So good for him.

"I was hoping one of those balls would fall but it just didn't. It's baseball. He hit three balls on the barrel. I know he feels good about that and hopefully it's a good start."

Hyde on what thinking about on liner to deep left: "Just pulling for him to get a hit and for the ball to hit the outfield grass somewhere and it didn't. It's one of those things. You've just got to stay upbeat, stay positive.

"He's battling, he's battling and it's cool to see. You just feel for him and wishing something would fall."

Hyde on Martin getting three hits against former organization: "We talked a little bit about that but Richie, I just loved seeing that ball go to right-center. He was much more on time with the fastball and to see him use the whole field and see him drive the ball to right-center was really a good sign. I was just really happy with how he swung the bat tonight and how he was on time with the heater, competed in all of his ABs like he has been and got a few to fall."

Cashner on outing: "I didn't think I was very good. Kind of struggled the whole night. But I thought the defense tonight was probably the best it's been. Hanser with some big plays, Richie had some big plays, Villar, CD. Everybody kind of got involved and Cedric swinging a hot bat and Richie getting on the board with a couple hits.

"I thought it was a big night, a team win. The biggest thing was Givens coming in and shutting the door in the eighth inning with bases loaded."

Cashner on Davis: "Everybody in here's pulling for CD. The guy used to be one of the most feared hitters in baseball. So it doesn't just affect him, it affects us. We don't want to see him do bad, we want to see him do well. His first three at-bats he really hit the ball pretty good, squared it up. I thought today was definitely a step in the right direction. He came up big with that play down the line. He brings more than just his bat, but I know he wants to it hit and I think it will come."

Mullins on his night: "I was coming in a lot early, to get work in with Don (Long), Howie (Clark) and the rest of the coaching staff. Today I was seeing the ball pretty well and put some good swings on it."

Mullins on increased confidence: "It can increase it a lot. I've been pushing a lot of the negative to the side, taking it day by day. Anything can happen. To be able to have a breakthrough day like today definitely raises it."

Martin on whether extra motivation playing A's: "No. Not at all. I mean, every day you're playing big league baseball, so you're facing good arms and good teams every time. So no, not at all."