John Means serves as stopper as O's win series finale

The way he was pitching, maybe Orioles left-hander John Means would not need big run support. As it turned out, he would not get it. But he was a stopper today for the O's.

He stopped a three-game losing for the team as they avoided getting swept by Oakland.

Means also stopped Oakland's 13-game winning. The run ends one short of the second-best streak in team history when they won 14 in a row from April 23-May 9, 1988. The 20-game run in 2002 is the club record.

Means was real good again for the Orioles, pitching them to a win this afternoon. Leading just 3-1 to the last of the eighth, the O's scored five to blow it open and win 8-1.

Means was was backed by Austin Hays' two-homer game as the Orioles won for just the second time in 10 home games and they snapped a four-game losing streak at Oriole Park.

Means had good life on his fastball from the outset. He rolled through a 1-2-3, 11-pitch first inning and was at 43 pitches with a 1-0 lead through three. He wound up throwing 101 pitches in 6 1/3 innings. Means gave up just one run and two hits as Oakland batters went 2-for-20 against him. He walked three and fanned six.

He improved to 2-0 with an ERA of 1.50. He is a pitcher on a real roll, ending last year with an ERA of 1.52 in his last four starts and beginning the 2021 season so well over five outings.

In those nine games, he has allowed one run or less eight times, pitching to an ERA of 1.51.

The O's offense today until the eighth inning consisted of two home run swings, both by Hays. He hit a solo homer in the second and a two-run shot in the fourth. That second one broke a 1-1 tie. Both came off 0-1 fastballs from A's lefty Jesús Luzardo.

Hays produced his second career two-homer game. The first was Sept. 23, 2019 at Toronto.

Had Hays hit one more he would have produced the 24th instance of an O's player hitting a three-homer game. The last to do that was Pedro Severino on June 4, 2019 versus Texas. Before that, the last player to do so was Manny Machado twice: on Aug. 7, 2016 against the White Sox and Aug. 18, 2017 versus the Angels.

Leading 3-1, the O's got an insurance run when Maikel Franco's solo homer made it 4-1 to start the Baltimore eighth. He hit No. 3 for a three-run lead.

They added four more runs as Deolis Guerra walked four and they all scored. Ryan McKenna's bases-loaded walk produced his first career RBI. Trey Mancini singled in two runs.

The Orioles will host the New York Yankees the next four games. Here are the pitching matchups:

Monday: Matt Harvey (1-1, 5.12 ERA) vs. Deivi García (2021 season debut).
Tuesday: Bruce Zimmermann (1-2, 4.57 ERA) vs. Corey Kluber (0-2, 5.40)
Wednesday: TBA vs. Domingo Germán (1-2, 6.23 ERA)
Thursday: Jorge López (1-3, 8.15 ERA) vs. Jordan Montgomery (1-1, 4.57 ERA)

GO OFF, @TheAustinHaysss‼️

2-for-2, 2 HR pic.twitter.com/DZKSt0PW9a

-- Baltimore Orioles 😷 (@Orioles) April 25, 2021