Kevin Gausman pitched like an ace and provided a possible glimpse into the future

Manager Buck Showalter said after last night's game that pitcher Kevin Gausman has a chance to be a difference-maker for the Orioles. For one night, he sure was. Gausman had a start where he gave up one run in six innings against Detroit last year. But this was probably the best of his seven career major league starts. In a 6-3 win over Oakland, he beat the team with the best record in the American League, a team that leads the majors in walks and on-base percentage, is second in runs and third in homers. He beat them one night after the Orioles let a late lead get away and then had two runners thrown out at the plate in the 10th inning of an 11-inning loss. It was a real solid performance and provided a possible glimpse into a future where Gausman begins to live up to his top-of-the-rotation potential and pitches big games against playoff-caliber teams. Last night, Gausman was good, real good. Now we get to find out if the Orioles and their fans are going to see more of that. More notes on the O's: * In six games in June, the Orioles have scored 38 runs with a .318 average, a .527 slugging percentage and .905 OPS. They've hit 12 homers in those six games. * The Orioles have now homered in a season-high seven consecutive games, hitting 13 total homers. Oakland has homered in a season-high 15 straight games, hitting 26 homers. * Oakland pinch-hitters are 3-for-3 with a walk in this series. * Oakland is 6-8 against the AL East and 32-16 against everyone else. The O's are 9-5 against the A's since 2011. * Over his last five games, David Lough is 5-for-13 with a double, two homers, five runs and five RBIs.