Orioles hit the road and deliver blows in calmer fashion (updated)

NEW YORK - A road series prohibits the Orioles from adding to the five walk-off wins that lead the majors and match their total from last season. They’re willing to ditch the dramatics. They’d like to take an early lead and coast. Slow the heart rate a little.

There’s also no rule against rallying on the road, though the Yankees make it harder by blinding opponents while flashing baseball’s best record.

The Orioles scored four runs off Gerrit Cole in the third inning to battle back from an early deficit, Aaron Judge brought his usual torment by homering twice off Jordan Lyles and tying the game in the fifth, and Ramón Urías responded with an opposite-field shot in the sixth.

A bullpen that ran on fumes over the weekend and needed fuel registered important outs behind Lyles, and the Orioles defeated the Yankees 6-4.

Félix Bautista stranded two runners in the seventh and retired the side in order in the eighth. Jorge López handled the save responsibilities, and the Orioles won for the fourth time in five games.  

Judge has 32 home runs to go with 71 RBIs in 79 career games against the Orioles. His homers in the first and fifth innings, the latter a two-run shot, traveled a combined 823 feet with exit velocities of 112 mph and 103.1 mph.

Build a park that will keep those in play.

Urías’ third homer of the season gave the Orioles a 5-4 lead against Cole, who had struck out five batters in a row and six of eight in an impressive stretch that led him into the sixth.

"It feels good (against) every pitcher, it doesn't matter who it is," Urías said, "but of course I'll take that."

Rougned Odor and Urías began the ninth with singles off Wandy Peralta, and Robinson Chirinos lifted a sacrifice fly to left.

Lyles was charged with three earned runs and four total with eight strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. He came back out for the sixth at 95 pitches and needed 11 to retire the side in order and match the total from his previous start.

Manager Brandon Hyde is willing to push Lyles farther than anyone else in the rotation. Lyles, in turn, hates surrendering the ball and needs it pried from his hand, saying he’s doing it for the boys - protecting the relievers like a big brother.

Allowed to be himself, Lyles reached 117 pitches by retiring the first two batters in the seventh and allowing a soft two-out single by Anthony Rizzo.

"We need a start like that," Urías said, "and Jordan was there the whole game fighting."

Hyde came to the mound before Rizzo batted, they spoke, and Lyles stayed in the game. The dialogue was sparse.

"I was waiting to see if he made the decision to point to the bullpen," Lyles said. "He didn't. I said, 'We're good.' Or, 'What are we doing? I got two quick outs, right?' There wasn't much conversation. He was like, 'Hey, are you good?' And I was like, 'Yeah, for sure, I'm good. Here we go.' Just small baseball talk.

"I enjoy it a lot. It's early on in the season. I'm here to do what I'm supposed to do. We know why I'm here. I'm here to help the team, these young guys not be overused. It is what it is. But he's been amazing. He's everything ... I didn't know much about him coming in before signing with Baltimore, but he's been awesome. Hyder, he's been everything and more of what I want in a manager. To be myself, be free, ask for an extra inning here and there. He's been open, he's been honest. You can't ask for more."

Hyde didn’t let Lyles face Judge again. Bautista walked him and struck out Giancarlo Stanton on an 84.5 mph slider after starting him off with a 100 mph fastball.

The bullpen recorded all 33 outs yesterday, prompting the Orioles to make multiple roster moves in response. The timing of a Jordan Lyles start couldn’t have been better.

"On a night we needed it for sure," Hyde said. "Just so happy with him and his performance. He gave up a couple homers to Judge and that was pretty much it. I thought he had a really good slider, a good sinker. He had an easy sixth, went back out in the seventh with a lot of pitches, gets two quick outs. Just really happy with the length he gave us tonight and how he threw the ball."

A ball that Lyles didn't dare relinquish during the first mound visit.

"I was just making sure he was OK," Hyde said. "Obviously, we were at a point where it was getting a little bit uncomfortable at that time. He wanted to stay in the game and I trusted him. Going in the seventh on a night we needed it was huge.

"That's what a veteran starter does is, on a night that you need it, which he's done that a handful of times already this year, a night that we need it, he gets into the seventh inning for us against a really good club in a tough environment. That was a pro performance."

Said Lyles: "We struggled through the first two innings efficiency wise. We didn't get a lot of quick outs. But then we were pretty efficient for the most part a couple innings after that and we kind of settled in. ... It was a good ballgame. I thought overall it was a great game to watch, and hopefully fans are satisfied with what they saw."

The Yankees scored an unearned run in the second after Chris Owings failed to catch Ryan Mountcastle’s throw on an attempted force play and Jose Trevino singled, but the Orioles stormed back in the third on five hits and a stolen base.

Urías and Chirinos had back-to-back doubles, Cedric Mullins singled with one out and stole second base, and Austin Hays lined a two-run single into center field. Hays scored after Trey Mancini singled and Mountcastle busted it down the line to avoid a double play.

Mancini has reached base in 17 straight games. He also singled in the fifth.

Adley Rutschman’s first Bronx tale included a strikeout in the second inning against Cole, who was drafted one-one by the Pirates in 2011. Cole’s fastball was 98-99 mph and elevated.

Rutschman flied out in the third on the eighth pitch of the at-bat, popped up in the sixth and flied to right in the eighth.

Lyles confronted a Yankees lineup without Joey Gallo, Josh Donaldson and Kyle Higashioka, who were placed on the COVID-19 injured list. Donaldson is appealing a one-game suspension for “inappropriate comments” made yesterday to the White Sox’s Tim Anderson.

DJ LeMahieu also was missing. Manager Aaron Boone rested him until the ninth, when he pinch-hit after Estevan Florial's leadoff walk. He grounded into a force, and a double play sent everyone home.

"We game plan, we get ready for each and every game, we do our best," Lyles said. "We don't think about records or what happened two days ago, three days ago. Everyone's trying to do their individual job and everyone's trying to succeed and have a successful career, and then more importantly, be a good teammate and be a great Baltimore Oriole. We don't think about the smaller things like streaks. It's just, 'Hey, show up to the ballpark and compete and be a good teammate.' "

Mountcastle stayed in the lineup after leaving yesterday’s game with heat-related body cramping, but Hyde removed him from first base in the bottom of the eighth inning.

It was just done to get Ryan McKenna in right field, with Mancini switching to first.