Orioles hit seven home runs and split four-game series

A new month brought a new Ubaldo Jimenez for five innings tonight. Five glorious innings of one-hit shutout ball. Five innings that provided a reminder of how good he can be when he's on his game.

Jimenez can tease with the best of them.

The Red Sox scored five runs off Jimenez in the sixth and he never recorded an out, leaving with a 5-4 deficit that Mark Trumbo quickly erased with his second home run of the night.

The Orioles bailed out Jimenez while unloading on the Red Sox.

They flicked on the power that had been missing in this series, hitting seven home runs, including Manny Machado's tie-breaking three-run shot off Red Sox reliever Junichi Tazawa with two outs in the seventh that ignited a 12-7 victory before 21,534 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles (30-22) gained an improbable split of the four-game series after losing the first two, and they trail the Red Sox by only one in the American League East.

Mychal Givens (4-0) tossed two scoreless innings for the win, Brad Brach retired the side in order in the eighth to lower his ERA to 0.91 in 29 2/3 innings and Brian Duensing allowed two runs in the ninth in his Orioles debut.

Trumbo and Adam Jones hit two-run homers and Trumbo went solo in the sixth inning for his fourth multi-homer game this season and 11th of his career. He leads the club this season with 17 homers and 42 RBIs.

Pedro Alvarez, who collected three hits last night, homered to right field off Tazawa in the eighth inning and Francisco Pena hit his first major league home run in his first game with the Orioles, a two-run shot off Noe Ramirez. But the Orioles weren't done. Jones homered again, his 200th with the club, to complete the scoring. Three homers in the eighth, seven on the night.

Jones has nine multi-homer games in his career.

Ryan Flaherty led off the seventh with a walk and Pena singled for his first hit as an Oriole. Tazawa entered the game and Machado turned it in the Orioles' favor. It spun out of control an inning later.

A week after turning in his shortest outing since April 2013, Jimenez was at his finest until the sixth. He retired 12 of the first 13 batters he faced, striking out three in a row. He didn't allow a hit until Hanley Ramirez's leadoff single into center field in the fifth.

Who was this guy?

In his last four starts, Jimenez allowed 19 earned runs (23 total) and 27 hits over 16 2/3 innings. He walked 14 batters. He placed his spot in the rotation and the roster in jeopardy.

The low point came Saturday in Cleveland, when Jimenez allowed three earned runs (six total) and five hits in 1 2/3 innings. He also walked three batters and was done after 50 pitches.

Skip ahead to tonight's start and get another reminder of why he can be so frustrating. The good stuff is there. It just doesn't rise to the surface on a consistent basis and it can disappear in the blink of an eye.

No. 9 hitter Christian Vazquez led off the sixth with a double, Mookie Betts walked, Dustin Pedroia singled to load the bases and Xander Bogaerts doubled off the left-center field fence to reduce the lead to 4-2.

Still no outs, Givens warming and Ortiz at the plate. Manager Buck Showalter stuck with Jimenez, and the home run gave the Red Sox their first lead. Jimenez was gone after Ramirez singled.

Jimenez surrendered five runs and six hits in five innings, with two walks, three strikeouts and a home run. He threw 90 pitches, 54 for strikes. In his last five starts, he's allowed 28 runs (24 earned) and 33 hits with 16 walks in 21 2/3 innings.

Jimenez retired the first eight batters and allowed only one ball out of the infield. He issued a four-pitch walk to Vazquez, giving Boston it's first baserunner, but Betts struck out.

Betts didn't homer tonight, but he had an RBI single off Duensing.

The Orioles had one hit through three innings, Hyun Soo Kim's single in the first. Rick Porcello drilled Jonathan Schoop in the rib cage area with two outs in the second.

Machado singled to lead off the fourth, Chris Davis reached on a fielder's choice and Trumbo launched the first of his two home runs. The scoreless tie was destroyed.

So was the ball. Trumbo's home run was clocked at 115 mph, according to Statcast. Only three have been hit harder.

The Red Sox argued that Machado's slide into second was illegal on Davis' grounder, but the call stood after a challenge. Machado touched the bag with his hand but came in sideways on Bogaerts.

Flaherty led off the fifth inning with a single and Jones hit his first home run since May 14 to increase the lead to 4-0.

Jimenez reverted to his May form, the Orioles reverted to their powerful form and a four-game series ended with a split.