Chen on his outing, plus Hardy on his homer, Machado's defense and Young being DFA'd

Left-hander Wei-Yin Chen was a bit of a stopper tonight for the Orioles. Sure, he did give up two homers, but they were solo shots and he held down a Texas team that had scored 16 runs and hit eight homers the past two nights.

But don't call him a stopper though.

"I didn't even think about that," he said through his translator. "All I wanted to do is focus on my game plan and not anything else."

That he did, not allowing a run after the fourth inning and pitching eight strong innings on four hits in the Orioles' 4-2 win over Texas. The Rangers hitters are aggressive and Chen tried to use that to his advantage.

"Most of them were looking for fastballs and they know I'm a fastball pitcher," he said. "They didn't want to fall behind in the count, so mostly they swung early in the count. Early in the game, I didn't feel all that great, but my teammates, they made great plays behind me. So I kept making adjustments during the game, and later in the game, I felt better and better."

He was so pitch-efficient that he completed eight innings on just 87 pitches. Manager Buck Showalter went to Zach Britton in the ninth rather than give Chen a chance for the O's first complete game since Miguel Gonazlez against Cincinnati on Sept. 3, 2014.

"Of course, if given the chance, I would love to go out there and pitch (the ninth)," Chen said. "But I know with a two-run lead, we have a great bullpen. And I feel pretty comfortable giving the game to Zach. He's a great closer."

After his brief time with the Single-A Frederick Keys, Chen may not be optioned out again this year. Showalter said after the game he is not expected to miss any more starts.

"Of course I am happy to hear that and that Buck trusts me. I just want to do my job well for the rest of the season," Chen said as he improved to 4-4 with an ERA of 2.84. He is 3-0 with an ERA of 2.16 over his last five starts.

Chen is now 5-0 with a 1.80 ERA in five career starts against Texas.

The O's broke a 2-2 tie tonight on J.J. Hardy's two-run homer to left in the last of the seventh off Nick Martinez.

"I felt like I saw it pretty well out of his hand and was able to put a good swing on it," Hardy said. "He was throwing the ball pretty good, keeping the ball down. Sinker was good, throwing a slider to keep us off-balance. Well pitched game from both starters. We love playing behind Chen when he is working with such a quick pace."

What was Hardy thinking when the Rangers added two homers over the first four innings tonight to reach 10 homers in this series?

"These guys can hit, that is what I'm thinking," he said. "They are driving the ball pretty good, but Chen shut them down after that. It was a big win tonight. Come back tomorrow and try to even the series."

Hardy had a nice view in the top of the seventh tonight when third basman Manny Machado made two great plays, one charging in with a barehand pickup and the other diving to his left.

"I love watching him play. He does things every night that amaze me and he does things other third baseman can't do," Hardy said.

Hardy was also asked about Delmon Young, who was designated for assingment before tonight's game.

"It's tough. He was a great teammate. Fun to be around and great player," Hardy said. "Pinch-hitter off the bench and playing great in the field this year, too. A guy everyone likes in here, and he's definitely going to be missed."