The Orioles struggled to get to left-hander David Price tonight. When they finally did and cut their two-run deficit to one, Boston added two keys runs in the eighth off struggling right-hander Ubaldo Jiménez.
The late runs, Hanley Ramirez's three-RBI night and Price's strong outing helped Boston secure a 5-2 win tonight in front of 35,470 at Camden Yards. And they have a chance to even the four-game series on Sunday afternoon.
Down four runs in the ninth, the Orioles actually brought the tying run to the plate against Craig Kimbrel after a Trey Mancini RBI double made it 5-2. But with two men on, Kimbrel got a called third strike against Seth Smith to end it.
Orioles right-hander Dylan Bundy failed to pitch six innings in a game for the first time this year after doing so 11 straight starts. He went five innings allowing four hits and two runs with one walk and four strikeouts. He needed 100 pitches to get 15 outs.
The Red Sox really made him work during a 27-pitch second inning where they failed to score and a 31-pitch fourth when they did.
Xander Bogaerts drew a leadoff walk that inning. One out later he scored ahead of a Ramirez two-run homer to left. Bundy hung an 0-2 curveball, and Ramirez got just enough for his seventh homer and a 2-0 lead. The ball traveled 362 feet. Ramirez had no homers or RBIs over his previous 31 at-bats.
The Orioles finally got to Price when Manny Machado hit a fly ball to left that just cleared the wall for his 12th homer in the last of the seventh. He hit a 1-0 fastball at 93 mph to cut the lead to 2-1. Machado has six homers in 12 games versus Boston. It was Machado's fourth career homer in 37 at-bats off Price.
Boston made it 4-1 in the eighth against Jiménez who replaced Richard Bleier after he threw two scoreless innings. Mookie Betts led off with a double after he had been 0-for-11 in the series. He advanced to third on a sac bunt and scored on Bogaerts' grounder to second. With the infield in, Jonathan Schoop threw home but it was late and to the first base side of the plate as Betts slid in safely. Bogaerts would score when Ramirez drilled a two-out double to left for the three-run lead and a three-RBI night. Betts' RBI single in the ninth off Donnie Hart made it a 5-1 game.
Price went seven innings plus one batter in his second 2017 start. He gave up just three hits and one run with a walk and seven strikeouts on 92 pitches. He improved to 1-0 with an ERA of 3.00.
In 25 career starts versus Baltimore, he is 12-5 with an ERA of 2.81. In 11 career starts at Oriole Park, he is 7-0 with a ERA of 2.96.
The Orioles fall back into third place, a half-game behind Boston at 29-25. They had won four of five coming in but over a longer stretch are 7-15 in the last 22 games. Boston won for the ninth time in 13 games to go to 30-25.
In the series finale on Sunday afternoon, Chris Tillman (1-2, 5.87 ERA) faces lefty Chris Sale (6-2, 2.77 ERA).
Postgame quotes:
Bundy on Boston getting his pitch count up: "Yeah, I was making pitches and they were fouling them off. That was part of them seeing me four times. Pitcher's pitches they were fouling off. Can't control that. So tough game."
Bundy on allowing two runs over five innings: "I mean, it's all right. It ain't good. Obviously we lost. I came out of the game and we were losing. That's on me. I hung a curveball and I told myself before the pitch all I had to do was bounce it. Then it's a whole different at-bat, whole different game if I bounce it like it was supposed to."
Bundy on facing Boston four times already: "There are no secrets, that's for sure. They know what I've got and I know what they have to offer. Like I've said before, it's a chess game and obviously I made some wrong moves here and there."
Mancini on facing Price: "He looked really good. Mixed all his pitches well. From a comparison from my standpoint, he pitched kind of like how CC Sabathia pitches. Just mixes in that cutter a lot in and it's very effective. He'll get you with one thing one at-bat and then he'll go to something different when you make an adjustment. He did a really good job tonight of locating, mixing pitches and keeping everybody off balance."
Mancini on O's making Kimbrel throw 33 pitches and how it could impact Sunday's game: "You know it stinks we didn't win the game and that is the most important thing. Come tomorrow if it's a close game and he might not be available, that could come into play and be a good thing. But right now, I don't think everybody is thinking about that too much."
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