Hyun Soo Kim hits first major league homer as O's top Tribe, take series

One surprising home run and two huge escape acts on the mound were big for the Orioles today. On a day when Chris Tillman allowed three homers and the Orioles blew a 4-0 lead, they still pulled out a 6-4 win at Cleveland.

The first career home run by Hyun Soo Kim put the Orioles ahead in the seventh. Yet another clutch pitching performance by Darren O'Day in the last of the eighth kept them ahead. Zach Britton pitched out of a big jam in the ninth to close it out.

After the Orioles had seen a 4-0 lead turn into a 4-4 tie, Kim put his team back ahead. He worked the count to 2-2 against right-handed reliever Jeff Manship and then crushed a liner to right that went out for the 5-4 lead. Kim got the silent treatment when he got back to the O's dugout and he played along with fake high fives before his teammates mobbed him with congratulations.

After Brad Brach pitched a scoreless seventh, he went back out for the eighth. But a Jason Kipnis single and Francisco Lindor double put runners on second and third with no outs, and O'Day came on. After a groundout and intentional walk, O'Day faced pinch-hitter Lonnie Chisenhall with the sacks full. After Chisehall fouled off six straight pitches, O'Day struck him out looking at a slider. Then he fanned Yan Gomes to complete the great escape act.

In the top of the ninth, the Orioles got a big insurance run to make it 6-4 when Nolan Reimold homered to left off former Oriole Tommy Hunter.

Much earlier, Mark Trumbo came up with a huge hit to get the Orioles offense started. His three-run double made it 3-0 in the first inning. Facing right-hander Mike Clevinger, who was making his third big league start, the O's loaded the bases on an Adam Jones walk, a Manny Machado single and a walk to Chris Davis.

Trumbo worked the count to 3-2 and then drilled the double off the left field wall. His liner was crushed at 116 mph according to Statcast and gave him 37 RBIs.

The Orioles made it 4-0 in the fourth. Jonathan Schoop led off with a double and advanced on fly balls by Reimold and Ryan Flaherty. Flaherty hit a sac fly on a 3-0 pitch for his first RBI of 2016 in his 66th place appearances.

But Cleveland, which scored 19 runs in this series, would come back. Tillman had allowed just three homers over his first 61 2/3 innings this season, counting today, then he gave up two in a span of four batters. Carlos Santana led off the Cleveland fourth with his ninth homer. After a one-out walk, Mike Napoli hit an 0-2 curveball out to left and it was a 4-3 game. Two innings later, a Kipnis solo shot, his seventh, tied the game 4-4.

Tillman did get the win to improve to 7-1 with a 2.92 ERA and the Orioles are 9-2 in his 11 starts. He went six innings allowing four hits and four runs, throwing 96 pitches. Briton pitched the ninth and had to pull off his own escape act after the first two batters reached. But he got a groundout and two strikeouts to record his 14th save in 14 chances.

The Orioles went 4-5 on this road trip and had lost five of six before today's victory. They improved to 28-20 on the year and now come home for an important series starting Monday afternoon with the Red Sox. Right-hander Tyler Wilson (2-3, 3.80 ERA) faces right-hander Steve Wright (4-4, 2.52 ERA) in Monday's series opener at Camden Yards.