Jones, Hardy homer in first inning (Jones has five RBIs, O's win 8-4)

Adam Jones was among three Oriole batters hit by pitches last night, taking a ball high off his left shoulder in the eighth inning. Earlier in the game, J.J. Hardy was drilled on the back of his batting helmet. Jones belted a three-run homer in the first inning tonight, and Hardy soon followed with a solo shot. Makes you wonder whether manager Buck Showalter should have started catcher Caleb Joseph, the third Oriole to get hit last night. I'm sure it's just a coincidence, but the Orioles had to be agitated by the Athletics' lack of control. Especially with the tension surrounding Manny Machado's first visit to Oakland since his five-game suspension. The booing, the signs, the taunting from the stands. What's the best revenge? Well, Machado hit a tie-breaking home run last night. Jones and Hardy homered tonight off former teammate Jason Hammel to give the Orioles a quick 4-0 lead. Speak softly and carry big sticks. Isn't O.co Coliseum supposed to be a difficult place to hit home runs? The Orioles had a pair of two-run shots last night, and all four runs in the first inning tonight came via the long ball. Hardy is up to four home runs this season, the last two since June 30. On June 20, Zach Britton blew the save by allowing a three-run walk-off homer to the Yankees' Carlos Beltan. Last night, Britton blew the save by allowing a three-run walk-off homer to Josh Donaldson. Jones homered in the first inning on June 21 and again tonight. Coincidence? Most likely. Same as the home runs Jones and Hardy hit in the first inning after being drilled last night. Update: Hammel didn't record an out in the third inning before coming out of the game. Chris Davis' RBI double increased the lead to 5-0. Nelson Cruz singled for his third hit in his last 22 at-bats. Brandon Moss homered in the bottom of the third to reduce the lead to 5-1. Eleven of the 18 home runs allowed by Wei-Yin Chen have been to the leadoff hitter in an inning. Mike Yastrzemski went 1-for-3 with a double, walk and run scored tonight, giving him six hits in three games with Double-A Bowie. Update II: It's a five-RBI night for Jones, the last two coming on his bouncing single up the middle in the fourth that scored Nick Markakis and Steve Pearce for a 7-1 lead. Markakis is 3-for-3 tonight. Update III: Markakis is 4-for-4 to raise his average to .295. Chen is done after five innings, leaving the bullpen to cover the rest. And that's the issue with Chen. He stands to win his 10th game, but he can't get through the middle innings. Chen allowed three runs and five hits in five innings, with one walk, four strikeouts and a home run. Showalter removed him after 86 pitches. Chen probably had more in the tank, especially after the extended rest, but Showalter wasn't taking any chances. Brad Brach is working the sixth with the Orioles leading 7-3. And now it's 7-4 after Jed Lowrie's two-out RBI single in the sixth, his third RBI of the night. Update IV: The Orioles maintain their four-game lead in the American League East with an 8-4 win over the A's. Chris Davis homered off former Oriole Jim Johnson leading off the top of the ninth. Wei-Yin Chen picked up his 10th victory. Darren O'Day shut out the A's over 1 2/3 innings, and Zach Britton registered his 16th save by stranding two runners in the ninth. O'Day hasn't allowed a run in his last 11 appearances over 12 2/3 innings. The A's had won seven consecutive home games.