O's game blog: Alec Asher gets the start in Game 2 versus Boston

It won't get them a prize or anything or have much meaning on June 2, but the Orioles could move past Boston into second in the AL East standings with a win tonight.

They hit four homers in beating the Red Sox 7-5 last night to open a four-game series. The Yankees lead Boston by three games and the Orioles by 3 1/2 atop the division.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, last night marked the fifth game this season in which the Orioles hit at least four home runs, tied with the Astros and Yankees for the most in MLB. The Orioles have led or tied for the lead in the majors in games with four or more home runs in each of the last three seasons.

AL team homer leaders:
83 - Tampa Bay
82 - Houston
78 - New York
76 - Oakland
73 - Orioles, Toronto

The Orioles have 22 games where they have hit two or more homers for the season. They are 15-7 in those games. The Orioles have hit six homers their past two games and 37 in the last 22 games.

On the mound tonight, Orioles right-hander Alec Asher makes his fourth start (1-3, 3.77 ERA) and pitches against right-hander Rick Porcello (3-6, 4.21 ERA).

Asher had an ERA of 2.92 in his first two starts against Toronto and Boston, but then got an early exit Sunday at Houston. But for now he stays in the former rotation spot of Ubaldo Jiménez.

Asher allowed six hits and six runs over two innings in Houston, throwing 54 pitches in a game the Orioles would lose 8-4.

Asher said he is pretty excited to get another shot in the rotation.

"It's great. It was disappointing what happened that last start. It happens, but I'll go back out there (today) and go at it again," he said Thursday afternoon.

"You try to take what you can from it," he said of taking a loss against the Astros. "I fell behind a lot of hitters and I just had to give in and that happens. So you try not to take your bad outings too serious and go from there."

Porcello won the 2016 American League Cy Young Award, going 22-4 with an ERA of 3.15. But now his ERA is up over a run and he already has two more losses. His WHIP is up from 1.009 to 1.478 and his hits allowed per nine innings is way up from 7.8 to 11.6. In 68 1/3 innings he has given up 10 homers and 88 hits for an average against of .306.

He does have a 36-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio his past six starts over 38 innings, going 2-3 with a 3.79 ERA.

He made one start this season versus the Orioles. He took the loss May 1 going six innings as he yielded five hits and two runs. In three 2016 starts against Baltimore, he went 1-1 with a 3.13 ERA and 0.609 WHIP. In 16 career starts, Porcello is 4-9 with a 4.77 ERA and 1.250 WHIP against Baltimore.

The Orioles are 20-11 versus AL East teams (13-5 at home) and 8-13 against everyone else. While they have been swept by the Royals, Twins and Astros, they have a winning record against every team in the division. The Orioles are 6-4 against Boston, 5-4 versus New York, 2-1 against Tampa Bay and 7-2 versus Toronto.