O's game blog: John Means makes first major league start versus A's

As they scored their most runs since Aug. 28 of last year, the Orioles improved to 5-5 and ended a four-game losing streak last night. They hit three triples and two homers in a 12-4 win over Oakland. Six players had multi-hit games and four players drove in two or more runs.

It was the eighth time in Orioles history that the club had three triples in a game and the first time since April 29, 1993 in an 11-0 win over Minnesota. Then the triples were hit by Cal Ripken Jr., Mike Devereaux and Harold Reynolds.

Center fielder Cedric Mullins, batting .091 at gametime, collected his first and second extra-base hits of the year with his first career triples in his first and second at-bats. It was the 17th time an O's player has tripled twice in a game and first since Alejandro de Aza on Sept. 12, 2014. Mullins is the first player in Orioles history to record his first career triples in the same game. The last major league player to do so was Adam Engle of the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 11, 2017. Mullins set a career high with three RBIs.

Second sacker Jonathan Villar homered for the third time, a two-run shot to center in the fourth inning that went 415 feet. Villar has now scored a run in eight straight games, the longest active streak and longest streak in the majors this season. The eight games are tied for the 10th-longest streak in Orioles history.

Shortstop Richie Martin recorded his first career triple in the sixth inning and also singled in the second inning, his first major league hit against a right-handed pitcher. His single in the eighth gave him a 3-for-4 night and his first career multi-hit game. He began the night batting .087 at 2-for-23.

Tonight, the Orioles host Oakland (6-8) in the second game of a four-game series and seven-game homestand.

Lefty John Means (1-0, 1.59 ERA) will make his first career big league start after four relief appearances, three this season. Means pitched three times earlier in 2019 versus the Yankees and gave up one run and five hits in 5 2/3 innings. He walked two and struck out nine batters.

The Orioles' 11th-round draft in 2014 out of West Virginia University, Means went 7-9 with a 3.72 ERA on the farm last season between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. For the Tides, he was 6-5 with a 3.48 ERA over 20 games, 19 starts.

This year he has thrown his four-seam fastball 47 percent of the time with a velocity average of 92.05 mph. He has used a real solid changeup 37 percent, throwing his slider 11 percent and curveball 5 percent.

Last night, O's pitching allowed three earned runs or fewer for the third time in 10 games. The O's bullpen did not allow a run for the first time all year. The Orioles have allowed 25 homers in 10 games and that number leads the majors. They've allowed 18 home runs the last five games.

Lefty Brett Anderson (2-0, 2.38 ERA) will make his third start. Over 11 1/3 innings he has yielded 11 hits and six walks with seven strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.500. The A's won his starts against the Angels, when he threw six scoreless innings, and Boston, when he gave up three runs over 5 2/3 innings.