O's push across runs late to beat Toronto 3-2, take series

The Orioles' leading hitter in 2016 got it done again. The guy that can drive the ball far and produce over 100-mph exit velocities put them ahead with a bloop.

Manny Machado's flare to short right field went for a double and scored Joey Rickard to break a tie in the bottom of the eighth. The Orioles went on to a 3-2 win over Toronto. Until Machado's hit, the O's were 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position. They won on a night they stranded 13 runners on base.

The Orioles improved to 10-4 on the year and won the last two nights to take this series two games to one. All three games were decided by a single run. The O's are 3-0 in series against AL East teams.

With one out in the eighth, Rickard singled to center off lefty Brett Cecil for his second three-hit game in a row. He moved up a base on a passed ball. Then Machado's flare to right on a 1-1 pitch scored Rickard for the 3-2 lead with his second RBI of the night. The Orioles had tied the game 2-2 on J.J. Hardy's sac fly in the bottom of the seventh

After allowing two runs during a 38-pitch first inning for starter Chris Tillman, O's pitching really did the job the rest of the game. After Michael Saunders' one-out double in the second, Blue Jays batters went 1-for-23 the rest of the night against Tillman, Dylan Bundy, Darren O'Day and Zach Britton. O'Day picked up his first win and Britton recorded his fourth save.

The top of the first inning took 22 minutes and Tillman needed 38 pitches to get through it. Saunders led off with a single and scored on Josh Donaldson's double. With two on and one out Troy Tulowitzki hit one to the wall in left but Rickard reached up for the catch and might have saved a three-run shot. Later Justin Smoak drew a bases-loaded walk for a 2-0 lead but Tillman finally ended the inning at 2-0, stranding the bases loaded.

The Orioles then had a long half-inning of their own to pull within 2-1 but it probably felt like they should have gotten more that that.

Rickard led off with a liner to third that went through the webbing of Donaldson's glove at third and he had to get another mitt. After Rickard stole his first base as an Oriole, he scored on Machado's single. Adam Jones followed with a double and a walk to Chris Davis loaded the bases with none out. But Marco Estrada got Mark Trumbo looking at a 3-2 changeup and Matt Wieters bounced into an inning-ending double play. The long inning ended with Toronto leading 2-1.

Machado's hit in the first extended his season-opening hitting streak to 14 games. That ties his career high, set from June 2-16, 2013. Davis drew a career-high four walks.

After that long first inning, Tillman settled down and needed just 67 pitches to pitch the next five innings. For the night he went six innings, allowing four hits and two runs. It was the Orioles' third quality start of the year.

Estrada threw 104 pitches over five innings and the Orioles went just 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position against the right-hander. He allowed six hits and one run with four walks and nine strikeouts.

The Orioles had their share of frustration tonight with the strikezone of home plate umpire Dan Bellino. Wieters was ejected by Bellino after he struck out with two on to end the last of the fifth. He though he checked his swing but Bellino said strike three and ejected Wieters when he argued. It was his second career ejection. The first was on May 29, 2012.

In the end they turned frustration into victory in a series where each game was decided by one run. The O's will take some momentum to Kansas City for a weekend series against the defending World Series champs.