O's game blog: Yovani Gallardo on the mound in series opener

LOS ANGELES - Trying to avoid what would be a season-high five-game losing streak, the Orioles look to get back in the win column tonight. They face the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium to start a three-game series.

Exactly 81 games into the season with 81 more to go the Orioles are 47-34. Boston won this afternoon 12-5 over Texas to move to within 2 ½ games of the Orioles at 45-37.

On the mound tonight, Yovani Gallardo (3-1, 5.77 ERA) faces 19-year-old left-hander Julio Urias (1-2, 4.09 ERA). In three starts since returning from the disabled list, Gallardo is 2-0 with an ERA of 4.41 and the Orioles are 3-0 in those three starts.

Gallardo will bat tonight since the Orioles are playing in a National League ballpark. Gallardo went 2-for-3 with a run scored last Tuesday against the Padres. He is a career .201 hitter (85-for-423) with 21 doubles, 12 home runs, and 42 RBIs His 12 home runs rank second among active pitchers and Gallardo was named a Silver Slugger in 2010.

Urias was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect on their top 100 list after the 2015 season. The Dodgers called him up and he made his MLB debut on May 27. He allowed nine runs in 7 2/3 in his first two starts. But in five starts since then, he is 1-1 with a 2.49 ERA, allowing two earned runs or less each time.

Here is an excerpt from Baseball America's writeup on Urias:

* Few teenagers ever have had Urias' combination of stuff and feel for pitching. With a smooth delivery and easy arm action, Urias fills the zone with plus or better stuff across the board. His fastball sits at 90-95 mph, touches 97 and plays up because he hides the ball well. His changeup is a swing-and-miss pitch, and while he needs to harness it in the strike zone more often, the movement, deception and separation from his fastball make it a plus weapon. Urias' plus curveball has sharp break and can be a putaway pitch, one some scouts would like to see him use more.

A few O's hitting notes:

* Jonathan Schoop has reached base safely in 15 straight games, including hits in 14 games. During this stretch he is batting .444 (28-for-63) with 21 runs, eight doubles, three home runs and 10 RBIs.

* Adam Jones has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games and during this stretch he is batting .344 (21-for-61) with 17 runs, three homers and 11 RBIs.

* Over his past eight games, Mark Trumbo is batting .314 (11-for-35) with three homers and 10 RBIs.

* In his past eight games, Chris Davis is 11-for-34 (.324) with five homers and 12 RBIs.