Pedro Severino's walk-off hit ends losing streak in 10th (updated)

It was looking like another lifeless night for the Orioles offense and that the club was headed to a seventh straight loss.

Then right fielder Anthony Santander turned around seven innings of offensive frustration with one swing. He got a 93 mph high and in fastball from lefty reliever Josh Taylor and smoked a ball down the left field line in the last of the eighth. It landed 426 feet from the plate for a game-tying two-run homer that also extended his long hitting streak.

Santander's blast was No. 10 on the year and produced a 3-3 tie. It scored Hanser Alberto, who had walked ahead of him.

Santander was 0-for-3 to that point. But the streak was extended to 17 straight games. That's the longest by an Oriole since Trey Mancini hit in 17 in a row in September 2017. During this stretch Santander has seven doubles, a triple, eight homers and 20 RBIs.

The homer gave the Orioles momentum. And they used it to end a six-game losing streak, improving to 13-14.

The game went to extra innings, and though Boston scored once in the top of the 10th, the O's scored twice for a walk-off, 5-4 victory in the home half. Pedro Severino's single to deep center won it and produced his first career walk-off hit.

The O's stranded two runners in the last of the ninth and Boston scored the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded walk in the 10th off Cole Sulser to lead 4-3. But Miguel Castro came in with bases loaded and one out and got a big strikeout and pop out to send the O's to their half of the tenth down by just the one run.

The O's 10th began with Rio Ruiz placed at second. They had runners on first and third when Cedric Mullins bunted and first baseman Mitch Moreland threw late to third. A Matt Barnes wild pitch tied the game 4-4. A single and intentional walk loaded the bases. Severino's 20th RBI of the year ended a long night. He was batting against five infielders and two outfielders and drilled a 2-2 fastball to deep center.

Severino is tied for ninth in the AL in RBIs and after a two-hit night is batting .329 with an OPS of .967.

Earlier right-hander Alex Cobb's chance to pick up his first home win as an Oriole went by the boards. He left trailing 2-1 and Boston lefty Martín Pérez was shutting down the Orioles as the Red Sox took a 3-1 lead to the eighth. Pérez allowed five hits and one run over seven innings on 94 pitches.

Tonight, Boston hit several balls hard, especially in the top of the fifth, when they scored twice to take a 2-1 lead.

Trailing 1-0, Boston center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. drilled a Cobb fastball out to center for his first of the year and a 1-1 tie. He hit a 2-1 pitch just to the left of straightaway center. That ball had a 104 mph exit velocity. Batting next, No. 9 hitter José Peraza doubled at 102 off the bat. He scored on Alex Verdugo's second double of the night. This shot to right left the bat at 105 mph for a 2-1 lead. The next two batters were retired on nice defensive plays by center fielder Mullins and second baseman Ramón Urías.

With Boston taking so many good swings at Cobb in that frame, the O's sent Shawn Armstrong out to start the top of the sixth.

But he allowed a walk and two straight singles with one out as Boston went ahead 3-1. Kevin Pillar's RBI infield hit produced his 10th RBI.

Cobb went five innings, allowing six hits and two runs with one walk and one strikeout on 81 pitches. Since he joined the Orioles in March 2018, he is winless in 16 starts at home. He is 0-9 with a 6.59 ERA at Camden Yards.

On offense, two Orioles picked up their first major league hits tonight. In the last of the ninth, Ryan Mountcastle hit a dribbler to third that went for an infield hit. He had been 0-for-3 and was robbed once in deep right of extra bases by Pillar. Urías singled to left in the third for his first big league base hit.

The Orioles did take a 1-0 lead on Boston and Pérez in the second inning when Pat Valaika homered for the third straight game. He hit a 1-1 changeup for his fifth homer of 2020. It came in his 64th plate appearance. That blast gave the Orioles their first lead in 23 innings.

In the fourth, trying to add to that lead, Valaika singled to left, but third base coach José Flores was much too ambitious with his send home of Renato Núñez, who had doubled. Left fielder Alex Verdugo threw him out easily at the plate. The O's stranded two runners in scoring position in the seventh.

This was the Orioles second walk-off win of the season and they improved to 3-1 in extra innings games. They were 1-10 this year when trailing after seven innings until tonight.

The O's will try to split the four-game series with the Red Sox on Sunday when lefty Wade LeBlanc (1-0, 7.89 ERA) pitches against Boston righty Zack Godley (0-2, 6.87 ERA) at 1:05 p.m.

Manager Brandon Hyde on the crazy 10th inning: "Sulser out for the top of tenth with (Rafael) Devers and their middle. Sulser having a ton of success against left-handed hitters, sent him back out. He punches out Devers on three pitches. If they would have advanced the runner to third I was going to bring in (Miguel) Castro with the better chance of a punchout or ground ball with the infield in. But then he walked two guys and just lost command there. One of the heroes of the game was Miguel Castro coming in in a big spot with the bases loaded. Got two big outs to keep it at one (run scored). Great job by Castro.

"In the bottom half I though we caught a break there with them being aggressive on (Cedric) Mullins' bunt, trying to get the out at third. The wild pitch obviously really helped. And then Bert (Alberto), who had been struggling, did a good job to get on with two strikes, and then Sevy with a really, really good at-bat. So, great team win."

Hyde on Santander's game-tying homer: "I was standing right on the line there, and for him to pull his hands in, it was kind of similar to the Sevy homer against the Yankees where the ball was off the plate in. He threw his hands in and hit it about 450 feet down the left field line with true backspin and not much hook to it. That is what Tony's looked like from my angle. Those two guys are just really, really strong. And when they get the barrel to the baseball and stay behind it, that is what happens. Great swing by Tony there."

Cobb on his outing: "The first three or four innings it felt all right. The whole game I was kind of fighting myself. The off-speed pitches weren't biting too well and my fastball didn't feel like it had too much life to it. It's one of those games you try to grind through it and try to stay on the offense and force the hitters to be on their heels a little bit. You have those games where you feel like and have to try to make some pitches in some big situations. Fortunately, the first four innings went smoothly, and I ran into some trouble in the fifth."

Severino on ending the losing streak: "You know, that is a good win tonight. I think my team was doing a very good job. You know, we had lost six games in a row. So we needed a win to get going."