The Red Sox have handled the Orioles the last two games (plus other notes)

Captain Obvious believes the Boston Red Sox have badly outplayed the Orioles the last two games. In two days, the Orioles have seen firsthand they will have a battle on their hands for a division title this year. Boston is the better team right now and the Orioles have only, well, 112 games now to prove that is not so.

Boston has seen some of its young talent really take off, while at the same time, some of its senior citizens are playing better than expected. It's been a great combination to produce the best offense in baseball. They have youth, speed, on-base capability and power, too. Heck, they have beaten the Orioles at their own game the last two days. They've hit seven homers while the Orioles haven't hit one.

Pretty sure no one in the home clubhouse though is ready to concede anything yet.

The Red Sox won 78 games last year. Pretty sure Orioles fans like that version better, also stated Captain Obvious. Boston's offense looks like it can't be stopped right now. Is it just a hot streak or are they this good? If it's the latter, they may well be on their way to a division title.

The Orioles now need to win the next two nights just to split this series and end it where they began - one game out of first place.

More notes on the Orioles and Boston:

* O's pitchers have allowed seven homers this series, 10 over the last three games, 17 in the last seven games (allowing two or more six times) and 27 over the past 15 games.

* Kevin Gausman allowed three homers in a game just once in his first 48 career starts, counting 42 before this year began and six in the 2016 season. Now he has allowed three homers in back-to-back starts. He is now 2-2 with a 3.76 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 11 career outings (six starts) against the Red Sox.

* Mookie Betts registered the fourth multi-home run game of his career and his second of the season (also on May 21 against Cleveland). He hit a career-high three home runs and produced a career-high-tying five RBIs (also on May 21 versus Cleveland). He posted the first three-homer game for the Red Sox since Will Middlebrooks did so on April 7, 2013 at Toronto. Betts has now reached base safely in his last 14 games against the Orioles, batting .350 in that span.

* The Orioles have scored four runs on 11 hits in this series, with 16 strikeouts and no homers. They have scored three runs or less in seven of the last 10 games.

* The Orioles went 14-9 in April and ended May last night going 14-13. They are 17-10 at home, 11-12 on the road, 2-3 versus Boston and 9-7 in American League East games.

* Over his last 13 games, Chris Davis is batting .135 (7-for-52) with 25 strikeouts as his average has dropped from .256 to .222. The numbers would look better if his long blast down the right field line in the eighth inning would have been ruled a two-run homer and not a foul ball.

* Matt Wieters saw his nine-game hitting streak end as he went 0-for-4. During the streak, Wieters hit .421 (16-for-38) with two homers and six RBIs.

* Manny Machado had two hits last night. Over his past five games, he is 8-for-21 (.381) with four doubles.