Wells lasts only two innings in 10-3 loss (updated)

The nine days between starts didn’t freshen Tyler Wells. The break busted his roll.

The Dodgers sent 10 batters to the plate in the second inning, scored five runs and drained 40 pitches out of Wells, who didn’t return for the third in the Orioles’ 10-3 loss before an announced crowd of 22,775 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles will try Wednesday afternoon to avoid their first sweep since May 2022. A second straight loss lowered their record to 57-37.

Wells came close to duplicating the shortest start of his career, 1 2/3 innings against the Rays in April 2022. He lasted at least five in his first 18 appearances this season.

Jason Heyward hit a three-run homer with no outs in the second, lining a fastball over the center field fence for the 22^nd surrendered by Wells this season. The first five batters reached base, and Freddie Freeman and Will Smith had RBI singles.

Manager Brandon Hyde removed Wells at 59 pitches, with six hits and two walks raising the right-hander’s WHIP from 0.927 to 0.98 – still the lowest in the majors.

"He almost threw 60 pitches in two innings," Hyde said. "For Wells' sake, kind of where he is, we decided the right thing to do was to get him out of the game."

"I think each and every time I take that ball, regardless of how long it's been, it's equally important," Wells said. "Definitely felt like I kind of failed the team a little bit tonight. Didn't really set a good pace, and definitely that long inning in the second got to me. But we're just going to drop this one and move on to the next."

Wells allowed two runs in each of his last seven starts. He stranded Freeman in a 19-pitch first inning, getting two strikeouts with his slider, but a leadoff walk to J.D. Martinez in the second and David Peralta’s single set the table for Heyward.

"I thought the first inning went pretty well," he said, "and yeah, the second inning happened."

The Dodgers kept dishing out the punishment.

Left-hander Cole Irvin, moved to the bullpen after the break, relieved Wells and tossed four scoreless innings before issuing back-to-back walks to begin the seventh. A double steal with Cionel Pérez pitching and Adley Rutschman’s throwing error increased the lead to 6-1.

"He did an unbelievable job," Hyde said of Irvin. "Pitching a bunch of zeroes after that second inning and kept us right there. We just couldn't scratch back and get back in the game at that point."

"Cole was amazing," said Wells. "After talking to him, after all that, I gave him a big ol' hug because he deserved that. I think whenever you've got a starter who only goes two innings, that's never what you want. I think that Cole came in and picked up the team in a huge way, especially the bullpen. I can honestly say I'm really proud of him and extremely happy to have him on our team."

Pérez, reinstated today from the injured list, issued two walks of his own to load the bases with no outs and later walked Chris Taylor with two outs and the bases full. The Dodgers scored four runs in the inning on five walks, two steals, an error, a fielder’s choice and Martinez’s single. Ten batters came to the plate again.

A hit batter, single and Adam Frazier error loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth, but Irvin escaped the jam. The Dodgers stranded 14 runners through the seventh, were 4-for-19 with runners in scoring position and led 9-1. They finished 5-for-21.

Mike Baumann allowed an unearned run in the eighth after Gunnar Henderson committed a throwing error, the fourth by the Orioles in the last four innings, their highest game total since June 15, 2021. Ryan O’Hearn and Aaron Hicks had RBI singles in the bottom half of the inning.

"We just didn't play our best baseball tonight," Hyde said. "Cole probably could have gotten further there if we had made a couple plays behind him. We just didn't play very well tonight."

O’Hearn led off the second with a 13-pitch walk against Michael Grove, fouling off five in a row before taking a knuckle curve that missed high. Grove fell behind 3-0 to Austin Hays before retiring him on a fly ball, but Hicks doubled to left-center field and raced to third on James Outman’s error.

Hicks was stranded, and it kept happening. Hays after a two-out single in the fourth, Jordan Westburg after a two-out single in the fifth, Rutschman and Anthony Santander after a double and walk to start the sixth.

Grove allowed one run and five hits in five innings. He brought a 6.89 ERA into the game.

* Jake Marisnick pinch-hit for Heyward and singled in the third, went to the outfield for the bottom of the fourth and exited with left hamstring tightness.

* Triple-A Norfolk’s Drew Rom shut out Gwinnett on two hits with seven strikeouts over five innings. Coby Mayo’s first Triple-A homer was a three-run shot in the eighth. Maverick Handley hit his second home run with the Tides and Josh Lester hit his 15th.

Mayo, Lester, Handley, César Prieto and Ryan McKenna had RBI singles in the ninth.

Double-A Bowie’s Connor Gillispie tossed six scoreless innings with one hit allowed against Harrisburg. Jud Fabian hit his fifth home run and Jackson Holliday collected two more hits, including a double. Billy Cook singled twice.

High-A Aberdeen’s Kyle Virbitsky allowed two runs and three hits in five innings. Dylan Beavers hit his ninth home run.

Rolphy Cruz hit his first home run with Single-A Delmarva and Samuel Basallo hit his 12th. The Shorebirds turned a triple play with the bases loaded in the third inning.