Wrapping up a 7-1 loss

FORT MYERS, Fla. - Kevin Gausman will have to play spring training stopper on Monday.

The Orioles are winless in four exhibition games following today's 7-1 loss to the Red Sox at JetBlue Park. They stranded two runners in the top of the ninth and fell to 0-3-1.

Remain calm.

Erick Salcedo singled off the pseudo Green Monster in left field before Aderlin Rodriguez struck out to send everyone into Sunday afternoon traffic on Interstate 75.

José Mesa Jr., one of the three Rule 5 pitchers in camp, served up back-to-back home runs to Blake Swihart and Jeremy Barfield in the fifth and was charged with three runs and three hits with three walks in two-thirds of an inning.

Bad news for the overreacting crowd: The Orioles aren't judging him on one outing.

"I'm going him a little pass on the first one," said manager Buck Showalter. "He's probably a little nervous and he's got better stuff than that. I think he'll settle in next time out."

Showalter didn't necessarily notice anything specific while Mesa was pitching to indicate that anxiety had become an issue. That command and control would abandon him in his first appearance.

"Not really," he said. "An outing like that, you've got to trust the track record a little bit. You kind of give him a pass.

"If it happens again, we'll think about it. But I think he's better than that."

Gabriel Ynoa allowed a run in the first, with Ryan Mountcastle's throwing error complicating his inning. He retired the side in order in the second and struck out four batters on the day.

Mountcastle made the backhanded stop, checked Xander Bogaerts heading to second base and threw wide of first, Garabez Rosa breaking hard to his right to keep the ball from reaching the outfield.

"The error at third cost him about 15 or 16 pitches," Showalter said. "Those types of things get magnified at this level. Take that away and he's out of that inning.

"He had good stuff. A lot of swings and misses by good hitters."

Perci Garner retired the side in order in the seventh on two grounders and a fly ball, but Michael Kelly walked in a run in the eighth and was removed with two outs - joining Mesa as Orioles who reached their pitch counts prematurely.