Zimmermann scoreless again and O's clutch in 5-0 win (updated)

There’s no way to gently underplay an elbow injury to staff ace John Means. Whatever time is lost is crushing to the Orioles, who need him on the mound and inside the clubhouse. They can only hope for better news than they’re braced for, and other pitchers to step up in his absence.

Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann is fourth in the rotation, but first in ERA. Nine innings and no runs allowed.

The entire Zimmermann story isn’t just a local angle.

Zimmermann shut out the Yankees over five innings today while Nestor Cortes Jr. was busy silencing the Orioles through the fifth. No one blinked until the eighth, when the Orioles loaded the bases with two outs against Jonathan Loaisiga and Rougned Odor, pinch-hitting for Chris Owings, lined a two-run single into center field in a 5-0 victory before an announced crowd of 25,938 at Camden Yards.

The bullpen turned in four scoreless and hitless innings, and the Orioles boarded their charter flight to Oakland with a 3-6 record and 10 games awaiting them on the road.

Ryan Mountcastle led off the eighth with a single and Trey Mancini walked. Anthony Santander popped up and Cedric Mullins flied to left, but Robinson Chirinos drew a 10-pitch walk and Odor collected his fourth hit in 20 at-bats with the Orioles and his first RBIs.

Kelvin Gutiérrez greeted Lucas Luetge with a two-run double, and he scored on Jorge Mateo’s single. Three straight hits with runners in scoring position.

“Robinson Chirinos won us the game with that at-bat,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “He’s facing Loaisiga, who’s really good, and great stuff, and puts together just a pro at-bat to get a walk there and extend the inning. That’s what good teams do throughout the order. That’s what we need to do more of is to be able to battle throughout an at-bat, and Robby, that was really great for our guys to see. Just putting together an outstanding at-bat off a really tough reliever in a big spot in the game, and not give-in attitude and earn a walk, and gives Roogie an opportunity to drive in a couple runs. So yeah, that was by far our best offensive inning of the year and it was because of Robbie extending it.

"That's what good teams do. It's a relentless, all the way through the order, make pitchers work, not give in attitude. We're getting there. The guys did watch that. We haven't had a ton of that in four years, honestly. To be able to put together at-bats like that throughout the game, that's when you get really good. When you have nine guys be able to do that, that's when you become special offensively, and that was a great example."

Odor said Chirinos had "the biggest at-bat."

"He took a lot of pitches, he made him execute more pitches, he never gave up and he got the walk. And then I got the hit," Odor said.

"We just play with energy, we play together. When one of my teammates do something good, I get excited. So we all get excited."

Chirinos fouled off six pitches and took a 97 mph sinker in the dirt to draw the walk.

"I was just trying to keep that inning alive, trying to do everything I can to compete against a really good pitcher," he said. "I know him, just facing him before ... I know how he attacks right-handed hitters, so I compete and it was a good at-bat. I think it set the table right there for Roogie to have that big hit right there.

"If you look at that eighth inning, everybody was trying to put a good, quality at-bat (together). I think if we focus as an offense to don't chase a hit ... I know when you're not going good you want to get a hit, you want to chase that hit, and I think if we go back to doing what we did in that eighth inning, to put quality at-bats together, we're going to be fine."

Zimmermann allowed four hits, walked two batters, struck out six and was removed after 75 pitches. He tossed four scoreless innings with three hits, two walks and four strikeouts in the home opener against the Brewers.

The Baltimore native’s next start is Friday night for the first game in Anaheim.

The rotation is mostly set for the next turn with Spenser Watkins confirmed for Monday in Oakland. Jordan Lyles starts Wednesday and Tyler Wells closes out the series.

Stay tuned for Tuesday night.

The Athletics are starting Frankie Montas, Cole Irvin, Daulton Jefferies and Paul Blackburn.

Meanwhile, Kyle Bradish was extended to 67 pitches today with Triple-A Norfolk, allowing one run and two hits in five innings. He has a 1.00 ERA.

The gradual buildup is continuing in the International League after the Orioles kept Bradish at extended spring training for a brief period.

Zimmermann is inching along in the majors. He threw 66 pitches against the Brewers. Hyde gave him an extra inning today – or Zimmermann allowed it to happen with a 12-pitch fourth.

"It feels good," Zimmermann said. "I think that was always the plan, move forward with the short spring training and everything. As you move forward, to keep creeping that pitch count up as far as it will go and keep building off each start right now. But it feels good to get another inning further under my belt, and hopefully it continues."

Said Hyde: "Bruce Zimmermann is extremely competitive. Mixed extremely well. I thought he threw some good sliders, some good changeups. But Robinson again, having a catcher back there that's caught in big moments, it's making a huge difference with him and (Anthony) Bemboom."

The changeup remained a featured offering, the usage ticking up from last year after adjusting how he's throwing it. He's happy with the shape of it and the confidence to use it in any count.

"It definitely is a little bit of an equalizer when it comes to the guys with big bats like the Yankees have," he said.

Cortes had a brief fling with the Orioles as a Rule 5 selection in December 2017. He lasted through spring training and four relief appearances in the majors, allowing four runs and 10 hits – including two home runs – with four walks in 4 2/3 innings.

The Orioles returned him to the Yankees, who traded him to the Mariners in November 2019 and signed him as a free agent in January 2021.

Now, he’s ready for the majors.

Cortes followed 4 1/3 scoreless innings in his first start with five more today. He had 10 strikeouts through the fourth, one short of his career high set against the Orioles on Sept. 15, 2021 in Baltimore. By striking out the side in the fourth, he had an immaculate inning with only nine pitches thrown.

Owings struck out for the second time leading off the fifth, giving Cortes six in a row. The streak ended with third baseman Josh Donaldson making a sliding stop and throw to retire Gutiérrez.

A career-high 12^th strikeout, this one with Mateo batting, ended the fifth inning. Eight came on his cutter.

Cortes allowed three hits, including Austin Hays’ leadoff single in the sixth that represented his final batter. Chad Green replaced him.

"Nestor Cortes is very good," Hyde said. "He was working both sides of the plate. He has cutter/slider to both sides of the plate, he's unpredictable. It's a kind of a funky ... he changes his arm slot. We had a lot of trouble with him. He pitched a great game. We matched it on the mound."

The Orioles began the game 7-for-77 with runners in scoring position this season. They stranded two runners in the first inning after Mountcastle singled and Mancini walked. Mateo led off the third with a single and Cortes retired Hays on a fly ball and struck out Mountcastle and Mancini.

The Yankees went with a four-man outfield against Mancini, moving second baseman Gleyber Torres to left.

The outfield contained the normal number in the sixth when Mancini faced Green. Tim Locastro, called up today from the minors, made a spectacular diving catch in left-center after a long run, forcing Hays to race back to first base.

Santander drew his team-leading eighth walk, but Mullins, pinch-hitting, struck out.

Dillon Tate retired the side in order in the seventh, mostly with his changeup but also getting a ground ball on a 93.6 mph sinker. Jorge López retired the side in order in the eighth with two strikeouts – Aaron Judge on a slider and Giancarlo Stanton on a 98.5 mph sinker.

López returned for the ninth and the Yankees went 1-2-3.

"If you look back, pretty much every game we have a chance to win," Chirinos said. "If we keep pitching the way we've been pitching, we're going to win a lot of games. This offense is going to get hot and we're going to put really good at-bats together and put runs on the board. It's fun to see those guys pitching the way they're pitching against a good team."

Owings struck out for the seventh time in seven at-bats this season – he also has three walks – but Gutiérrez reached on an infield single with two outs in the seventh and Mateo dumped a single into right field. Jonathan Loaisiga replaced Green, Mateo stole second base uncontested, and Hays struck out, slamming his helmet to the ground in frustration.

Mateo had his first career three-hit game.

The 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position left the Orioles 7-for-81 this season. They’re now 10-for-86 after the eighth inning heroics, when nine batters came to the plate and the Orioles won the series and split the homestand.

The Orioles shut out the Yankees for the first time since September 2016 in Baltimore. They scored five or more runs against the Yankees in the seventh inning or later for the first time since April 2018.

Odor got the big hit, against his former team, and it snowballed. He produced his 19th career go-ahead hit in the seventh inning or later and first since June 23, 2021. Today marked his second time as a pinch-hitter.

“I have some close friends that were in Texas when he was there, as well as, have a couple players here in New York that I’m very close with, and he has got an unbelievable reputation as a teammate,” Hyde said. “He’s a team-first guy, he’s great in the clubhouse, has a great attitude, plays his butt off. It’s a lot of fun to coach him.”

"I know we've been a little bit struggling," Odor said, "but you know what? This is a long season and we've got a lot of games left. Nestor Cortes pitched really good today. He made really good pitches, but we stuck with our plan. We never gave up and that's how we won the game.

"Today they gave me the opportunity to help my team win and I did it."