Orioles third baseman Gunnar Henderson is congratulated by teammates in the dugout after hitting a home run in the third inning Thursday against the Royals in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images, Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
What appeared to be a blowout win in the making Thursday started to turn into a potentially devastating loss for the Orioles. That is, until Ramón Urías bailed out Baltimore’s pitching staff in the eighth inning.
The Orioles led 8-1 in the third as the offense jumped on Kansas City right-hander Jordan Lyles, but Baltimore starter Grayson Rodriguez and the bullpen combined to surrender that lead by the seventh to give the Royals a one-run advantage.
Pinch-hitting against seven-time All-Star reliever Aroldis Chapman, Urías absolved Rodriguez and the bullpen of their misdeeds, lining a two-run single to put the Orioles up one, an advantage the bullpen wouldn’t relinquish again as Baltimore defeated Kansas City, 13-10.
Urías’ single scored Adam Frazier and Jorge Mateo, both of whom walked to open the eighth and stole a base to get into scoring position. The third baseman then tacked on insurance in the ninth with a two-run double to right-center field.
The series win is the Orioles’ seventh straight, dating to the four-game set versus the Oakland Athletics from April 10 to 13. Since, Baltimore has won series against the Chicago White Sox, Washington Nationals, Detroit Tigers (twice) and Boston Red Sox. At 21-10, the Orioles have the second-best record in the American League, behind only division rival Tampa Bay. Eleven of their wins have been in come-from-behind fashion.
The Orioles were in the position to require Urías’ late-game heroics after Rodriguez and three relievers allowed the Royals to come back from down seven runs.
The rookie right-hander posted the worst start of his young career, allowing eight hits and six runs in 3 2/3 innings. Out of the bullpen, Cionel Pérez struggled again, Danny Coulombe stumbled an inning after escaping a bases-loaded jam and Yennier Cano allowed the RBI single that gave the Royals a lead in the seventh, a run that was credited to Coulombe.
Cano (1-0) fired a scoreless eighth and Félix Bautista was shaky in the ninth, allowing one run in a nonsave situation to close out the game.
Orioles bats bounce back against old friend
After the Orioles were shut out Wednesday, Mullins wasn’t panicked about whether the poor offensive performance was indicative of anything more than just one bad night.
Mullins and the rest of the lineup proved it Thursday, tagging Lyles, who spent last season with the Orioles, for eight runs (six earned) to build an early lead.
Mullins hit a bases-clearing double in the second and Anthony Santander and Gunnar Henderson both jacked two-run homers to right field off Lyles, who won 12 games and pitched 179 innings for Baltimore in 2022 as the leader of their rotation.
Santander began the game’s scoring with a two-run home run to right field — only his third of the season after leading the club with 33 last year. Santander stumbled for much of April, but he recorded two hits in all three games against Kansas City. His home run came after a two-out error by Royals right fielder MJ Melendez.
Mullins then continued his success with runners in scoring position with a three-run double in the second inning, smashing a center-cut curveball off the right-center field wall. The center fielder entered the game 12-for-26 with six extra-base hits with runners in scoring position and is now 3-for-3 with 11 RBIs and two walks with the bases loaded. His 26 RBIs are tied with Ryan Mountcastle for most on the team.
In the third, Adam Frazier walked with two outs, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on a bloop single from Jorge Mateo. Henderson then clobbered his third home run of the season — a 425-foot shot to right field off Lyles — to put the Orioles up 8-1. Henderson leads the AL in walk rate this season, but he’s struggled to make consistent contact on his swings as he entered the game hitting just .182.
Frazier scored the final run of the game on a wild pitch after Urías’ double.
Royals homer three times off Rodriguez
Rodriguez entered Thursday on a 14-inning scoreless streak that he extended to 15 after the first. He ended the day allowing runs in three straight frames.
The 23-year-old hadn’t allowed a run since the first inning of his start versus the White Sox on April 16. He then went five scoreless against the Tigers in back-to-back starts.
But he struggled to get whiffs against the free-swinging Royals, making batters miss on just 17% of their swings — a stark decline from his rate of 28.1% entering Thursday.
He allowed three home runs in the no-decision, one more than he surrendered in his first 24 1/3 innings of the year.
This story will be updated.
Orioles at Braves
Friday, 7:20 p.m.
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Originally published at Tribune News Service