CHICAGO—After slumbering through a three-game sweep in St. Louis, the Orioles began a four-game with series with the Chicago White Sox, the worst team in baseball, with an impressive offensive performance.
But a a six-run lead in the ninth nearly got away as Chicago scored four times and then lost on a controversial call, 8-6, before 15,843 at Guaranteed Rate Field on Thursday night.
With one out in the last of the ninth, four runs in and runners on first and second, Oriole manager Brandon Hyde called on his third reliever of the inning, closer Craig Kimbrel. He got Andrew Benintendi to hit a pop fly in the infield that shortstop Gunnar Henderson caught after bumping into baserunner Andrew Vaughn, who was called for interference, resulting in a game-ending double play.
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The Orioles scored four runs in the fourth and three in the sixth, getting excellent production from the lower third of their lineup. Ryan Mountcastle had four hits and scored two runs. Cedric Mullins stole two bases, had two hits and scored two runs, and Jorge Mateo hit a three-run home run and stole two bases.
The 7, 8 and 9 hitters have scored 12 of the 16 runs for the Orioles on the road trip.
The Orioles (30-18) overcame a sloppy start from Grayson Rodriguez (5-1), who walked a career high five batters in five innings. He gave up two runs on three hits.
Chicago’s rally in the ninth came against Jonathan Heasley and Yennier Cano before Kimbrel closed it out.
In the fourth, Anthony Santander hit his eighth home run and Mateo hit a three-run shot, his third and at 434 feet, the longest in his career against Mike Clevinger (0-3)
Adley Rutschman had a two-run single, and Austin Hays a run-scoring single in the three-run sixth.
Rodriguez wasn’t at his best. He walked in a run in the first inning, and in the third, walked Gavin Sheets with two outs, hit Paul DeJong with a pitch and allowed a single to Benintendi that scored Sheets. Chicago (15-36) had just four hits.
The Orioles turned aggressive and stole three bases in the third, two by Mullins and one by Mateo. Rutschman’s RBI single scored Mullins.