Rich Dubroff

Holliday’s grand slam leads Orioles to 10-4 win over Blue Jays; Westburg breaks hand

SCROLL DOWN TO READ ARTICLE

BALTIMORE—On Tuesday, the big news was the four trades made by the Orioles. The news that Jackson Holliday was returning for his second stint with the Orioles was nearly overlooked.

That changed on Wednesday. Holliday hit his first home run, a grand slam, in the fifth inning as the Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 10-4, before 25,528 at Camden Yards.

Jordan Westburg was hit by a pitch on his right hand immediately before Holliday’s home run and left the game after the inning. Manager Brandon Hyde said Westburg has a right hand fracture and there’s no timetable for this return.

Ramón Urías replaced Westburg at third base on Wednesday.


Holliday became the third Oriole to hit a grand slam as their first home run, and his blast, which landed on Eutaw Street, traveled 439 feet. The spot where it landed was marked, and fans immediately used their cell phones to take pictures of the spot.

Holliday was 1-for-5, grounding out twice, flying to left and striking out. He barely missed a three-run homer to left on his at-bat after the grand slam. He also made a nifty stop in the ninth to start a game-ending double play.

Oriole starter Grayson Rodrguez (13-4) allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits in six innings, walking three and striking out eight.

Paolo Espino (0-1) allowed four runs in four innings for Toronto (50-59)

Ryan Mountcastle had a two-run triple in the first. Ryan O’Hearn’s sacrifice fly scored Gunnar Henderson, who tripled in the third. Anthony Santander’s RBI single in the fifth gave the Orioles (65-54) a 903 lead.

Henderson, who committed two errors at shortstop and has seven in his past seven games, drove in the Orioles’ 10th run with a single in the seventh.

Rich Dubroff

Rich Dubroff grew up in Brooklyn as a fan of New York teams, but after he moved to Baltimore, quickly adopted the Orioles and Colts. After nearly two decades as a freelancer assisting on Orioles coverage for several outlets, principally The Capital in Annapolis and The Carroll County Times, Dubroff began covering the team fulltime in 2011. He spent five years at Comcast SportsNet’s website and for the last two seasons, wrote for PressBoxonline.com, Dubroff lives in Baltimore with his wife of more than 30 years, Susan.

Share
Published by
Rich Dubroff

Recent Posts

  • Minors

Basallo heads Orioles’ top 30 prospect list

SARASOTA—This week, MLB.com unveiled its list of Orioles’ top 30 prospects. There's still the same…

March 6, 2025
  • Mailbag

What will Orioles’ relief sequence be this season? | MAILBAG

Question: If Félix Bautista is not ready to start the season, what does the eighth…

March 6, 2025
  • Spring Training

Orioles’ Henderson out with intercostal strain, Kittredge’s knee a concern, Rodriguez ‘sluggish’ in 5-2 win over Twins

FORT MYERS, Florida--What’s happening? Shortstop Gunnar Henderson, who left the Orioles’ game last Thursday with…

March 5, 2025
  • Mailbag

With MASN dispute settled, what’s the future of Orioles’ broadcasts? | MAILBAG

Question: I’m excited that the MASN mess with the Nats has been resolved. I will…

March 5, 2025
  • Spring Training

Elias on building the Orioles and the 2025 draft

SARASOTA—Several years ago, before the Orioles became contenders, executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias said…

March 5, 2025
  • The Bird Tapes

Steve Dalkowski: The legend of all legends in Orioles history

In the long chronicle of Orioles history, Steve Dalkowski is the greatest mythological figure. No…

March 4, 2025