BALTIMORE- What happened? Manager Brandon Hyde decided to bat Cedric Mullins first and drop Gunnar Henderson to second. Henderson responded with his first home run in the first and a double in the third. Adley Rutschman hit third.

Ryan O’Hearn hit a three-run home in the third. Heston Kjerstad hit a two-run home run in the sixth, and Tomoyuki Sugano became the first starter this season to pitch seven innings in the Orioles’ 6-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians before 16,201.

The Orioles (8-11) have won consecutive games for the first time this season and notched their first series win.

“I think when you play well, the vibe gets fun,” O’Hearn said. “And I think guys are showing up every day thinking we’re going to win tonight, and not thinking, ‘Oh gosh, I hope we don’t lose.’ Those are two very different demeanors. I mean, obviously, the team is talented. We’ve got a lot of good players. Once you get guys to kind of believe in how good we can be and then the results come after that, it’s fun. And this was a good series.”

Before the game, Hyde explained his move.

“I want to slow the game down for Gunn a little bit,” Hyde said. “Talking with him, let him watch an at-bat. There’s a little bit of rust. You can tell he’s in a little bit of a hurry.

“Cedric, how he’s playing a game right now, his ability to get on base and the power, speed threat. If he’d have that before Gunnar and Adley, big factor. I’ve always had this in mind. Ced wasn’t going the last couple of years, not  as consistent as he had been a few years before, being a big RBI guy for us. The way Gunnar is right now, and the way Gunnar is, this gives us a little bit of spark before the middle of the order.”

Starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez, who on the 15-day injured list because of soreness in his right elbow, had an MRI on his right shoulder on Thursday. He was supposed to throw a side session, but the Orioles canceled it. Without Rodriguez and Zach Eflin, who’s also on the injured list, Sugano becomes even more important.

“We’ve had quite a few short starts this year, and Dean [Kremer] getting into the sixth yesterday, Tomo going seven innings today, it just allows guys to get a little breather down in the bullpen,” Hyde said.

“Pitched well with a lead, too. I thought he did that. I thought he pitched well with a lead. Once O hit that homer, the way he commanded the ball in the strike zone and got some weak contact, that was huge.”

Why was Sugano effective? Sugano (2-1) allowed two runs on five hits. The 35-year-old right-hander struck out three without walking a batter.

“Just so efficient in seven innings,” Hyde said. “I thought he mixed speeds extremely well. Off-speed stuff was commanded well. I thought we played good defense. I thought he stepped on his heater when he needed to. Just pitched really effectively for seven innings and it was great to see a starter go that deep into the game and keep his pitch count down. I thought he was fantastic.”

It was Sugano’s fourth start, and the first time he’s finished the sixth, and now the seventh.

“It’s only one game that I’ve been able to pitch like this, so I have to keep accumulating these outings,” he said through his translator. “I’m starting to get used to the environment here, pitch by pitch. Especially the slider was really good. It’s getting better as it goes. Yeah, felt really good.”

Sugano allowed back-to-back home runs to Daniel Schneemann and Austin Hedges in the third.

“I could have prevented the second home run, but it was according to the plan. Honestly, I wasn’t really worried about that afterwards,” Sugano said.

“What we saw in spring training, too, was a guy who has command of multiple pitches with a good split-finger,” Hyde said. “Fastball’s got some life to it when it’s backed up behind the off-speed stuff. He’s got a feel for the cutter, the breaking ball, and he doesn’t walk people.”

Does the offense feel stronger this week? Hyde liked how the lineup worked together and saw a better Henderson.

“I talked to him a little bit about kind of what I was thinking, and he shared that a little bit jumpy at the plate and just get him to kind of get in the flow of the game maybe a little bit,” Hyde said. “I think that might be helpful. I was hoping Ced would get on base there in the first. He had a great at-bat and didn’t end well, but the bunt just went foul and the line drive down the line just went foul. But then you saw Ced works walks, and when you get traffic in front of Gunnar, you’re in good shape.”

Henderson, who missed most of spring training because of a strain of the right intercostal muscle, thought batting second was helpful.

“Just didn’t have to rush in, was able to take a breath and kind of feel comfortable in the box,” he said. “Still just getting the reps that I need to. Didn’t have a spring to do that. Been kind of going all over the place. Just needed some at-bats, just kind of take a breath.”

Why was it important to win this game? The Orioles won consecutive games for the first time this season and have their first series win.

“I feel like it’s been a long time since a series win,” Hyde said. “It’s a lot more fun. Really happy with how our team played.”

O’Hearn has homered in consecutive games, but winning the game is more important.

“Huge. Get that first series win,” O’Hearn said. “We look at this thing in chunks, in series. First series win is a big deal and I think we’re going to build off that. Another team coming in tomorrow, a chance to win another series. That’s kind of how we look at it. Today was a big day.”

What does it mean? The Orioles would like to finish the homestand with a winning record. They’re 3-2, and need to win two of three against Cincinnati.

What’s the word? “That’s an All-Star player. That’s a Gold Glove, All-Star player. That’s a guy that plays in the WBC. That type of player, you want that up as much as possible.”-Hyde on Mullins batting leadoff

What’s the stat of the day? The Orioles won their first series at home since September 2^nd-4^th, 2024 against the Chicago White Sox.

What’s going on in the minor leagues? Shortstop Jeremiah Jackson had three hits as Double-A Chesapeake beat Richmond, 4-3.

Michael Forret pitched five hitless innings, striking out nine, and allowed a run in High-A Aberdeen’s 7-3 loss to Brooklyn.

Forret was relieved by Ty Weatherly, who gave up six runs, five earned, in 3 2/3 innings.

Chase Allsup allowed six runs in 3 1/3 innings in Single-A Delmarva’s 10-1 loss to Carolina. The Shorebirds had just four hits and committed five errors.

What’s next? Cade Povich (0-1, 3.60) will start against Andrew Abbott (1-0, 1.70) when the Orioles begin a three-game series with the Cincinnati Reds on Friday at 7:05 p.m.

Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich,@BaltimoreBaseball.com