– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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BALTIMORE — After their most dramatic win of the young season, the Baltimore Orioles put the ball in the hands of their most reliable starting pitcher, with the task of carrying over the good vibes and finally putting together another winning streak. Tyler Wells went out to the mound of Friday night and did not disappoint.
Wells twirled another quality start, pitching into the seventh inning and allowing two runs in the Orioles’ 3-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals inside Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Austin Hays had two extra-base hits, including a leadoff home run to start the game’s scoring, as Baltimore won consecutive games for the first time since May 25.
The Orioles were in danger of entering Friday’s contest on a three-game losing streak when it trailed 3-0 after six innings in Milwaukee, but Baltimore scored six runs in the final three innings, including a go-ahead two-run home run by Gunnar Henderson in the eighth inning, to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Brewers. The comeback could not have come at a better time with Wells, who came into tonight’s game leading the Majors in WHIP (0.849) and second in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (5.795), taking the hill tonight. Though he did not have his usual electric stuff tonight, Wells allowed just five hits in 6 2/3 innings, including retiring 10 batters in a row between the fourth and seventh innings.
After allowing two singles and a walk to load the bases with two outs and with the Orioles holding onto a 3-1 lead, Wells was replaced by Mike Baumann, who threw a wild pitch to allow a runner to score before striking out Nicky Lopez swinging to strand the tying run at third base.
Yennier Cano pitched a scoreless eighth inning for Baltimore before closer Félix Bautista struck out two batters in a 1-2-3 ninth inning to preserve the win.
After his dramatic homer in Milwaukee, Henderson followed that up with his first three-hit game of his career while also adding a couple of stolen bases.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Friday evening’s contest, with all photos taken by DC-area photographer Elliott Brown. After clicking on the first photo to enlarge the picture, make sure to press the left and right arrow buttons to scroll through the rest of the pictures. There are 25 pictures in total.
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