Ramon Laureano homered twice Saturday in a game he didn’t start as the Baltimore Orioles beat the visiting Cincinnati Reds 9-5.
Cedric Mullins, Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg also homered as the Orioles evened the series at one game apiece. Ramon Urias added two hits.
Laureano’s homers came in the third inning with a runner on base and in the seventh with the bases empty. He might not have played at all if Heston Kjerstad hadn’t departed after being hit by a pitch on the elbow in the first inning.
Jake Fraley and ex-Oriole Austin Hays homered while TJ Friedl went 4-for-4 for the Reds, who lost for the third time in their last eight games.
It was the shortest outing this season for Reds ace Hunter Greene (2-2) entered the game with an 0.98 ERA, but he was done after allowing five runs in three innings. It was his shortest outing since Sept. 22.
Baltimore’s Brandon Young, a 26-year-old right-hander making his major league debut, lasted a little longer. He worked four innings and allowed three runs on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts.
Seranthony Dominguez (2-0), the fourth of eight Baltimore pitchers, was awarded the victory after pitching a scoreless inning. When the Reds threatened in the ninth, Felix Bautista entered and retired all three batters he faced to pick up his second save.
Gavin Lux and Hays had two hits apiece for Cincinnati. The Reds scored first on Lux’s two-out single in the first.
Baltimore opened with back-to-back homers from Mullins and Henderson. It was a stunning beginning for Greene, who entered the day with a string of 18-plus scoreless innings.
Cincinnati claimed a 3-2 lead in the second on Fraley’s homer and Friedl’s RBI double. The Reds collected seven hits off Young in the first two innings.
Henderson’s double tied the game at 3 in the bottom of the second before Laureano’s two-run homer in the third gave the Orioles the lead for keeps.
The Orioles scored two in the seventh and two in the eighth — all off reliever Carson Spiers — to build a 9-4 edge before Hays homered in the ninth.
–Field Level Media
