Adam Jones Homers In 15th, Lifts Orioles To Win
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Adam Jones turned his night around with a swing of the bat. Jones homered with one out in the 15th inning, lifting the Baltimore Orioles to a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night.
Jones was hitless in six at-bats before connecting for his team-leading 12th home run -- nine of them tying the game or giving the Orioles a lead. Jones sent a 2-2 pitch from Nate Adcock (0-1), the fifth Kansas City pitcher, far over the left field wall.
Jones came to the plate in the third, eighth and 12th innings with runners in scoring position.
"I had three opportunities earlier with men in scoring position that I did not succeed in, which is by far the most frustrating thing for me," Jones said. "I was 0 for 3. I did not give one of my seven at-bats away. I can live with myself when I do that."
Adcock hung a slider and Jones delivered.
"I had some pitches to hit, just missed them, part of it, 0 for 6," Jones said. "Some people were behind me, yelling at me, `Hey, come on Jones.' I showed them. After I hit that, they shut the heck up."
Jones is hitting .290 with 24 RBIs and could earn a return trip to Kansas City on July 10 to for the All-Star game at Kauffman Stadium.
"I know Jonesy was a little frustrated there with some previous at-bats, but he got back under control and hit a mistake," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "Jonesy is having a great year. Jonesy doesn't ever give in. You always feel like if he struggles at some point someone is going to pay down the line. He doesn't forget. It's nothing personal. It's competition. It's just the way he's wound. He's a very competitive young man."
The Orioles improved to 5-0 in extra-inning road games.
"It's pretty crazy what this team does," said Orioles starting pitcher Tommy Hunter. "It's 13 innings, 15 innings, 17 innings."
The Orioles beat the Red Sox 9-6 in 17 innings on May 6.
Kevin Gregg (1-1) pitched two hitless innings, walking one, to pick up the victory. Jim Johnson earned his 13th save.
Royals right-hander Felipe Paulino, who was making only his third start after beginning the season on the disabled list with a right forearm strain, held the Orioles to five hits in seven scoreless innings. He struck out nine and walked two.
"Great pitching from Paulino and great pitching from Adcock," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "They gave us an opportunity to put it away. We just couldn't do it."
The Royals bullpen had a 1.04 ERA in the past seven games but relievers Jonathan Broxton and Kelvin Herrera gave up three runs on six hits in the eighth and ninth innings.
Broxton was trusted with a 3-1 lead in the ninth, but blew his second seven in 10 opportunities and his first since April 11 at Oakland. Broxton gave up a solo homer to Wilson Betemit with one out and three singles to produce the tying run. J.J. Hardy's two-out hit scored pinch-runner Ryan Flaherty to make it 3-all.
Humberto Quintero's two-out single in the fifth scored Jeff Francoeur, who led off the inning with a double, and Alcides
Escobar, who was hit by a pitch. It was Quintero's first multi-RBI game with the Royals.
The Orioles cut the lead to 2-1 in the eighth, when Hardy and Nick Markakis led off the inning with doubles against rookie
reliever Herrera.
Alex Gordon's two-out double in the eighth scored Mitch Maier to give the Royals a 3-1 advantage. Maier ran for Billy Butler, who had singled for his second hit.
Orioles starter Tommy Hunter yielded two runs on seven hits in seven innings. He threw only 82 pitches and was backed by double plays in three of the first four innings.
Royals second baseman Chris Getz left with a bruised left rib after a collision with Chris Davis on an infield single in the
fifth inning. Irving Falu replaced Getz in the seventh inning and singled. Falu has a hit in each of his five big league games.
NOTES: Royals LHP Danny Duffy, who has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, will see Dr. Lewis Yocum on Friday in Tempe, Ariz., for a second opinion. ... The Royals have not announced who will start Friday and Sunday against Arizona. "If everything holds to form," Yost said he would probably start RHP Luis Mendoza Friday and RHP Vin Mazzaro Sunday. Mazzaro made his first start Tuesday at Teas and picked up the victory, allowing three runs in five innings. LHP Brian Matusz, who is 1-2 with a 5.29 ERA in three road appearances, will start Thursday for the Orioles. The Royals will counter with RHP Luke Hochevar, who is 0-2 with an 11.91 ERA in three home starts. ... The Orioles are 11-1
when Jones' homers. ... Royals 1B Eric Hosmer went 0 for 7 to drop his average to .174.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
