Davis' Slam, 5 RBIs Carry Orioles Over Twins 9-5
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Chris Davis extended his torrid start with a grand slam and five RBIs, and the Baltimore Orioles used a five-run eighth inning to beat Minnesota 9-5 Friday in their home opener.
Davis became the fourth player in major league history to homer in his first four games of the season, joining Willie Mays, Mark McGwire and Nelson Cruz. He is 9 for 15 (.600) with four homers and 16 RBIs.
The Orioles trailed 5-4 before loading the bases with one out in the eighth against Casey Fien (0-1). After Adam Jones tied it with an RBI single, Davis greeted Twins reliever Tyler Robertson with an opposite-field shot to left on the first pitch.
The grand slam set off a wild celebration from the sellout crowd of 46,653, many of whom came to welcome back the Orioles from their banner 2012 season, when they ended a run of 14 years of losing with their first playoff appearance since 1997.
Luis Ayala (1-0) allowed two hits in scoreless 1 2-3 innings for the Orioles, who improved to 3-1 after taking two of three from Tampa Bay on the road.
Brian Dozier drove in three runs for the Twins, who were playing their first road game. Minnesota lost three straight in Baltimore to start last season.
Twins starter Liam Hendricks gave up four runs and eight hits in 4 2-3 innings. He retains his lifetime 1-10 record.
After Dozier put Minnesota ahead with an RBI single in the sixth, Fien struck out pinch-hitter Alexi Casilla in the seventh with runners at second and third and two outs. Casilla was hitting for Ryan Flaherty, who stranded five runners in his previous two at-bats.
But Baltimore completed the comeback in a big way in the eighth.
Starting his third straight home opener for the Orioles, Jake Arrieta was victimized by a four-run fourth inning in which he yielded three consecutive two-out RBI hits. The right-hander allowed four runs and seven hits over five-plus innings, and needed 95 pitches to do so.
Baltimore went up 1-0 in the third when Nate McLouth hit a two-out single, stole second and came home on Manny Machado's liner up the middle -- his first RBI of the season.
Minnesota responded with a four-run fourth. With two outs and two on, Chris Parmelee hit a broken-bat RBI single and Dozier followed with a two-run triple over the head of right fielder Nick Markakis. Eduardo Escobar capped the uprising with a run-scoring single.
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The Orioles tied it at 4 in the fifth. Markakis singled and scored on a double by Jones, who took third on the throw to the plate and came home on a sacrifice fly by Davis.
Before the game, the Orioles celebrated some of their accomplishments of last year and paid homage to Earl Weaver, the Hall of Fame manager who died in January.
J.J. Hardy, Jones and Matt Wieters received the Gold Gloves they won in 2012. Instead of a ceremonial first pitch, a baseball was placed next to the pitching rubber as a tribute to Weaver, who won 1,480 games over 17 seasons with the Orioles.
NOTES: The Orioles placed 2B Brian Roberts (right hamstring strain) on the 15-day DL and recalled infielder Yamaico Navarro from Triple-A Norfolk. ... Chris Tillman will come off the DL and start for the Orioles on Saturday night. The Twins will send Vance Worley (0-1) to the mound. ... Baltimore improved to 40-20 in home openers. ... Minnesota hasn't won in Baltimore since April 21, 2011.
(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
