Every Oriole Gets Hit In 7-4 Win At Texas
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Adam Jones homered while every Baltimore starter had a hit, Miguel Gonzalez pitched another solid game on the road and the Orioles held on to beat the sliding Texas Rangers 7-4 on Saturday night.
Rangers starter Ross Wolf (1-3) was done after the first four batters in the third reached base -- all scored to put Baltimore up 7-0. Wolf gave up nine hits to the 16 batters he faced, and his only two strikeouts ended the first with the bases loaded after the Orioles had already scored twice.
Gonzalez (8-3) scattered eight hits and allowed one run in 6 2-3 innings. He left after his 104th pitch, when Ian Kinsler had a sac fly for the first Texas run.
In 20 career road games (18 starts), Gonzalez's 2.83 ERA is the lowest for AL starting pitchers with at least 100 innings since the beginning of the 2012 season. He also worked into at least the sixth in his 23rd consecutive start, the third-longest active streak in the majors.
Jim Johnson worked the ninth for his majors-best 35th save.
The Rangers have lost six of their last seven games.
Baltimore's 17 hits were one shy of its season high. Matt Wieters had three hits and Jones was among six players with two for the Orioles, who have won five of six.
Jones hit his 20th homer on the first pitch of the third. Chris Davis followed with a double, Wieters walked and J.J. Hardy singled to load the bases. Brian Roberts had a two-run single before Henry Urrutia, the 26-year-old Cuban prospect in his major league debut after only 67 minor league games, had an RBI single.
Jones and Davis had consecutive RBI singles in the first. An inning later, Nate McLouth tripled and scored on Manny Machado's hit.
The Orioles even had two runners thrown out on the bases in their four-run third.
Roberts initially retreated to first before running toward an unoccupied second base, but shortstop Elvis Andrus hustled there to take a throw and tag out Roberts. Urrutia went to third on that play, but was thrown out trying to score on Nate McLouth's flyball to left.
A.J. Pierzynski blocked the plate for the inning-ending out against Urrutia, but the Rangers catcher had a baserunning gaffe of his own.
Pierzynski was at first after a leadoff single in the second when Andrus blooped a ball into the short center field. Pierzynski stopped about halfway to second when Jones held up his glove like he was about to make the catch. After the ball dropped in front of him, Jones threw to second to force out Pierzynski.
Notes: The start of the game and a pregame ceremony for 14-time All-Star catcher Ivan Rodriguez into the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame were delayed 30 minutes by rain. ... Orioles LF Nolan Reimold is scheduled to have surgery next week to correct a spinal fusion procedure. He had his first neck surgery last June, but tests this week showed that his spine never fused properly and has to be fixed. His first surgery was the same procedure that NFL quarterback Peyton Manning had.
(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
