Zach Eflin gets Baltimore off to a hot start, Gunnar Henderson has 3 hits, RBI as O’s stop Guards 7-4
CLEVELAND — Zach Eflin won his second straight start since joining Baltimore’s rotation and Gunnar Henderson had three hits and an RBI as the Orioles snapped Cleveland’s five-game winning streak, beating the Guardians 7-4 on Saturday night.
Eflin (7-7) cooled the American League Central-leading Guardians, holding them to two runs and four hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander was acquired from Tampa Bay on July 26 in exchange for three minor league players.
Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman hit a two-run triple in the eighth inning as the Orioles scored four times to take a 7-2 lead.
Henderson ended a 2-2 tie with an RBI single in the fifth as Baltimore remained tied with the New York Yankees atop the AL East.
José Ramírez and rookie Angel Martínez hit two-run homers for the Guardians, who still have the best record in the major leagues at 67-43.
Ramirez’s eighth-inning home run was his 29th and Cleveland’s 125th this season, surpassing the club’s total in 2023.
The Orioles led 3-2 and had runners on first and third in the eighth inning, when Rutschman hit a fly ball to right that fooled rookie Jhonkensy Noel. When Noel slipped and fell, the ball rolled to the wall, allowing both runners to score and Rutschman rushed to third base safely with a head-first slide.
Pinch-hitter Ryan O’Hearn followed with an RBI single to make it 6-2 and rookie Jackson Holliday’s walk-off hit capped the Orioles’ outburst.
Elfin was followed by Cionel Pérez and Seranthony Domínguez, who took the score to the ninth before Yennier Cano worked the ninth for his fifth save.
Rookie Joey Cantillo (0-1) started for Cleveland in place of Tanner Bibee, who was pushed back a few days because of a tight right shoulder. Bibee leads the Guardians in innings and strikeouts.
Cantillo allowed three runs and six hits in four innings.
Trailing 2-0, the Orioles tied it in the fourth inning thanks to Eloy Jiménez’s first RBI since arriving in a trade with the White Sox and a drive-in single by Colton Cowser, who extended his hitting streak to 16 games.
WELCOME TO THE HOUSE
CC Sabathia inducted into Cleveland Hall of Fame. Cooperstown could be next.
Sabathia, who won 251 career games before retiring in 2019, was inducted by the Guardians in a pregame ceremony. He was joined on the field by several former teammates, including Hall of Famer Jim Thome.
Although the 2007 AL Cy Young Award winner played 11 seasons with the Yankees, Sabathia has a soft spot for his first baseball home.
“This place has always been special to me because I was born and raised in California, but I grew up in Cleveland,” Sabathia said.
TRAINERS’ ROOM
Guardians: Manager Stephen Vogt said he’s “not too worried” about Bibee, who suffered shoulder discomfort earlier this season. … Right-handed pitcher Alex Cobb, acquired earlier this week in a trade from San Francisco, had five strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings for Triple-A Columbus in what could be his final start before rejoining Cleveland’s rotation. The 36-year-old hasn’t pitched in the major leagues this season after undergoing hip surgery.
FOLLOWING
Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (1.3, 2.72 ERA) starts the final series against Orioles right-hander Corbin Burnes (11-4, 2.47), who is 2-0 with a 1.83 ERA in three career starts against the Guardians. Burnes also leads the major leagues with 18 quality starts.
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