Yankees 10, Orioles 3: Hot bats and solid pitching clinch a series victory

Solid hits, reliable pitching, and a few timely bloops lifted the Yankees to a 10-3 win and series victory over the last-place Baltimore Orioles. It was a little tighter than expected through six and a half innings, but a big home half of the seventh carried the day.

Nobody expected to see the American League cellar dwellers get off to such a quick start against the reigning Pitcher of the Month for July, but the Orioles had already dented home plate before Jameson Taillon could even settle in on the mound. Cedric Mullins and Ramón Urías led off with back-to-back singles, and an error by Joey Gallo in left allowed the runners to advance. Ryan Mountcastle hit a sacrifice fly, Austin Hays dropped in a hit, and the Orioles were up, 2-0.

After the shaky first, however, Taillon appeared to get into a rhythm and struck out seven before allowing a solo homer to Mountcastle in the top of the fourth. Thankfully, that spelled the end of the Orioles’ offensive output, as Taillon continued to impress. The right-hander effectively used his curveball for the remainder of his outing, he notching 10 punchouts across 6.1 innings, allowing just one walk while holding the Orioles to just four hits and two earned runs.

The combined efforts of Taillon and the bullpen work of Jonathan Loaisiga, Clay Holmes, and Albert Abreu shut down the Birds’ batters for the rest of the evening.

As for the Yankee offense, former Mets ace Matt Harvey surprisingly kept them silent for three frames. A handful of deep fly balls in the third and fourth innings hinted at solid contact to come, but the Bombers remained hitless — that is, until Anthony Rizzo homered off Harvey to put the Yankees in the run column.

From there on out, the Yankees were exactly the team we hoped they would become since the start of the season. A resurgent DJ LeMahieu tied the game up with a single up the middle in the fifth, and then put the Yankees in front with another base hit to center in the seventh, scoring newcomer Jonathan Davis to make it a 4-3 game. It was all part of a big three-hit night for LeMahieu that featured four RBIs. Other Yankees with multi-hit games include Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton, who combined to plate five runs on their own.

It was Stanton who delivered the decisive blow, though it came in a much quieter fashion than we’re used to seeing from such a powerhouse:

It wasn’t a 116-mph line drive off the back wall, as the box score might suggest, but a 74.5-mph bloop double into shallow right that with two outs, easily cleared the bases. Blowing the game wide open and pushing the Yankees to a 7-3 lead, everyone was allowed to take a deep breath and rest a little easier. Even Davis, the newest addition to the roster, got his first hit in pinstripes and scored two runs after pinch-running for Kyle Higashioka.

This is the second game in a row that the Bronx Bombers scored at least 10 runs — a much-needed accomplishment as they continue to pursue a Wild Card spot while simultaneously keeping their AL East dreams alive.

Tomorrow, the Yankees will look to continue their improved hitting against the Seattle Mariners. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm EDT with Nestor Cortes Jr. set to face recent trade deadline acquisition Tyler Anderson.

Box Score