D-backs come up short in 12 innings vs. O’s

BALTIMORE — As Orioles manager Buck Showalter likes to say: delayed, not denied.

Mark Trumbo’s 12th-inning walkoff homer kept the Orioles right in the thick of the American League Wild Card race Friday night, leading Baltimore to a 3-2, 12-inning win over the D-backs in a four-hour series opener.

Backed by six scoreless innings from the bullpen, the Orioles snapped a four-game losing streak and stayed one-half game behind Detroit for the AL’s second Wild Card spot. It marked just their third victory in their last nine home games.

“Momentum is your next game, it really is. I’m glad our guys feel good about themselves for one night, they’ve been frustrated,” Showalter said. “They’ve earned the right to play these meaningful games and I’m happy for them. What it means, like I said, momentum is usually your next starting pitcher.”

Trumbo’s blast, which came off Arizona reliever Matt Koch, led off the bottom of the 12th and was his 44th homer on the year. It also capped the O’s rally effort, as homers by both Pedro Alvarez and Matt Wieters saw the Orioles scored three unanswered runs.

Alvarez put the Orioles on the board with a two-out homer in the eighth off reliever Enrique Burgos with Wieters connecting for a game-tying solo blast in the ninth.

“All losses are tough, we’ve had a lot of them this year, so they’ve all been tough,” D-backs manager Chip Hale said. “They did a great job of battling back and tying the game and we did a great job of stopping them from winning the game a couple of times.”

Fresh off a four-game sweep by the Red Sox, the O’s were held scoreless by D-backs righty Shelby Miller, who entered the game 2-12 with a 6.90 ERA. Miller allowed three hits and three walks over his six innings, turning in his first scoreless outing.

Baltimore starter Yovani Gallardo also went six innings, allowing two runs — on doubles by Jake Lamb and Jean Segura.

MOMENTS THAT MATTEREDWieters comes up clutch: Baltimore was …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com