Tillman baffling batters with entire arsenal

BALTIMORE — Despite being in first place the entire first month of the season, the Orioles knew continued success would hinge on their largely-underperforming rotation turning the corner.

Opening Day starter Chris Tillman has done exactly that. The righty, coming off a dominant nine-strikeout performance against the Rays, did the same thing Tuesday night, holding the last-place Yankees to one run on five hits and again punching out nine in the Orioles’ 4-1 win.

“Since the first day of Spring Training, it’s been — I don’t know if ‘encouraging’ is the word — just kind of a reminder of how good he’s capable of being and how good he’s been for us,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Tillman, who improved to 3-1 with a 2.81 ERA following his third consecutive quality start.

“I think he’s carrying a little more stuff — curveball, slider, changeup, all three were there for him and [catcher] Matt [Wieters] was aware of it. Sometimes he’ll go an inning or two without …

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