BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Orioles may look different after a busy trade deadline, but they continue to find ways to stay in the American League playoff race.
Pete Alonso delivered the biggest hit of the night with a two-run single, Tyler O'Neill added a pinch-hit home run and Cade Povich turned in six scoreless innings in his return to the rotation as the Orioles defeated the Los Angeles Angels, 3-1, on Tuesday night at Camden Yards.
Baltimore improved to 55-58 and moved within 1½ games of the final American League Wild Card spot despite dealing away several key contributors at the trade deadline, including catcher Adley Rutschman, outfielder Taylor Ward and pitchers Dean Kremer and Tyler Wells.
Povich, making his first major league start since early May after recovering from left elbow inflammation, looked sharp throughout his outing. The left-hander scattered seven hits over six scoreless innings, struck out seven and walked one while throwing 88 pitches, including 60 strikes. With Kremer traded to the Minnesota Twins, Povich seized the opportunity to solidify his place in Baltimore's rotation.
The Orioles broke through in the third inning against former Baltimore right-hander Grayson Rodriguez. Rookie Christian Franklin, making his major league debut in left field after replacing the departed Ward in the lineup, reached base and later scored on Alonso's two-run single to give Baltimore a 2-0 advantage.
Rodriguez, who was dealt to the Angels during the offseason in the trade that brought Ward to Baltimore, pitched one of his strongest games of the season despite taking the loss. The right-hander worked a season-high seven innings, allowing just two runs on three hits while lowering his ERA to 7.24. He fell to 3-4 on the year.
The Angels finally broke through in the eighth inning when Vaughn Grissom lined an RBI double off Andrew Kittredge, cutting Baltimore's lead to 2-1. However, O'Neill answered immediately in the bottom half of the inning, launching a pinch-hit solo home run off Mitch Farris for his eighth homer of the season and third as a pinch hitter this year.
Yennier Cano closed the door with a scoreless ninth inning to earn his second save.
Los Angeles finished with 11 hits but repeatedly missed scoring opportunities, going just 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. The Angels stranded multiple runners throughout the night and were unable to capitalize against Povich or Baltimore's bullpen.
The series continues Wednesday with left-hander Reid Detmers (3-9, 4.03 ERA) scheduled to start for the Angels against Orioles left-hander Trevor Rogers (6-7, 4.27 ERA).