LOS ANGELES — Jonathan Villar hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning to help the Baltimore Orioles to a 7-3 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night.
The 443-foot shot to left, off left-hander Caleb Ferguson (1-2), was the 6,106th in the majors this season, setting a new record.
The Dodgers clinched the National League West title with a win over the Orioles in the series opener on Tuesday. But Villar ruined any hopes Los Angeles had of a three-game sweep, breaking a 2-2 tie and putting the Orioles ahead for good.
The win ended the Orioles’ six-game losing streak and gave them 47 victories for the season, tying their 2018 total. Shawn Armstrong (1-1) earned the victory thanks to 1 2/3 innings of shutout relief on his 29th birthday.
Baltimore starter John Means threw 6 1/3 strong innings but again didn’t get much offensive support and came away with a no-decision. He gave up two runs on four hits and finished with six strikeouts, often baffling the Dodgers in his first appearance against them.
The Orioles took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning. Trey Mancini led off with a double, and Dwight Smith Jr. followed with a run-scoring double.
Means and Baltimore held the lead until the sixth. That’s when Austin Barnes doubled to start the inning, and A.J. Pollock followed with a two-run homer to center to give Los Angeles a 2-1 lead.
But the Orioles answered right back in the bottom half. New pitcher Joe Kelly walked Hanser Alberto to start the inning, and Alberto went to second on a wild pitch. Then, with two outs, Smith struck again, this time driving in the tying run on a single to right.
After Villar broke the tie with his seventh-inning blast, Pedro Severino added a two-run shot off Baltimore native Adam Kolarek in the eighth, giving the Orioles a 7-2 lead. — Reuters
