BALTIMORE (AP) — Trevor Rogers pitched into the seventh inning and Blaze Alexander hit a two-run single to lift the Baltimore Orioles to a 3-1 victory over the Washington Nationals on Friday night.
Washington has lost four straight and seven of nine.
Rogers (5-7) followed up his seven one-hit innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers last weekend by allowing a run and five hits in 6 1/3 innings Friday. He struck out seven without a walk.
Tyler Wells finished the seventh, Grant Wolfram struck out two in the eighth and Ryan Helsley worked a perfect ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.
Andrew Alvarez (1-1) permitted two runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings.
After Coby Mayo led off the bottom of the fourth with a double, Tyler O’Neill drew a walk and Jackson Holliday also earned base on balls two outs later. Then Alexander hit a line drive to left to put Baltimore up 2-0.
Alexander quickly cost the Orioles another run, though, when he tried to go from first to third on Taylor Ward’s single. Holliday would have scored easily from second on the play, but Alexander was thrown out at third before Holliday reached the plate.
It was not even the first time this month those two players were involved in a mishap like that. On June 8 against Seattle, Holliday tagged up from third on a deep flyout, but Alexander tried to advance from first to second and was tagged for the third out before Holliday made it home.
This time the Orioles overcame the mistake. Keibert Ruiz singled home a run for the Nationals in the fifth, but that’s all they managed. Mayo answered with an RBI double in the seventh.
Up next
Brandon Young (6-2) starts for the Orioles on Saturday night against Washington’s Foster Griffin (8-2).
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Rogers sharp again for the Orioles in a 3-1 victory over Washington
