Baltimore Orioles hold off Red Sox 10-9

Adley Rutschman’s 5-for-5 Opening Day helped the Baltimore Orioles to a 10-9 win over the host Boston Red Sox on Thursday afternoon. Rutschman set the tone with a first-inning homer as Baltimore logged 15 hits, stole five bases and drew nine walks in the win.

Anthony Santander, Ramon Urias, Adam Frazier and Jorge Mateo had two hits apiece for Baltimore. Urias drove in two runs, Frazier scored three and Mateo and Cedric Mullins each swiped two bases. Kyle Gibson (1-0) was victorious in his first start as an Oriole, striking out three and allowing four runs on six hits across five innings. Boston trailed 10-4 after seven innings before scoring three runs in the eighth and two in the ninth.

In the eighth, Triston Casas drove a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to center before Christian Arroyo ripped a two-run double over Santander’s head on the warning track in left.

Justin Turner’s infield single to deep third and Masataka Yoshida’s fielder’s choice scored runs for Boston in the ninth, but Felix Bautista struck out Adam Duvall with the tying run on second base to end the game. Yoshida had two hits in his MLB debut. Alex Verdugo, Rafael Devers and Justin Turner also had two hits and scored two runs apiece for the Red Sox.

Casas and Arroyo each had two RBIs.

The Orioles wasted little time jumping on Boston newcomer Corey Kluber (0-1) as Rutschman homered into the right-field stands with one out in the first. In Boston’s half of the opening frame, Alex Verdugo ripped a second-pitch triple to deep center and scored the game-tying run on Devers’ groundout to first.

Kluber was charged with five runs on six hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings, striking out four. He threw 28 of his 80 pitches in the first frame. After a leadoff walk in the fourth, Urias hit a two-run homer over the Green Monster that put Baltimore back in front. The Orioles’ lead increased to 5-1 after a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk against reliever Zack Kelly.

The Red Sox responded on Duvall’s RBI single off the Monster. Devers scored after his leadoff ground-rule double. The fifth inning saw Baltimore do two-out damage. Mateo grounded an RBI single to right, then crossed the plate on Rutschman’s two-run liner to left after Mullins walked and stole second. After Devers and Turner began the sixth with back-to-back hits, Yoshida’s first hit and a Casas grounder brought Boston within 8-4. In the seventh, Frazier scored on a single by Mullins, who then swiped his second base to set up another RBI opportunity for Rutschman. –Field Level Media