After first pitch, it was all downhill
Yankees have defeated O’s in 15 consecutive games
NEW YORK — One more game Wednesday, and the Orioles are finally finished with the New York Yankees.
But one more game like Tuesday night’s 8-3 loss to the Yankees — their 15th straight to New York after winning twice here the first weekend of the season — might be more than anyone else can stand to watch.
This one couldn’t have started more simply. Domingo Germán retired the Orioles in order on 11 pitches in a quiet first inning, and then Orioles All-Star left-hander John Means allowed a home run to leadoff man DJ LeMahieu on the first pitch he threw.
For all of Means’ mastery in the first half, his struggles in the second half continued. Cameron Maybin singled to score two in the second, and a two-run Aaron Judge double plated two more in the fourth, chasing Means.
He allowed six earned runs in 31⁄ innings, and the 2.50 ERA he carried to the All-Star Game a month ago is now up to 3.76 in the span of five starts.
Solo home runs by Anthony Santander (No. 11), Stevie Wilkerson (No. 10), and Renato Núñez (No. 26) provided all of the Orioles’ offense, while Hanser Alberto, Rio Ruiz, and Jace Peterson each doubled to account for the rest of their six hits.
Shepherd shows well
Right-hander Miguel Castro finished off Means’ fourth inning before righthander Chandler Shepherd became the seventh Oriole to make his major league debut this season.
Shepherd allowed a run in the fifth inning, but navigated the Yankees lineup well. His first major league strikeout was on a 94 mph fastball that caught Aaron Judge looking, but the best moment of his day might have been getting Judge to line out to center field with the bases loaded to end the seventh inning.
He allowed a run on five hits with two strikeouts and three walks in four innings.
Ride the breeze
Both Wilkerson’s home run — a towering fly ball that scraped the right-field wall — and his signature catch in center field required a little bit of breeze under him to make happen.
Wilkerson ended the third inning and stranded two runners for Means when he tracked a line drive by Didi Gregorius and leapt backward to catch a line drive over his head.