BALTIMORE (AP) — Cedric Mullins hit a grand slam in the fifth inning, and the Baltimore Orioles beat the St. Louis Cardinals 11-5 to begin a crucial homestand Monday night.
The Orioles entered the day with a three-game lead over Tampa Bay atop the AL East, and they host the Rays for a four-game series after St. Louis leaves. Baltimore trailed 5-4 when Mullins hit a drive to right off reliever Andre Pallante, who had just replaced starter Dakota Hudson (6-2).
The Orioles withstood a shaky outing from Dean Kremer, who allowed five runs in 4 1/3 innings. D.L. Hall (1-0) won in relief.
Gunnar Henderson also homered for Baltimore. He and Aaron Hicks each had three hits.
The Cardinals dropped to 63-81, meaning their streak of 15 straight winning seasons is over.
Down 5-3, the Orioles began their decisive rally in the fifth thanks to two of their biggest stars: Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson both singled. One out later, Ryan O’Hearn doubled home a run, and Hudson was pulled after walking Ryan Mountcastle to load the bases.
Mullins’ 14th home run of the year put Baltimore ahead, and Henderson added a solo shot an inning later.
Kremer walked two in the first inning and paid for it when Willson Contreras hit an RBI single, but the Orioles’ aggressive baserunning paid off in the second.
Mullins tried to go from first to third on Hicks’ single to center. He made it when the throw was wide, and when Hicks tried to advance to second, Nolan Arenado threw the ball into right field for an error, allowing Mullins to score.
Ramón Urías added an RBI single for Baltimore in the inning.
Kremer couldn’t hold the lead, yielding RBI singles to Arenado, Contreras and Jordan Walker in the third.
Hicks hustled out a double in the fourth and scored on a single by Adam Frazier, but Alec Burleson’s run-scoring single put St. Louis up 5-3.
Austin Hays made a sensational diving catch in left field in the eighth when the Cardinals had two on and two out. Then he hit a two-run single in the bottom half.
STILL GOING
The Orioles have gone 86 consecutive series of at least two decisions without being swept. That’s the longest streak since the Cardinals set the record of 124 from 1942-44, according to information from the Elias Sports Bureau released by the Orioles.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Orioles: GM Mike Elias said before the game that star closer Félix Bautista (right UCL) is able to throw off flat ground, and the team can afford to be patient when determining his status. Elias did confirm the injury is a partial tear.
UP NEXT
The Orioles send John Means to the mound Tuesday night for his first appearance since having Tommy John surgery in April 2022. St. Louis starts Adam Wainwright (3-11).
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
