Anthony Santander hits two homers in the win
By JakeRill | 10:18 p.m. EDT
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ATLANTA — Are the red-hot Orioles real, or were they the beneficiaries of an easier game schedule early in the season against mostly under-500 teams?
Baltimore took the first step to disprove that latter narrative at Truist Park on Friday night. Because not even Max Fried and the formidable Braves could slow down the momentum of the Orioles. And Anthony Santander had a lot to do with it.
Santander hit two home runs — including a grand slam during a seven-run seventh inning — and drove in five runs as the O’s began their three-game weekend streak in Atlanta with a 9-4 win. Baltimore improved to 22-10 and now has the second-best record in MLB, behind American League East’s only rival Tampa Bay (27-6).
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The Orioles recorded their 18th win in 23 games by tagging Fried for seven carries (five earned) over more than six innings. However, the southpaw had only allowed two runs through six via Gunnar Henderson’s RBI groundout in the third and Santander’s solo homer in the fourth.
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During the seventh, Baltimore sent 13 batters to the plate. The first five reached base, starting with Cedric Mullins’ leading homer that took the O’s lead to 3-1. Fried left after his second throwing error of the night allowed Baltimore to go 4-1, and Adleyrutschman left to load bases with no outs.
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Shortly after the Braves turned on right-back Joe Jiménez, Santander cleared the bases by scoring another grand slam that increased the Orioles’ lead to 8-1 and put the game out of reach. Mullins topped the scoring in the big inning by driving with a single in another run.
On the other side of the pitching matchup, Baltimore right-hander Dean Kremer turned in a much-needed strong play. After posting a 6.67 ERA in his first six starts — five of which he allowed four or more runs — the 27-year-old passed Fried by throwing six innings of a one-run ball. Kremer dished out six hits and two walks, hitting three and relying mostly on his defense, spinning double plays to end each of his last two frames.
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