Orioles bash four homers, take series vs. Royals

Jonathan Villar, Anthony Santander, Renato Nunez and Hanser Alberto homered as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the visiting Kansas City Royals 8-1 on Wednesday night in the rubber game of a three-game series.

Baltimore has won two straight games after dropping eight in a row. Kansas City lost for the fourth time in five games.

The four home runs gave the Orioles seven of their eight runs on the night. Baltimore took an early 3-0 lead and never trailed.

That helped starter Aaron Brooks (3-7) earn his first win with the Orioles after he took started 0-4 since being acquired from the Oakland A's. Brooks gave up one run and scattered seven hits in five innings, working his way out of a few jams. He walked one and struck out four.

Baltimore relievers Paul Fry, Shawn Armstrong and Richard Bleier then blanked the Royals -- keeping them hitless -- over the final four innings.

Royals starter Mike Montgomery (3-6) allowed five runs on eight hits -- including three homers -- in five innings. He struck out three and walked three.

The Orioles took the lead in the second inning when Villar belted a two-run homer. Stevie Wilkerson added an RBI double later in the inning that made it 3-0.

Whit Merrifield hit a solo homer for Kansas City in the third inning, the 258th homer the Orioles have given up this season, tying a major league record set by the 2016 Cincinnati Reds. But Baltimore answered in the fifth as Santander and Nunez hit back-to-back solo homers that made it 5-1.

The home runs came as both players were trying to get out of slumps. Santander had been 2-for-36 when he came up, and Nunez was 1-for-18.

Alberto then broke the game open with a three-run homer off Tim Hill in the sixth. It was the second straight night Alberto hit a three-run blast, as his eighth-inning shot Tuesday gave the Orioles a 4-1 win.

This time, Baltimore took an 8-1 lead.

--Field Level Media