Baltimore 5, Cleveland 2
When: 7:10 PM ET, Friday, June 5, 2015
Where: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio
Temperature:
76°
Umpires:
Home -
Greg Gibson, 1B -
Chad Fairchild, 2B -
Ben May, 3B -
Marvin Hudson
Attendance:
26070
By The Sports Xchange
CLEVELAND -- Matt Wieters played in his first major league game in over a year, and Baltimore's all-star catcher was one of the heroes of the Orioles' 5-2 win over the Cleveland Indians on Friday night at Progressive Field.
Wieters was 2-for-3, including a double and two RBIs in his first game since May 10 of last year. Wieters' 2014 season ended that day and he underwent Tommy John surgery on June 17.
He has been rehabbing since, and prior to Friday's game the Orioles activated him off the disabled list.
"It's been a long time for Matt, but he's probably in the best shape of his life. He did a lot of work in Florida (in the team's extended spring program)," said Orioles manager Buck Showalter.
Nobody was happier to see Wieters than right-hander Chris Tillman, who pitched into the seventh inning to get the win, his first since April 18. Tillman went 0-6 with a 6.10 ERA in seven starts between wins.
Tillman said he enjoys working with Wieters behind the plate.
"I haven't shook him off in years. He knows what I want to throw. It's good to have him back," said Tillman.
Center fielder Adam Jones also contributed to the win with a home run, a triple and two RBIs.
Jones' solo home run off right-hander Shaun Marcum broke a 2-2 tie in the sixth inning. The home run landed deep in the left field bleachers, a drive estimated at 423 feet.
"It was a bad pitch, up in the zone and he did what he's supposed to do with pitches like that," said Marcum. "It was supposed to be a changeup down and away but I left it up and in the middle of the plate and he put a good swing on it."
The Orioles added two insurance runs off right-hander Zach McAllister in the eighth inning.
Right fielder Travis Snider led off the Baltimore eighth with a single. Jones then drove a triple to right field, scoring Snider to make it 4-2. Jones later scored on a sacrifice fly by Wieters to stretch the Orioles lead to 5-2.
Tillman (3-7) pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on six hits with three strikeouts and three walks.
"He has some finish to his fastball and he got it past our barrels enough," said Cleveland manager Terry Francona.
Left-hander Zach Britton pitched the ninth to pick up his 15th save.
Marcum (2-1) also pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on eight hits, with four strikeouts and one walk.
The game was the first of a six-game homestand for the Indians, who were coming off a 5-2 road trip to Seattle and Baltimore.
The Indians are one of the worst home teams in the American League. They are 16-13 on the road but just 10-15 at home.
Tillman did not allow a runner past first base in the first four innings Friday, holding Cleveland scoreless on one hit.
Marcum held the Orioles scoreless on two hits through the first three innings before he walked first baseman Chris Davis with one out in the fourth.
Wieters then doubled off the wall in left field, scoring Davis with the first run of the game. Wieters went to third on a groundout by designated hitter Jimmy Paredes. Second baseman Ryan Flaherty followed with a single, scoring Wieters and giving Baltimore a 2-0 lead.
Cleveland tied it with a two-run rally in the fifth inning. Catcher Yan Gomes led off with a single and went to third on a one-out single by shortstop Mike Aviles. Second baseman Jason Kipnis singled, scoring Aviles and cutting the Baltimore lead to 2-1.
First baseman Carlos Santana flied out for the second out, but designated hitter Michael Brantley singled to left, scoring Aviles with the tying run.
NOTES: The Orioles made several roster moves prior to the game: C Matt Wieters (elbow surgery) was activated off the disabled list after missing more than a year, INF Rey Navarro was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk and LHP Cesar Cabral's contract was selected from
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Baltimore |
|
Cleveland |
Chris Tillman
|
Player |
Shaun Marcum |
Win |
W/L |
Loss |
6.1 |
IP |
6.1 |
3 |
Strikeouts |
4 |
6 |
Hits |
8 |
2.84 |
ERA |
4.26 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Hits |
HR |
TB |
Avg |
LOB |
K |
RBI |
BB |
SB |
Errors |
Baltimore
|
11 |
1 |
17 |
.324 |
10 |
7 |
5 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Cleveland
|
7 |
0 |
8 |
.212 |
19 |
6 |
2 |
4 |
0 |
0 |