Urías’ home run leads Orioles past Yankees, 5-3; Rutschman scratched with side tightness

NEW YORK–What happened? After four exhausting games in Tampa, where the heat was stifling, the Orioles flew into New York, getting in around 4 a.m., and behind Ramón Urías’ fifth home run in the eighth inning, they beat the Yankees, 5-3, before 47,034 at Yankee Stadium on Friday night.

Urías led off the eighth against Luke Weaver (1-2) and deposited a pitch into the short right-field stands for a 4-3 lead.

“It’s a short porch,” Urías said. “I know that it’s only gone here, but I was pretty sure that it was going.”

Gunnar Henderson added a pinch-hit single that scored Gary Sánchez and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.

Scott Blewett (3-0) pitched the seventh and eighth, retiring all six batters he faced. The final one was Paul Goldschmidt, who was robbed of a base hit by an excellent stop by second baseman Jordan Westburg.

“Blewett, we kind of reversed roles, just to stay in the game as long as we could was the idea how we used [him],” interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “The whole thing kind of set up on Scotty getting through the seventh and eighth, and he did it pretty easily, great play by Westy. It kind of went perfectly. If it doesn’t go that way, I’m not so sure we can hold on and win that game.”

The Orioles played without Adley Rutschman, who was scratched shortly before game time with left abdominal tightness.

“We’ll get it checked out and we’ll have more information tomorrow,” Mansolino said. “Right before the game. During [batting practice], it flared up. Scott [Barringer] our trainer, smart guy, been around this a long time pulled the plug right away to make sure. We’ll get it checked out and we’ll have more information on what the next steps are.”

With the win, the Orioles are 33-42, the first time they’ve been nine games under .500 since May 11^th.

Sánchez’s two-run single in the first against Max Fried gave the Orioles a 2-0 lead. Oriole starter Tomoyuki Sugano allowed two runs in the bottom of the first on Jazz Chisholm’s RBI single and Jasson Domínguez’s sacrifice fly.

Aaron Judge hit his 27^th home run in the third, and the Orioles trailed, 3-2.

Sugano worked 3 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits. Keegan Akin replaced him and allowed a single to Jazz Chisholm. DJ LeMahieu was out trying to score.

Akin, Yennier Cano, Blewett and Félix Bautista combined for 5 1/3 scoreless innings on three hits. Bautista recorded his 16^th save.

Coby Mayo’s RBI single in the sixth tied it at 3.

Ramón Laureano made another key play, throwing out DJ LeMahieu in the fourth to save a run.

“This is probably one of the most underrated free-agent signings, the way this guy is playing,” Mansolino said. “You look up on the board, and it’s an .850-ish OPS. It’s Gold Glove defense. It’s impact defense, it’s walks. It’s huge. He’s been so good here. Nobody’s really noticing him, other than the people in that clubhouse.”

How strong was the bullpen? Sugano, who has failed to complete five innings in his last three starts, was grateful for the bullpen.

“Lately they’ve been picking me up really well, so next outing I want to make sure I go the distance,” Sugano said through his translator.

Blewett recorded his first win with the Orioles.

“We all pick each other up,” he said. “It doesn’t matter the day. It doesn’t matter what the score is. We all kind of just go out.

“Big-league innings are big-league innings and when they call on us, everybody’s ready, everybody’s prepared and it’s awesome to watch. Whenever that phone rings and you get that opportunity to go out and give it your all.”

He was excited about Westburg’s excellent play to end his stint.

“Unbelievable. When I go out and pitch, I go up and try to fill up the zone and if I strike guys out, I strike guys out, but you let the defense play behind you and Westy kind of proved that right there,” Blewett said.

What does it mean? The Orioles were tired after their games in the Tampa heat, and they were able to outlast the Yankees.

“The vibe in Tampa, which was dead to say the least, and then you walk into Yankee Stadium today after nobody got more than four or five or six hours of sleep, everybody’s out there in BP and they’re flying all over the field, so you had a good feeling,” Mansolino said.

What’s the stat of the day? The Orioles are 3-2 on their road trip. They need to win either Saturday or Sunday for a winning trip.

What’s the word? “It’s amazing. We’ve been doing such a good job lately as a team. We’ve been playing great defense, we’re taking great at-bats and the pitching is doing their job, too. It’s just a joy to play right now.”-Urias on how the Orioles are playing.

What’s going on in the minor leagues? Brandon Young gave up just one run on two hits in five innings in his return to Triple-A Norfolk after missing seven weeks with a shoulder injury. Young struck out five without a walk.

The Tides beat Memphis, 3-1.

Outfielder Dylan Beavers was removed from the game after a collision with another player.

Designated hitter Creed Willems homered in Double-A Chesapeake’s 6-5 11-inning win over Erie.

High-A Aberdeen was held to three hits in a 7-2 loss to Brooklyn. The IronBirds committed four errors.

Single-A Delmarva made six errors in an 11-3 loss to Hickory.

What’s next? Zach Eflin (6-3,4.81) will face Clarke Schmidt (3-3, 3.16) on Saturday at 1:05 p.m.

Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com