Orioles Rally Past Marlins 9‑7, Snap Five-Game Skid

MIAMI GARDENS (Interstat) — Samuel Basallo drove in four runs with three hits, including a double and a triple, and the Baltimore Orioles overcame a late Miami Marlins rally to win 9-7 on Tuesday night at loanDepot Park.

Basallo, the Orioles catcher who entered the game in a 1-for-12 slump over his previous four games, doubled in a run in the first inning, singled in two more in the third and tripled in a run in the fifth. His three-hit night lifted Baltimore to its second victory in 11 games after a four-game sweep at Yankee Stadium. The Orioles improved to 16-20, matching the Marlins’ record.

Baltimore jumped on Miami starter Andrew Nardi early. Gunnar Henderson led off the game with a single before a forceout and a walk put two on. Pete Alonso doubled into left field, scoring two runs when left fielder Kyle Stowers mishandled the ball, allowing Alonso to reach third. Basallo followed with a double to center, scoring Alonso for a 3-0 lead.

The Marlins answered in the bottom of the first. Xavier Edwards singled, moved to third on a Liam Hicks single and scored on an Otto Lopez groundout to make it 3-1. Miami tied the game in the second after two hit batters and a walk loaded the bases. Hicks delivered a two-run single to center, scoring Owen Caissie and Graham Pauley to knot the score 3-3.

Baltimore reclaimed the lead in the third. Taylor Ward walked, Alonso doubled to left and Basallo singled to right, plating both runners for a 5-3 advantage. The Orioles extended the lead in the fifth. Alonso walked, Basallo tripled to right to bring him home, and Colton Cowser reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Basallo for a 7-3 lead.

Miami chipped away in the seventh. Hicks led off with a solo home run to right, his eighth of the season. Lopez followed with a solo shot to center, his fourth, cutting the deficit to 7-5. The Marlins pulled within one in the eighth. Joe Mack singled and Caissie walked, then a flyout by Pauley allowed Mack to score on a sacrifice fly, making it 7-6. After a walk to Edwards, Hicks struck out to end the threat.

Baltimore answered in the ninth. Ward walked, and after a flyout, Alonso walked. Adley Rutschman singled to left to score Ward, and Leody Taveras singled to right to score Alonso, giving the Orioles a 9-7 cushion. Reliever Rico Garcia, who entered in the eighth with two outs and the tying run on base, retired the only batter he faced to strand two Marlins. Garcia pitched 1.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts to earn his third win against no losses. Nardi, who allowed seven runs over 4.2 innings, took the loss and fell to 2-2.

Hicks finished 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs for Miami. Pete Alonso had two doubles and two RBIs for Baltimore. The game featured eight pitchers combining for 11 strikeouts. Attendance was 6,600. Time of game was 3:07.

Baltimore’s bullpen, which had struggled in recent weeks, held Miami scoreless over the final 3.2 innings. Keegan Akin, Grant Wolfram and Garcia combined for 3.0 innings of one-hit relief, with Wolfram striking out two. The Orioles outhit the Marlins 10-9 and left seven runners on base.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Baltimore 4, Miami 6, and its ELO system gave the Marlins a 53.00 percent probability to win. Baltimore was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 16 went under the over-under line of 8.5.