“We were playing the baseball that we’re capable of,” said Baltimore manager Craig Albernaz. “Just all the work that these guys have been putting in relentlessly every day, we’re starting to see the rewards now, and against some really good teams. It’s been fun to watch.”
Lefthander Connelly Early will take the mound for the Sox in Tuesday’s opener, while the Orioles will counter with righthander Shane Baz.
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ORIOLES (28-32): Ward LF, Henderson SS, Rutschman C, Alonso 1B, Basallo DH, Mayo 3B, O’Neill RF, Taveras CF, Alexander 2B.
Pitching: RHP Shane Baz (2-5, 4.48 ERA)
RED SOX (25-33): Duran LF, Rafaela CF, Abreu RF, Contreras 1B, Yoshida DH, Gasper C, Kiner-Falefa 2B, Mayer SS, Durbin 3B.
Pitching: LHP Connelly Early (5-2, 2.95 ERA)
Time: 6:45 p.m.
TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7
Orioles vs. Early: Blaze Alexander 0-2, Pete Alonso 0-3, Samuel Basallo 2-3, Gunnar Henderson 1-3, Jeremiah Jackson 0-2, Tyler O’Neill 0-3, Adley Rutschman 1-3, Taylor Ward 0-2
Red Sox vs. Baz: Wilyer Abreu 2-8, Willson Contreras 0-2, Jarren Duran 2-14, Mickey Gasper 0-3, Isiah Kiner-Falefa 1-4, Marcelo Mayer 1-2, Carlos Narváez 1-5, Ceddanne Rafaela 2-6, Connor Wong 0-5, Masataka Yoshida 0-5
Stat of the day: Excluding openers, Red Sox starting pitchers have allowed three or fewer earned runs in 22 of their last 28 games.
Notes: Early faced the Orioles for the first time in his career on April 26, recording the win and allowing just a pair of solo home runs on four hits through 6⅔ innings. … He tossed seven scoreless innings in an 8-0 win over the Braves his last time out on May 27. … The Red Sox have scored at least three runs in 11 of their last 14 games. … Aroldis Chapman has converted each of his last 27 save opportunities. It is the third-longest streak of successful save chances in franchise history (saves became official in 1969), trailing Tom Gordon’s 54 from April 19, 1988 to May 31, 1999 and and Koji Uehara’s 31 from July 9, 2013 to June 16, 2014. … Baz is 3-1 with a 2.64 ERA in five career starts against the Red Sox. He recorded a season-high nine strikeouts in seven innings of one-run ball against the last Tuesday, marking his third straight start working at least six frames and his second straight allowing just one run.
Information from Field Level Media was used in this story.
Follow Andrew Mahoney @GlobeMahoney.
