Adam Jones has been on a tear to start the season. Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
BALTIMORE — Adam Jones homered for the fourth time in five games, and starter Miguel Gonzalez struck out a career-high 10 batters in seven innings as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the New York Yankees 4-3 on Tuesday night.
Jones went 1-for-3 with two RBIs on a solo homer and a sacrifice fly. The center fielder now is 11-for-17 in the first five games of this homestand.
Gonzalez (1-1) shut down the Yankees (3-5) during his seven innings of work. The right-hander allowed one run on four hits and fanned 10, closing his night by striking out the side in the top of the seventh.
First baseman Mark Teixiera’s RBI double in the sixth was all Gonzalez allowed, and the right-hander left with a 4-1 lead.
New York scored twice against right-hander Kevin Gausman in the eighth. Right fielder Carlos Beltran got an RBI grounder, and left fielder Alejandro De Aza’s error on a Teixiera fly ball let in a second run.
Closer Zach Britton came on and ended the inning on catcher Brian McCann’s ground out. Britton earned his second save with a perfect ninth.
Left-hander CC Sabathia (0-2) went seven innings and took the loss. He allowed four runs on seven hits.
In addition to Jones, catcher Caleb Joseph recorded an RBI single and later added his first career triple in the seventh before scoring on shortstop Everth Cabrera’s sacrifice fly that gave the Orioles (4-4) a 4-1 lead.
The Orioles took an early 1-0 lead when Jones belted a solo homer to left off Sabathia with two outs in the first.
NOTES: Orioles manager Buck Showalter shook up his lineup after Monday’s loss. DH Chris Davis, who struck out four times in that game, was dropped down from third to sixth in the Tuesday lineup. Davis now has struck out 10 times in 23 at-bats this season. …Showalter also said that C Matt Wieters, doing rehab in Florida due to elbow tendinitis, took five at-bats in extended spring training and threw long toss of 150 feet. …Yankees manager Joe Girardi gave Alex Rodriguez his first day off after the veteran started the team’s first seven games, including playing at third base for the first time in Monday’s win over the Orioles. …LF Brett Gardner was not in the starting lineup for Tuesday’s game after getting hit on the wrist in the first inning Monday and having the wrist stiffen up later, forcing him out in the seventh. Girardi said before Tuesday’s game that he wasn’t sure if Gardner would be able to pinch-run or play defense, but the Yankees hoped he would be all the way back by Friday.
