BALTIMORE — Kyle Gibson on Saturday wasn’t the pitcher the Orioles paid $10 million for this offseason.
He was much more than that.
Gibson, an 11-year veteran with a reputation as a pitch-to-contact innings-eater, struck out 11 batters to tie his career high in the Orioles’ 5-1 win over the Detroit Tigers. The 35-year-old right-hander allowed just two hits and one run in 6 1/3 innings to continue Baltimore’s streak of stupendous outings from its starters.
The start is easily Gibson’s best as an Oriole. The only run he allowed was a home run with one out in the seventh. His 6 1/3 innings before the solo homer extended the scoreless streak by Orioles starters to 30, and the quality start was the club’s fourth straight, joining Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells. The Orioles have allowed just two runs in their previous four games.
The win is the Orioles’ fifth straight and ninth in their past 11 games. Ramón Urías led Baltimore (13-7) offensively with a bases-clearing double in the third inning that provided three of the Orioles’ five runs.
In his 265 starts before Saturday, Gibson (4-0) had struck out 11 batters just twice — August 2022 and May 2019. He totaled three, five, four and one in his previous four starts — striking out only two fewer batters Saturday than in his first 23 2/3 innings combined.
Tigers hitters swung at 34 of Gibson’s 96 pitches and missed at 18 for an eye-popping 53% whiff rate. Gibson’s previous best whiff rate in a start was 49%, and his career mark was 24.1%.
Yennier Cano relieved Gibson and remained perfect since being called up last weekend, retiring all five batters he faced with three strikeouts. Cano has pitched six perfect innings with seven strikeouts so far this season. Left-hander Danny Coulombe shut the door in the ninth with a scoreless inning.
Urías clears bases before ejection
Urías was ejected by home plate umpire Vic Carapazza after striking out looking in the fifth inning. Urías tossed his bat and helmet after disagreeing with the call and was quickly tossed. The ejection is the Orioles’ third this season and second of a player, as Cedric Mullins and manager Brandon Hyde were tossed April 11.
Two innings earlier, though, Urías hit a three-RBI double off the right-field wall for the biggest hit in the Orioles’ win. The third baseman lined a Joey Wentz fastball 103.9 mph to score Adley Rutschman, Ryan Mountcastle and Anthony Santander and give Baltimore a 4-0 lead.
The double was the fourth consecutive two-out hit or walk by the Orioles. The first of that stretch was a two-strike broken-bat single from Rutschman that flared over the head of shortstop Javier Báez to score Gunnar Henderson, who singled to lead off the third and extend his on-base streak in starts to 12.
Mountcastle and Santander both had six-pitch plate appearances, with Mountcastle hitting a single to center field and Santander walking to set up Urías.
The Orioles’ final run was a James McCann solo homer in the fourth inning. McCann, who played for the Tigers from 2014-18, clobbered a Wentz fastball 107 mph into Baltimore’s bullpen over the left-center field fence for his first blast as an Oriole.
Around the horn
— Jorge Mateo was originally scheduled to start at shortstop, but he was replaced by Gunnar Henderson before the game because of the wet conditions, manager Brandon Hyde said. Mateo was removed from Wednesday’s game in the second inning with right hip discomfort, and he didn’t play in Friday’s walk-off win.
— Reliever Dillon Tate (right forearm strain) will begin his minor league rehabilitation assignment Tuesday with High-A Aberdeen, and veteran right-hander Mychal Givens (left knee inflammation) will start his later in the week.
