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Flaherty, Orioles rally past Rangers

Jul 3, 2014 - 6:38 AM Baltimore, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - Ryan Flaherty's go-ahead home run in the seventh proved to be the difference as the Orioles again relied on the long ball in a 6-4 victory over the Texas Rangers.

Adam Jones also homered and drove in three runs for Baltimore, which has homered nine times in the first three contests of this four-game set.

Brad Brach (2-0) earned the win after pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings and getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth. Starter Chris Tillman gave up four runs -- three earned -- on seven hits with four walks and two strikeouts across 5 2/3 frames.

Adrian Beltre doubled in two runs among his two hits for the Rangers, who have lost four straight and 12 of their last 14 games.

Texas starter Miles Mikolas, who made his first career start, was in line for the win after allowing just three runs and three hits with four strikeouts before the bullpen gave up the lead.

Flaherty led off the seventh by crushing a fastball off Neal Cotts (2-5) to put the O's in front. Steve Pearce took a two-out walk and moved to second on a balk before Jones' bloop single into left scored Pearce for a 6-4 lead.

The game went into an hour and 38-minute rain delay with one out in the bottom of the eighth. Zach Britton tossed a perfect ninth, striking out two batters to earn his save 11th of the season.

Alex Rios started the scoring early for Texas in the first. Shin-Soo Choo and Beltre both singled before Rios' base hit to center brought around Choo.

Leonys Martin jumped at the center-field wall and robbed Nelson Cruz of a home run for the first out of the second inning.

The Rangers added three runs in the third. Choo walked and Elvis Andrus reached on catcher interference after Caleb Joseph made contact with Andrus's bat on a foul ball. Beltre brought in both runners with a hit to right and scored on Martin's single to second that was deflected by Tillman.

"We just didn't add on," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "It came back and bit us."

In the fourth, Jones connected on a 3-2 fastball to left for his 16th home run of the season, making it a 4-1 game.

"The home run made it 4-1 and gave us some life there," said Orioles manager Buck Showalter. "To get the shutdown innings afterward ... we got back in it for Brad."

Texas loaded the bases off Tillman in the sixth, but Brach took the mound and induced a Carlos Pena groundout to end the threat.

Baltimore tied the game in the bottom of the sixth. Nick Markakis and Pearce both walked and moved up a base on Jason Frasor's wild pitch. Markakis scored on a Jones sac fly and Pearce was brought home on a Cruz single to left. J.J. Hardy's grounder off the glove of a diving Andrus at shortstop plated Cruz.

Game Notes

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado served the third game of his five-game suspension Wednesday and is eligible to return to the lineup Saturday against Boston ... Baltimore has hit multiple home runs in six consecutive games and has homered in 12 straight ... The Orioles lead the season series, 5-1.