BALTIMORE — Corbin Burnes allowed nine hits over seven innings, rookie Heston Kjerstad had a home run and three RBIs, and the Baltimore Orioles routed the struggling Texas Rangers 11-2 on Thursday night.
Cedric Mullins, Adley Rutschman and Colton Cowser also hit home runs for Baltimore, which built an 8-1 lead in the fourth inning against Jon Gray (3-4) and sailed smoothly to its second win in a row, after losing five consecutive games.
Cuban Adolis Garcia hit a home run for Texas, the champion of the last World Series, which has lost four games in a row and is seven games behind the .500 mark (37-44). The Rangers have lost seven straight away games.
These four games, which conclude on Sunday, are a repeat of the 2023 Division Series in the American League, in which the Rangers achieved a three-game sweep.
Now, the Orioles appear headed for the playoffs again. They reached the halfway point of the campaign with a record of 51-30.
Burnes (9-3) improved his ERA to 2.28, matching his longest performance of the year. The right-hander allowed one run, walked none and struck out five.
For the Rangers, Cuban García was 1-for-4 with one run scored and one RBI. Dominican Leody Taveras 4-2.
For the Orioles, Dominican Jorge Mateo was 1-for-4.
