BOSTON – Aaron Hicks is in center field this afternoon against the Red Sox and James McCann is catching. Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter.

Austin Hays is the cleanup hitter. Jordan Westburg is at second base and Gunnar Henderson is at third.

Jack Flaherty has posted a 6.66 ERA and 1.521 WHIP in five starts with the Orioles. He struck out seven batters in 4 2/3 innings in Arizona but gave up four runs and six hits.

Flaherty has never faced the Red Sox.

The Orioles have won six games in a row and 12 of 15 and are 89-51 overall, 47-25 on the road. They’ve scored 34 runs this season in four games at Fenway Park.

West Coast, East Coast. Home or road. American League East or outside of the division. Doesn't seem to matter much. The Orioles' relentless pursuit of winning carried on Friday night at Fenway Park.

The Orioles' 11-2 blowout of the Red Sox improved their record to 89-51 (.636). An 11-11 finish would net them 100 wins, but for now, they are on a 103-win pace.

Two O's teams ever won that many:

* 109 wins in 1969
* 108 wins in 1970

Remember those March over/unders that listed the Orioles at 76.5 wins for this year?

BOSTON – Kyle Bradish wouldn’t set the bullpen into motion tonight until two outs in the sixth inning. Ryan O’Hearn had to do it.

Orioles relievers raised their arms and jumped in the air as O’Hearn’s fly ball sailed into the right field seats leading off the top of the fourth. They couldn’t catch it. May as well celebrate it.

O’Hearn’s 12^th homer of the season, Gunnar Henderson's latest Rookie of the Year push and Bradish’s latest quality start propelled the Orioles past the Red Sox 11-2 before an announced crowd of 33,852 at Fenway Park.

The Rays defeated the Mariners 7-4 to leave the Orioles with a four-game division lead.

Adley Rutschman curled a fly ball around the right field foul pole in the eighth for his 18^th home run, and the Orioles won their sixth game in a row and improved to 89-51 overall, 47-25 on the road and 31-15 in series openers. They will go 85 series of multiple games in a row without being swept.

Not only have the Orioles been the best team in the American League East to this point of the year – leading the division by four games – but they have been the best team in head-to-head games within the AL East.

AL East vs. AL East in 2023:
.634 – Orioles (26-15)
.600 – Rays (24-16)
.556 – Red Sox (20-16)
.381 – Yankees (16-26)
.324 – Blue Jays (12-25)

So the O’s .634 win percentage in AL East games is about equal to the .633 win percentage for the year. The O’s are currently on a 102-win pace.

The Birds' nine-game road trip will end this weekend and they have now shifted from the West Coast to the East Coast for three games in Boston at Fenway Park. The Orioles are 3-3 against Boston this year and the teams have not played since April 26. They have not played at Fenway Park since losing two of three games there to begin the year March 30-April 2.

One reason the Orioles are in first place is their solid play in the division this year. They lost their first two AL East series of the year to the Red Sox and Yankees and have not lost a division series since, going 9-0-2 since early April.

BOSTON – Orioles closer Félix Bautista played catch again today, increasing the distance on flat ground during his second session after a brief pause.

The club is downplaying the significance of it.

Bautista also threw in Anaheim while on the injured list with discomfort in his right elbow, described only as a “right UCL injury.”

“We’re going to see how he feels,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “We’re just kind of monitoring it day-to-day. It was just kind of a see how he feels, play a little catch today.”

Asked if Bautista throwing is a good sign, Hyde said, “I wouldn’t put any emphasis positive or negative about it. He was playing a little bit of catch, kind of seeing how he feels today.

BOSTON – The Orioles are a season-high 37 games above .500 and four games ahead of the Rays in the American League East as they reach the final stage of their road trip at Fenway Park.

They’ve won five in a row, seven of nine, 11 of 14, 14 of 18 and 25 of 35. On the line this weekend is a streak of 84 consecutive multi-game series without being swept.

Gunnar Henderson is the shortstop tonight against the Red Sox. Ryan O’Hearn is batting cleanup as the designated hitter, followed by first baseman Ryan Mountcastle.

Austin Hays is in left field. In 18 games since Aug. 15, Hays is batting .338/.413/.646/1.059 with eight doubles, four homers and 13 RBIs.

Adam Frazier is playing second base and Ramón Urías is at third.

The Orioles and Major League Baseball today announced that pitcher KYLE GIBSON has been named the Orioles’ 2023 nominee for the esteemed Roberto Clemente Award. The most prominent individual player award bestowed by MLB, the Roberto Clemente Award, presented by Capital One, is the annual recognition of a Major League player from each club who best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, sportsmanship, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field. 

The Orioles will join all of Major League Baseball in celebrating the 22^nd annual Roberto Clemente Day on Friday, September 15, as they host the Tampa Bay Rays at 7:05 p.m. ET. This commemorative day was established by Major League Baseball to honor Clemente’s legacy and to officially acknowledge local club nominees of the Roberto Clemente Award. As part of the league-wide celebration, the Roberto Clemente Day logo will appear on the bases and official dugout lineup cards, all players will wear a ‘21’ patch on their jersey, and a special tribute video will be played in ballparks. Once again this season, each team’s Clemente nominee will wear ”21” on their uniform, joining players and uniformed personnel from Puerto Rico, previous nominees, and those who have worn “21” on prior Roberto Clemente Days.

As part of the nomination and in recognition of Gibson’s exemplary commitment to serving his community, MLB will make a $7,500 donation to Big League Impact. The Orioles will recognize Gibson in a special on-field ceremony on Friday, September 15.

The nomination­ comes as no surprise to those who have witnessed Gibson's unwavering dedication to both the game of baseball and the betterment of his community. In his first season with the Orioles, Gibson has quickly become a beloved figure among fans, teammates, and the Baltimore community alike. Beyond his achievements on the mound, Gibson's off-field contributions have left an indelible mark in the hearts of many. A three-time nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, while part of three different teams, shows how passionate Gibson is about giving back to the communities he calls home. 

One of Gibson’s focuses this season is interacting with a different group of community members every homestand. Gibson has met with multiple community-based organizations including STAND Mentorship, whose mission is to enrich the lives of young men through educational experiences that will help them to grow and have a positive impact in the future, and Diamonds on the Rise, on organization committed to developing and promoting quality programs that provides a nurturing and thoughtful environment for individuals living with psychiatric diagnoses who may have challenges with their daily living activities. Gibson uses this time to discuss goal setting and the importance of perseverance. He has spoken with active-duty members of the military and their families to learn about their careers and thank them for their service, and he has given private tours of the Orioles’ clubhouse to children battling life threatening illnesses, providing a memorable moment of reprieve for struggling families.

ANAHEIM - Some of us probably don’t notice it much. But Ryan O’Hearn’s 4.5 walk rate is lowest among the 10 Orioles with 200 or more plate appearances in 2023. We don’t notice it because he is productive and thriving in so many other areas.

He hits the ball about as consistently hard as anyone on the team and has the stats to prove that. But O’Hearn won’t take all the credit for his big offense this year. Not even close. He praises the O’s hitting coaches and even notes the shift ban helping him too.

“I’ve always hit the ball hard,” O’Hearn said in an interview at Angels Stadium. “I just think the direction of where the ball is going is better now. That’s God-given and I have always put the work in. There is no secret to it – just hard work.

“I’ve probably hit the ball harder in year’s past. The hardest ball I’ve ever hit was in 2019, but I beat a lot of balls into the ground. When you do that with the shift, you don’t get many results. Guys playing short right field would throw you out.

“I think it’s a combination of the shift going away and just becoming a more complete hitter. Hitting the ball all over the field. Better launch angles have made me more consistent and able to put up better numbers.”

ANAHEIM - On the night the Orioles blew out the Los Angeles Angels 10-3 to complete a three-game sweep and win their fifth straight, two players that had strong first halves had big nights.

Both right-hander Kyle Gibson and outfielder Austin Hays have been looking to get it going and last night showed signs that both could be doing just that.

Hays has been swinging it well recently and had a 4-for-4 night with a double, two singles, a homer, three runs and four RBIs. He is now batting .288 with a .799 OPS.

At the All-Star break, Hays, a 2023 All-Star, was batting .314 but that dropped to .279 in mid August. In July he hit .162 with an OPS of .446.

Now in 18 games since Aug. 15. he is batting .338/.413/.646/1.059 with eight doubles, four homers and 13 RBIs. The Orioles are 13-5 in those 18 games.

ANAHEIM – For the second night in a row the second-place Tampa Bay Rays posted a win earlier in the night that the Orioles would later match. Tonight, the Orioles’ 10-3 romp over the Los Angeles Angels in front of 29,021 meaning they not only swept this series but maintained their season-high 3.5 game lead over the Rays atop the AL East.

The Orioles scored five early runs tonight and then added some late-game longballs to enjoy a much more comfortable win than last night when they were behind after eight innings and had to pull it out in the tenth.

Now 88-51, the Orioles are 37 games over the .500 mark for the first time since 1997. They have won five in a row on this road trip after losing the trip opener Friday in Arizona. Overall, the Orioles have won seven of nine, 11 of 14, 14 of 18 and 25 of the last 35 games.

They improved the American League’s best road record to 46-25 and are 34-16 in the second half.

Tonight they recorded their ninth series sweep and eighth of three games. 

ANAHEIM - Most of the time this year, but not all, when the Orioles won the first two games of a three-game series, they won the third game to complete the sweep.

While the Orioles have gone 84 straight series without being swept, they have nine sweeps of their own. They have seven three-game sweeps and one of two games in the 2023 season. 

They can add to their list of sweeps tonight at Anaheim against the Angels after posting wins by 6-3 and 5-4 in 10 innings at Angel Stadium.

On their recent homestand, the Orioles twice won the first two games of a series, but they lost the third both to Colorado and the Chicago White Sox.

For the year the Orioles are 7-4 in the third game of a series where they won the first two and had a chance for a sweep.

ANAHEIM – The Orioles are tweaking their rotation before the series with Red Sox that begins Friday night at Fenway Park. Had they stayed on turn after tomorrow’s off day with their current six-man, they would have thrown Cole Irvin Friday, then Kyle Bradish Saturday and Jack Flaherty on Sunday against the Red Sox.

But manager Brandon Hyde said today it will be Bradish in the Boston series opener, Flaherty next and Grayson Rodriguez Sunday in the series finale in Boston. Irvin is moving to the bullpen for now.

“We’ve put Cole in the ‘pen. He was in the bullpen last night,” Hyde said today. “He’s going to be kind of a length guy right now. Kind of get through the weekend and evaluate series-to-series right now.”

Is this a return to a five-man rotation?

“As as right now, for the weekend it is. After the weekend it might change,” he said.

The Orioles will try for their ninth sweep of the season tonight with Adley Rutschman serving as the designated hitter, Ramón Urías playing second base, and Jordan Westburg moving back to the bench.

Aaron Hicks is in center field, putting Cedric Mullins in a reserve role.

Gunnar Henderson is slugging .727 against Angels' fastballs this season and .362 against other opponents’ fastballs, per STATS. He’s the third baseman tonight.

The Orioles registered their 44^th comeback win last night, tied with the Reds for most in the majors. They’ve won four games in a row and 10 of 13 to improve their record to 87-51, and they maintain a 3 ½ game lead over the Rays.

Kyle Gibson makes his 29^th start. He’s 13-8 with a 5.15 ERA and 1.340 WHIP in 162 2/3 innings. His 172 hits lead the American League.

ANAHEIM - It's September pennant-race baseball and no one cares about style points. Or shutouts, or blowouts, or a game with a lot of runs and numerous well-struck shots in the gap. That's all nice and always welcome, but just win. 

Win and hold onto a season-best 3.5 game lead atop the AL East.

Down to the last bullpen pitcher they had available and their eighth of the night, the Orioles did that last night at Angel Stadium.

They grinded out a 5-4 win in 10 innings over the Los Angeles Angels that was beautiful only where it counts most - in the standings.

A 2-0 lead in the third became a 3-2 deficit and became a 4-3 lead in the ninth. But it became 4-4 in the last of the ninth. Then they got the lead again and now Japanese right-hander Shintaro Fujinami was going to try for a save.

ANAHEIM – In the end right-hander Shintaro Fujinami was on the mound, the Orioles eighth pitcher of the night, looking for his second career save.

And a game where the O's led, were tied, trailed, led again and were tied again, would end in an O's victory. They pushed across a run in the top of the 10th and Fujinami got the save in the last of the tenth, stranding the tying run on third with one out.

The 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels gives Baltimore an 87-51 record and four-game win streak and the O's maintain a 3.5 game lead on Tampa Bay, which won earlier.

The Orioles, who have 24 regular-season games left, have won six straight series and are 38-16 (.703) since July 5 - the best record in the AL in that span. 

In the O's 10th, placed runner Austin Hays advanced from second to third on a groundball and scored the winning run on a Jordan Westburg groundout for the 5-4 edge.

ANAHEIM – The Orioles have won three straight games on this road trip by a combined 21-11 score and they look to keep that momentum going tonight in the second game of a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels.

Baltimore (86-61) opened a 3.5 game lead atop the AL East after Monday’s 6-3 win at Angel Stadium. Gunnar Henderson hit a three-run homer, Austin Hays added an RBI double while Ryan Mountcastle and Aaron Hicks produced run-scoring singles.

The Orioles are 3-2 against the Angels this year and 9-3 since the start of the 2022 season.

The Birds are 44-25 with the best road record in the AL and are 32-16 in the second half. The Orioles are 42-19 (.689) versus sub .500 teams.

Los Angeles (64-74) has lost seven of eight and 11 of 14 games and they are 8-23 since Aug. 1.

Ryan McKenna is playing center field tonight in the latest Orioles right-handed heavy lineup in Anaheim.

Austin Hays is the cleanup hitter and left fielder. Jordan Westburg is starting at second base. Jorge Mateo is the shortstop.

Aaron Hicks is in right field, with Anthony Santander serving as designated hitter.

Adley Rutchman is back in the leadoff spot and catching.

Gunnar Henderson is too good to sit in any lineup. He’s the third baseman.

The Orioles have made the following roster move: 

• RHP Austin Voth has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Norfolk.

Anaheim, Calif. - The road trip is picking up a head of steam. After scoring two runs in a loss on Friday at Arizona, the O's have won their past three out west by a 21-11 score over the Diamondbacks and Angels. They won the series opener 6-3 last night at Anaheim.

In this win, youth was served as the Orioles opened a 3.5 game lead atop the AL East - their largest first-place lead of the year. 

Third baseman Gunnar Henderson, 22, hit a three-run homer in the seventh to turn a one-run nail biter into a four-run comfortable lead. Grayson Rodriguez, 23, allowed two runs over six and delivered another quality start. Jordan Westburg, 24, continues to look more and more comfortable at the big league level. He had two more hits and made a sensational catch running from the infield into the outfield in the ninth.

“We have really, really talented young players and you saw a few of them tonight," manager Brandon Hyde said. "Grayson, DL (Hall) and how about the play Westburg made in the ninth? That is a difference in that inning and then Gunnar obviously and we’ve got more guys coming too and Adley (Rutschman) is not very old either. We have a lot of really good young players."

Henderson's 23rd homer drove in three in the seventh, a rocket liner out to right field. He is learning how to excel in late-inning, game-on-the-line spots.

Anaheim, Calif. – The Orioles seemed to be headed for another game that went down to the last out and maybe the last pitch. They have played in a lot of close games this year and won a lot of close ones.

But in need of some insurance runs in the seventh tonight, Gunnar Henderson provided them.

His almost nightly big play or big swing came at the plate this time. He blasted a three-run homer to turn a one-run lead into a more comfortable four-run edge.

The Orioles went on to beat the Angels 6-3 tonight to improve to 86-51 and win their third in a row, ninth in 12 games and 23^rd in the past 33 games.

They are now 17-6 in road series-opening games, produced their 43rd comeback win and have opened a season-high 3 1/2-game lead atop the American League East over the Rays, who lost this afternoon to the Red Sox.