Machado homers, O's end strained series vs Red Sox with win

BOSTON -- A tape-measure home run. A diving catch in the field. A double steal. Gutsy starting pitching.

"It actually seemed like we played a baseball game tonight," Baltimore manager Buck Showalter said Thursday night after the Orioles capped a tense four-game series at Fenway Park with a more sedate, 8-3 win over the Boston Red Sox.

"After all that drama, we're looking forward to getting back in that flow again."

In a series marred by beanballs, brushbacks and racial rancor, the finale was decided in a more traditional way: when Baltimore scored five times in the fourth inning, including Manny Machado's long three-run homer.

Seth Smith had four of the Orioles' 17 hits -- including a bases-loaded, game-tying double in the fourth -- and also scored on a double steal for his first stolen base since 2014. Defensive replacement Joey Rickard made a diving catch in right with the bases loaded to protect a five-run lead.

Tyler Wilson (2-1) allowed three runs and six hits in six innings. The 27-year-old right-hander was called up from Triple-A Norfolk for the spot start because scheduled pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez was forced to come out of the bullpen Wednesday.

"There's a lot going on in the game right now," Wilson said. "I don't know if relief is the right word, but we're excited to get a win."

Kyle Kendrick (0-1) made his season debut and allowed six runs and eight hits in four innings. Dustin Pedroia homered for Boston -- the first of the year for the 2008 AL MVP.

The Orioles scored on a double-steal in the third, with Smith coming home when the throw to get Machado at second was off-line and in the dirt. Jonathan Schoop had three hits for the Orioles.

LONG BALL, SLOW TROT

Machado hit a 466-drive over the Green Monster and onto Lansdowne Street for his third homer of the series. He then set off on a slow trot around the bases, drawing boos from the crowd.

Although he went off on an expletive-filled rant earlier in the week about how he had lost respect for the Red Sox, he said he did not go slowly to rub it in.

"Go look at my home runs. I'm not a rookie. I've got 100 home runs to show," he said calmly, explaining away his outburst after being brushed back on Tuesday: "This is my team. I bleed for them."

HISTORY

There was no indication of racial slurs like the ones directed at outfielder Adam Jones on Monday night. (On Tuesday night, one fan reported another for using the N-word; the Red Sox banned the offending fan from the ballpark for life.)

And Red Sox pitchers refrained from taking out their frustration on Baltimore batters, avoiding another brushback war like the one that consumed the teams the past two weeks until Major League Baseball told them to knock it off on Wednesday.

That was bad timing for starter Kevin Gausman, who was ejected in the second inning after hitting Mookie Betts on the hip with a curveball. That forced Showalter to use Jimenez in relief and start Wilson on Thursday.

"There was a lot here over the 10, 11 days that we were here," Red Sox manager John Farrell said. "Unfortunately, the bottom line is 4-5 is not what you're looking to do on the homestand against good teams."

THE CATCH

The Red Sox loaded the bases trailing 8-3 in the seventh, and Andrew Benintendi lined the ball deep to right field. Rickard got turned around but reached out to grab it with the tip of his glove as he fell to the warning track just a few feet in front of the bullpen wall.

"You know those guys are going to make a run some time," Showalter said. "That kind of stemmed that."

TRAINER'S ROOM

Red Sox: Knuckleballer Steven Wright will have surgery to repair cartilage in his left knee and miss the rest of the season. ... LHP David Price threw three innings of a simulated game and hit 95 mph with his last pitch, according to baseball boss Dave Dombrowski. ... INF Marco Hernandez (left shoulder subluxation) was placed on the 10-day disabled list. RHP Tyler Thornburg (right shoulder impingement) was transferred to the 60-day DL.

UP NEXT

Orioles: Return home to start a three-game series against the Chicago White Sox. LHP Wade Miley (1-1) faces righty Miguel Gonzalez.

Red Sox: Open a three-game series against Minnesota. Lefty Eduardo Rodriguez (1-1) will face RHP Phil Hughes (4-1).

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