Baltimore Buries Boston Early, Wild Pitches Do the Rest
The Baltimore Orioles needed exactly one inning to break this game open, scoring four runs in the first on a parade of wild pitches and a clutch Dylan Beavers single. The final was BAL 5, BOS 1, and it wasn't particularly close after the opening frame.
Boston's Rivera couldn't find the zone in the first inning, and Baltimore made him pay in the most chaotic way possible. Alonso scored on a wild pitch, then Henderson and O'Neill advanced on another — the bases were a mess before Beavers even stepped to the plate. When Beavers singled to center, Henderson and O'Neill both scored, pushing the lead to 3-0. That single was the gut punch: Boston's win probability cratered from 38% to 18% on that one swing. Rodríguez then doubled to left to score Beavers, and just like that it was 4-0 before the home crowd had finished their first sip of coffee. Four runs, one hit that mattered, and a Boston pitcher who couldn't keep the ball in front of the catcher.
To Brayan Bello's credit, he didn't let the game spiral further. He went 5.1 innings, allowing 4 hits, 0 earned runs, walking 1 and striking out 5 — a quality outing that kept Boston technically in the game, even if the damage was already done. The problem was the damage was done before he threw a pitch. Yoshida's RBI single to left in the fourth — scoring Contreras — gave Boston its only run and at least put something on the board, but 4-1 with Baltimore's bullpen waiting is not a position anyone wants to be in. Kyle Bradish, meanwhile, was steady for Baltimore: 6.0 innings, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts. He didn't dominate, but he didn't need to.
The seventh inning was almost a dark comedy. Henderson scored on a Morán wild pitch — and then, per the play-by-play, Henderson scored on a Morán wild pitch again, pushing the final to 5-1. The scoring sequence lists it twice, which looks like a data quirk, but the end result stands. The story of this game was Baltimore's ability to turn chaos into runs: three wild pitches led directly to scoring plays, and Beavers finished 2-for-4 with 2 RBI while Rodríguez went 2-for-4 with 1 RBI to round out a balanced Baltimore attack. Henderson crossed the plate twice without needing to do much more than be in the right place. Boston's Monasterio went 2-for-3 and appears to have been one of the few bright spots in an otherwise forgettable night at the plate for the home side. Baltimore wins 5-1.