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Baltimore Orioles: Machado hits grand slam to get win over Angels

By Kristen Bentley

ANAHEIM, CA - AUGUST 07: Adam Jones #10, Seth Smith #12, Welington Castillo #29 congratulate Manny Machado #13 of the Baltimore Orioles after he hit a grand slam during the seventh inning of a game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on August 7, 2017 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA - AUGUST 07: Adam Jones #10, Seth Smith #12, Welington Castillo #29 congratulate Manny Machado #13 of the Baltimore Orioles after he hit a grand slam during the seventh inning of a game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on August 7, 2017 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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Baltimore Orioles Manny Machado got the job done with a timely grand slam to win the first game against the Los Angeles Angels.

With this win, the Baltimore Orioles have won 8 of their last 10 games. The team’s record is now .500.

Not too shabby for a team that was seven games below .500 just a few weeks ago.

Along with Machado’s clutch hit in the 6-2 win over the Angels, several other O’s contributed to get the win.

Quality pitching from the O’s

Dylan Bundy continued his solid pitching as he completed seven innings and struck out ten batters. He did give up five hits including a home run to Mike Trout in the sixth inning. Trout also hit a double off of Bundy earning his 1,000th hit on his 26th birthday. Other than the two hits to Trout, only Andrelton Simmons and Cameron Maybin hit Bundy. Kole Calhoun hit a sac fly to score Trout – who was the only batter to cross home plate.

In his two games in August, Bundy has an ERA of 1.20 with an average against him of .157. It looks like he is getting ready for post-season pitching.

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The bullpen did its job. Mychal Givens and Brad Brach each pitched an inning and they each walked a batter, but neither gave up any hits or runs to hold the Halos to two.

A good day at the plate

The Birds had a good day at the plate. Welington Castillo went two for four and scored a run. In his past eight games (since July 24), Castillo has hit in every game. In fact, he has five multi-hit games. In those games, he has a slash of .419/.406/.645 and an OPS of 1.051. He has also gone yard twice. He, like Bundy, appears to be getting ready for post-season play.

Adam Jones went one for three with a sac fly. He, like Castillo, is having a fantastic August, too. He has been on base in every game but one this month. His batting average in August is .321 with a .500 slugging percentage.

Tim Beckham also continued his hitting streak, making a serious case for keeping him at shortstop when J.J. Hardy returns from his rehab stint. On the day where he was named the AL Player of the Week – his first one ever. As an Oriole, he is batting .536 and has recorded a hit in every game.

The grand slam

Machado’s grand slam plated Castillo, Jones, and Seth Smith in the seventh inning. At the time, the score was tied at two. Check out the video from MLB:

Several other O’s earned hits in the game including Jonathan Schoop, Chris Davis, Seth Smith, and Joey Rickard. Only Trey Mancini was kept off base by Angels pitcher JC Ramirez.

Next: Moving Chris Tillman to bullpen could be a good choice

The second game of the series features Jeremy Hellickson pitching against Parker Bridwell. With a win, the O’s will be above .500 for the first time since June 11.

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