Akin fails to conver 6-out save in 3-2 loss to Red Sox

A thrilling Houdini act in the 8th turned into Birdland disappointment in the 9th, as Keegan Akin gave up a two-run homer to Ceddanne Rafaela to seal a 3-2 Orioles loss.

Akin entered in the top of the 8th with runners on first and third and nobody out as the Orioles clung to a 2-1 lead. The O’s de facto closer started his evening by punching out Roman Anthony on a changeup that clipped the bottom of the zone. He followed that up by striking out Alex Bregman on a 3-2 slider that dive-bombed Bregman’s back foot. Akin completed the escape act by getting Trevor Story to ground out to short, keeping the lead intact.

With the adrenaline pumping, Akin came back out for the 9th, looking to lock down the win. On the call, Ben McDonald warned about the dangers of sending a reliever back out after escaping such a tense jam, and Orioles’ color commentator proved to be prophetic. Jarren Duran led off the inning with a single into left, and his presence on first clearly bothered Akin. He then hung a changeup to Rafaela, who blasted it into the bullpen to put Boston on top.

The Akin rollercoaster ride erased an Orioles comeback built of a pair of Rafaela blunders. With the game tied at 1-1 in the 7th and the offense showing no real signs of life, Dylan Beavers started a two-out rally with a walk. One Dylan then drove home the other Dylan, as Dylan Carlson sent a high fly ball into the left field gap. Both Rafaela and LF Jarren Duran looked to have a play on the ball, but both pulled up and allowed the ball to drop at the base of the outfield wall. Running with two outs, Beavers scored easily from first and briefly gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead.

Beavers was also at the heart of the O’s first run of the evening. Down 1-0 in the 2nd, Coby Mayo reached on a single that snuck past the SS and into left field. The 1B then moved to second on a past ball that popped straight up out of the catcher’s glove. With the tying run in scoring position, Beavers lined a Brayan Bello changeup to center. At first, it looked like Rafaela made a diving catch for the third out, but the ball popped out of his glove to turn the liner into an RBI double.

The Orioles were only a position to steal a win thanks to some strong pitching from some unexpected sources. Lefty Dietrich Enns got the start in what appeared to be an opener role. The appearance got off to a rocky start for the 34-year-old journeyman, as he fell behind 3-1 to Red Sox leadoff hitter Roman Anthony. Ahead in the count, the Boston rookie jumped all over a low fastball and blasted it over the center field fence for a leadoff HR.

After that inauspicious beginning, the veteran LHP locked in to keep the Red Sox off the board. After two quick outs in the 1st, Duran reached on an infield single on a dribbler Gunnar Henderson snagged behind second but couldn’t get a good throw on. Duran then stole second despite a strong throw from Samuel Basallo, but Enns was able to strand him there when Rafaela popped up a changeup behind home plate.

The change was the weapon of choice for Enns throughout the early innings, as he got the first six outs of the game all on the offspeed offering. He punctuated the 2nd inning by getting Boston catcher Connor Wong to waive through a changeup perfectly located on the outside corner down and away.

Enns got his rist non-changeup out to lead off the 3rd, punching out David Hamilton with a fastball on the outer third. He then got some measure of revenge on Anthony, getting him to pop out to third on a first-pitch changeup. With a pair of dangerous righties following Anthony, interim manager Tony Mansolino pulled Enns after 2.2 innings and handed Roansy Contreras his Orioles debut.

If Enns was good, Contreras was great as he mowed down the Boston lineup for 4.1 innings. Like Enns, Contreras got off to a less-than-ideal start, hitting Alex Bregman with a fastball to start off his Orioles career. That didn’t shake the 25-year-old righty, who stranded Bregman by getting Trevor Story to ground into a fielder’s choice.

Over the next four innings, Contreras only allowed two more base runners, as the Dominican dominated the Boston batters. He allowed his only extra-base hit of the evening in the 4th when Rafaela lined a ball into the left-center gap for a double. Contreras responded by getting Nathaniel Lowe to ground out on a sinker before setting down Mastaka Yoshida on a changeup rolled to second.

He gave up another one-out baserunner in 5th on a David Hamilton single to left field. However, Hamilton failed where Duran succeeded, as the Boston 2B was gunned down by Basallo trying to steal second. Although the young catcher only went 1-for-2 in throwing out runners, we got our first real look at the 21-year-old’s cannon arm on the two stolen base attempts.

Contreras glided through the 6th and 7th innings, setting down the Red Sox in order in each inning while showing off his full six-pitch arsenal. Mansolino gave his debutant a chance to pitch into the 8th, but it was at that point that Contreras started to show signs of fatigue. He walked leadoff hitter Connor Wong on nine pitches before giving up a slow-rolling single through the left side that allowed Wong to move to third. It was at that point that Mansolino turned to Akin, and Contreras finished his Orioles debut with going 4.1 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB and 2 K.

The Orioles couldn’t touch All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman in the 9th as they failed to mount a rally. Colton Cowser struck out swinging on a failed check swing and Samuel Basallo followed by striking out looking on a 3-2 fastball. That left things up to Mayo, who embarked on a 12-pitch battle with Chapman, but ultimately suffered the same fate as Basallo—striking out looking to end the game.