Pete Alonso answers his own rallying call with his best Orioles game in win vs. Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas — The rallying call Pete Alonso delivered after a game last week was directed mutually to the fans and his teammates. The Orioles had just concluded a trade deadline that saw four contributors leave. The message from Alonso, essentially, was to not capitulate.

The last two nights in Texas, the offense seemed to surrender. The Orioles scored one run in each loss, rendering superb outings from their starting pitchers moot. In the series finale, however, Alonso took matters into his own hands.

With two deep blasts off his bat, Alonso played the largest role in a resurgent offensive performance that was sorely needed. The Orioles roughed up right-hander Kumar Rocker in a much-needed win to avoid a sweep.

Alonso was only one piece of a vibrant offensive performance, but his first multi-home run game provided early cushion in what became Baltimore’s 10-5 victory against Texas.

The four runs he batted in with a pair of two-run shots matched his season-high RBI count, and Alonso reached base all five times in his most dominant game since joining Baltimore last winter.

“You can’t talk and be vocal if you’re not doing it,” Alonso said of his approach to leadership. “For me, you’ve got to do it, and then you talk afterwards whenever there’s time. But also, in order to be a leader, you have to have done it and continuously be doing it.”

He has done both. Alonso’s track record with the New York Mets is well known. And, with his 25th homer of the year, Alonso became just the 10th player in Orioles history to record 25 or more homers in his first season with the club (Mark Trumbo in 2016 was the last to do that).

Losing all three here would’ve been disastrous for Baltimore’s slim postseason chances. Losing the series didn’t help, either. But by salvaging one game the Orioles are two games out of the final American League wild-card place instead of four games out.

This road trip’s significance continues Monday with a series against postseason-chasing Minnesota. There, Baltimore will face right-hander Dean Kremer, whom the Orioles recently traded to the Twins.

Before getting on the plane to fly north, however, a win at Globe Life Field was necessary to keep up what, cynically, could be described as the charade of postseason hopes.

“I came into this game thinking ‘must-win,’ and I think a lot of the guys in our clubhouse maybe think that,” left-hander Cade Povich said. “Every game is a must-win from here on out.”

After Saturday’s loss, manager Craig Albernaz said he wanted to see his offense force the issue more. When they get traffic on base, Albernaz said, he wants the Orioles to “recognize when we can take a bag or take the extra 90 feet.”

Early in Sunday’s victory, there was noticeable aggression. Jackson Holliday followed Alonso’s single with a hustle double that was cut off well in right-center field. Holliday and Gunnar Henderson stole bags in the fourth inning, too.

“Being able to get the two stolen bases, going first to third, the hustle doubles, it just takes pressure off the guy in the box and it enables them to simplify the approach,” Albernaz said. “We saw the benefits of that today.”

For as anemic as this offense has been in August — the Orioles had scored one run or fewer in five of their seven games this month — they poured it on against the Rangers. Dylan Beavers and Leody Taveras notched first-inning RBIs, and Colton Cowser and Alonso powered home runs in the second inning.

Once Jordan Montgomery entered, the barrage didn’t end. Alonso throttled another long ball in the fourth, and Tyler O’Neill continued a hot streak with a two-run homer in the sixth.

All of that provided Baltimore nearly as many runs in one game as the offense managed in the previous seven this month (10 vs. 11). And it gave breathing room to a pitching staff that hasn’t had that luxury in some time.

“A little disappointed in myself ... with those early runs,” Povich said. “I have to look at some stuff to try to figure out what was not right, whether it was mechanically or feel, but mentally I felt like the bats put me in a great spot to fill up the zone. And, for them to come out swinging, I’m just glad they showed up today.”

Povich struggled with his command. Through two scoreless innings, he was 0-for-8 on first-pitch strikes. And, in the third inning, Brandon Nimmo lifted a three-run homer to narrow the score. But Albernaz had a short leash for Povich, turning the game over to the bullpen by the fourth inning.

“He was grinding out there,” Albernaz said.

Right-hander Yaramil Hiraldo provided two scoreless innings before right-handers Alex Hoppe, Andrew Kittredge and Albert Suárez finished off the final four frames.

There were multiple strong offensive performances beyond Alonso, who finished 3-for-3 with two walks and four RBIs. Cowser manufactured his first two-hit game since June 28; Coby Mayo hit his third triple in his last nine games as part of a two-hit day; Holliday notched a double for the second straight day.

But Henderson, who described his season as supremely frustrating Saturday night, kept searching for elusive answers.

He walked once and stole a bag, but he finished 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Ahead of the bottom of the seventh inning, the Orioles lifted Henderson from the game, allowing Holliday to finish at shortstop, with Jeremiah Jackson at second.

The offensive breakout for many was a welcome sight amid a challenging August. Henderson, though, is a missing piece for the offense.

“Getting him off his feet for three innings,” Albernaz said of removing Henderson. “We just wanted to get Gunnar off his feet and give him a little bit of rest because Gunnar plays every day and shortstop is a demanding position.”

Despite Henderson’s struggles atop the order, the offense showed life. Alonso was the major contributor. As the Orioles talk of chasing the postseason, they’ll need these sorts of performances befitting of their stars.

This article has been updated.