The fifth inning decided everything. Boston scored three times to break a scoreless game, then weathered Baltimore's comeback attempt for a 5-3 victory at Camden Yards.
Connelly Early earned the win with 6.2 innings of four-hit ball, allowing two runs while striking out four. The left-hander carried a 2.84 ERA and improved to 2-1 on the season. Aroldis Chapman closed it out with a perfect ninth inning, striking out two for his fifth save.
The Red Sox struck first when Monasterio singled to center, bringing Durbin home. Two batters later, Contreras launched a two-run homer to left center, scoring Duran and extending the lead to 3-0. Baltimore answered immediately as Basallo homered to right, cutting the deficit to 3-1. Boston added two more in the sixth when Rafaela tripled to center, scoring Abreu, then came home on Mayer's single to left.
Kyle Bradish took the loss, allowing three runs over five innings with four walks and three strikeouts. His ERA stands at 4.80. Henderson provided Baltimore's offense with a solo homer in the sixth and an RBI single in the eighth that scored Cowser, but the Orioles could not complete the comeback.
Boston snapped a losing streak and improved to 10-17. Baltimore fell to 13-14 after the loss. Henderson sits five home runs away from 100 career homers, while Duran is four stolen bases from the same milestone.