The Orioles established control in the first inning and never relinquished it, defeating the Astros 5-3 at Camden Yards behind Shane Baz's dominant start.
Baz carried Baltimore through 5.2 innings, allowing six hits and one run while striking out six batters. The right-hander worked around traffic, stranding runners and keeping Houston off balance with a 98-pitch effort that carried a 4.24 ERA.
Baltimore's offense struck immediately in the opening frame. Henderson scored on Rutschman's single to left, then Rutschman came around on Basallo's double to right for a 2-0 advantage. The lead expanded in the fifth when Alonso launched a two-run homer to right center, scoring Ward ahead of him. Rutschman added insurance in the seventh, driving Henderson home with another single to center.
Houston mounted a late charge behind Brice Matthews, who homered in the fifth and drove in another run with an eighth-inning single. Matthews finished 3-for-4 with two RBIs, but the Astros managed just three runs despite collecting 11 hits.
Baltimore snapped a two-game losing streak to improve to 13-15, while Houston's brief winning streak ended as they fell to 11-18. Christian Walker remains nine doubles away from 200 career doubles.