BALTIMORE — Mark Hendrickson won his first start since April, Jeff Fiorentino drove in two runs and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-3 Saturday night for their third straight victory.
The victory assured the Orioles of avoiding their third 100-loss campaign in club history. Baltimore’s first three-game win streak since June 19-21 follows its 13-game skid.
Earlier in the day, Toronto fired general manager J.P. Ricciardi after eight seasons and promoted 32-year-old assistant GM Alex Anthopoulos. Acting team president Paul Beeston said he would recommend Anthopoulos be retained full-time once the Blue Jays complete their search for a permanent chief executive officer.
Hendrickson (6-5), who was 0-5 in his previous nine starts and had spent time pitching out of the bullpen, allowed three runs on six hits over a season-high 6 1-3 innings. He walked three and struck out three in his first victory as a starter since April 10, his initial appearance of the year.
Cla Meredith escaped a seventh-inning jam, Danys Baez pitched the eighth and Jim Johnson worked the ninth for his 10th save.
Toronto took a 2-0 lead in the second. After loading the bases on three singles, Travis Snider delivered a sacrifice fly and Hendrickson balked home a run.
In the Baltimore second, Lou Montanez doubled and scored on Fiorentino’s single.
A four-run fourth put the Orioles ahead. Nick Markakis led off with a double and scored on Ty Wigginton’s single. After Baltimore loaded the bases, Fiorentino and Guillermo Hernandez had RBI groundouts and Brian Roberts singled home another run.
Scott Richmond (8-11) went four innings, allowing five runs on seven hits.
Cesar Izturis doubled home a run for a 6-2 lead in the sixth.
Hendrickson departed after Snider doubled and Jose Bautista walked with one out in the seventh. Aaron Hill greeted Meredith with an RBI single.
NOTES: Bautista had a streak of four straight games with a home run snapped. … Roberts was voted Most Valuable Oriole in a media poll. He also won the award in 2005. … Baltimore OF Luke Scott missed a third straight game with a sore left foot. … Beeston, Anthopoulos and Rogers Media president Tony Viner spoke with disgruntled Blue Jays who had criticized Cito Gaston’s managerial style in a pregame players-only meeting.
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