Orioles' 9th-inning rally not enough to overcome Dean Kremer's rough outing in 7-6 loss to Blue Jays

TORONTO — Amid a slew of injuries to their pitching staff, the Orioles need Dean Kremer at his best down the stretch — and potentially as a playoff starter in October. On Thursday, he was far from the pitcher Baltimore hopes he can be, surrendering a three-run lead to the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning and never recovering in an eventual 7-6 loss.

On the other side of the ball, Toronto starter Kevin Gausman, who has not pitched up to his usual Cy Young Award-caliber standards this season, held the Orioles to three hits over eight innings. Baltimore rallied with four runs in the ninth against the Blue Jays’ bullpen but couldn’t complete the comeback.

Undone by walks, a high pitch count and the red-hot bat of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Kremer recorded only 13 outs as he fell short of the five-inning mark for the third time in his past six starts. The right-hander’s ERA rose to 4.70, on pace for his highest figure since his rookie year in 2021.

Kremer’s first inning had a little bit of everything. He allowed the first three Blue Jays he faced to reach on a walk and two base hits, capped off with an RBI double by Guerrero. Another run came home on a balk, and he allowed a third to cross the plate when Alejandro Kirk hit an RBI single. Kremer struck out two batters swinging and threw a wild pitch before finally getting out of the frame with a popup on the infield.

While he did get through the next three innings unscathed, Kremer’s pitch count climbed as he worked his way out of several jams. A throwing error by Jackson Holliday at second base didn’t help, but he allowed five walks in the game while working deep into counts against several Blue Jays hitters. No one proved to be a tougher out than Guerrero, who took Kremer deep for a two-run home run in the fifth just before manager Brandon Hyde went to his bullpen.

But Guerrero wasn’t done. After Daulton Varsho made it 6-2 on an RBI single with a sharp ground ball that deflected off Ryan Mountcastle’s glove at first base, Guerrero hit a deep fly ball to right field off Orioles left-hander Keegan Akin for an RBI triple. The Blue Jays’ infielder has a 20-game hitting streak dating to July 14; seven of those games have been against the Orioles.

Gausman set the tone for the Blue Jays early by retiring eight straight to start the game before Ramón Urías drew a two-out walk in the third. Colton Cowser then appeared to breathe some life into the Orioles’ offense with a line drive down the left-field line for a two-run home run, his 17th of the season and third since being moved to the leadoff spot July 28.

It was the 28th homer the Orioles (69-48) hit off Toronto this year, their most against any opponent in a single season since they set the franchise record with 34 against the Tampa Bay Rays in 2018. Though the Orioles lost the midweek series, Thursday’s contest was the final game between the two American League East rivals in 2024 and Baltimore still won the season series 7-6.

Gausman rebounded from Cowser’s blast by completing eight innings with three hits allowed. The Orioles only had one at-bat with a runner in scoring position against him, never mounting any kind of rally until the ninth.

Blue Jays reliever Zach Pop — who along with Kremer was part of the Orioles’ return from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2018 Manny Machado trade — loaded the bases with no outs, and Baltimore took advantage even after Toronto brought in Chad Green, plating four runs on an RBI groundout by Holliday, Cedric Mullins’ run-scoring double and two-run single by Cowser. But Green stopped the rally by inducing a flyout by Anthony Santander to end it.

With the loss, the Orioles fell to 10-10 since the All-Star break. They will complete their 10-game road trip with a trip to Florida to face the Rays, sending Zach Eflin, Corbin Burnes and Albert Suárez to the mound. Zack Littell and Jeffrey Springs are the Rays’ probables for Friday and Sunday with no starter listed for Saturday.