That’s why the Orioles paid Pete Alonso $155 million.

After a weekend of struggles with runners in scoring position, the “Polar Bear” proved for the first time in Baltimore that he has ice in his veins.

With the game tied in the seventh inning, Alonso shortened up with two strikes and flicked a single over the second baseman’s head to drive in the go-ahead run and propel the Orioles to an 8-6 win over the Minnesota Twins. The RBI is Alonso’s first in an Orioles uniform.

The victory gives Baltimore, which won opening day in high-vibes fashion, its first series win of the season, bouncing back from Saturday’s 16-strikeout performance.

Through the first three innings, it appeared the Orioles would lose the game and the series to a Twins team that’s expected to be middling. Starting pitcher Shane Baz, pitching in his first game as an Oriole, allowed four runs in the second inning, and Baltimore’s bats were as lifeless as they were in Saturday’s 4-1 loss.

But Tyler O’Neill blasted a three-run homer in the fourth to bring the Orioles back to life. Dylan Beavers, who started in center field for the first time in his career, then gave Baltimore a 5-4 lead in the sixth with a two-run double. And Alonso’s single in the seventh helped spark a three-run rally that also included an RBI double from Adley Rutschman and an RBI single from Coby Mayo.

The Orioles’ bullpen was shaky, but it didn’t collapse to hold onto the win. Yaramil Hiraldo and Tyler Wells both allowed one run and loaded the bases in the seventh and eighth innings, but they were bailed out by Rico Garcia and Yennier Cano, respectively. Closer Ryan Helsley tossed a scoreless ninth to slam the door for his second save as an Oriole.

Baltimore is 2-1 — the same record it had through three games last season. The club needs the next 159 games to go better than they did last year.

Baz said during the news conference Saturday to celebrate his $68 million contract extension that Orioles fans probably don’t know much about him. The 26-year-old right-hander had never thrown a pitch in a regular-season game for the Orioles when he signed the largest contract for a pitcher in franchise history.

Baz’s first impression was good — a three-up, three-down inning to kick off Sunday’s matinee, the coldest game of his career at 56 degrees. His second impression wasn’t. The first four Twins batters of the second inning reached base and came around to score to put Minnesota up 4-0. Trevor Larnach’s single put the Twins on the board, while Tristan Gray’s double that narrowly evaded the diving glove of O’Neill in right field cleared the bases.

But Baz didn’t let the poor second sink his outing. He kept his poise — unsurprising to those who know him and a demeanor that made him a pitcher the Orioles viewed as worth extending — and tossed the final 3 1/3 innings of his outing without allowing a run. He surrendered seven hits and didn’t walk a batter while striking out four with 12 whiffs. The fireballer, whose fastball topped out at 99.6 mph, was on the receiving end of some bad luck, as three of the seven knocks against him had an expected batting average under .100, according to Statcast.

To kick off the fourth inning for the Orioles’ offense, Alonso and Samuel Basallo both singled to set up O’Neill’s three-run blast — a 391-foot towering fly ball down the left field line off Twins starter Bailey Ober.

The long ball was the first by Baltimore this season after the bats went the first 20 innings without one. O’Neill’s record opening day homer streak ended at six Thursday, but MLB’s opening day logo was still on the field Sunday, perhaps still giving the right fielder some extra power.

But it was O’Neill’s next plate appearance that might have been the most important in the game.

With two outs in the sixth inning, O’Neil fell behind 0-2 against Minnesota Twins right-hander Mick Abel. The slugger fouled off the 0-2 pitch and then held off on the next four offerings for a walk. Mayo then blooped a double down the left field line, and Beavers lined a double over the first baseman’s head to put Baltimore ahead.

However, Twins center fielder Byron Buxton quickly tied the game with a solo homer off Hiraldo. Minnesota almost retook the lead after Hiraldo walked the bases loaded with two outs, but Rico Garcia continued his success at escaping such jams by striking out Matt Wallner looking.

Before Alonso’s go-ahead single, Taylor Ward singled and Gunnar Henderson walked against Twins piggyback pitcher Mick Abel. Rutschman then roped a pinch-hit double off the center field wall, and the Twins intentionally walked Samuel Basallo to load the bases — making the 21-year-old the youngest Oriole to be given first base since Henderson in 2022. Mayo then continued his strong start to the season with a line drive single to left field to put Baltimore up 8-5, but the rally died with a Beavers double play.

The Orioles were back in trouble in the eighth when Wells loaded the bases before recording an out. Wells retired two of the next three batters — with a Gray RBI single sandwiched in between — before manager Craig Albernaz went to Yennier Cano to face Buxton. Cano struck out Buxton and then brought back his signature staredown after.

The Twins brought the go-ahead run to the plate in the ninth thanks to an error by Henderson at shortstop, but Helsley got James Outman to fly out to end the game.

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