Adley Rutschman and Jeremiah Jackson slugged grand slams in the Baltimore Orioles’ 10-3 victory against the visiting Houston Astros in the first game of a doubleheader Thursday afternoon.
Orioles starter Chris Bassitt pitched 6 2/3 strong innings and Jackson drove in five runs.
Rutschman’s blast came in the fifth to break open the game. Jackson’s slam came in the seventh. It’s the first time the Orioles have smacked multiple grand slams in the same game since Sept. 11, 2015, when they hit two in one inning of a 14-8 home win over the Kansas City Royals.
Rutschman, who has homered four times this season, has collected 14 runs batted in across six games since returning from the injury list last week.
Isaac Paredes had three hits and Dustin Harris, Brice Matthews and Christian Vazquez — the bottom three batters in the lineup — each added two hits for the Astros, who racked up 12 hits.
Houston starter Peter Lambert (1-2) was saddled with the loss after he was charged with two runs on two hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out three.
Bassitt (2-2) was charged with one run on seven hits and one walk with seven strikeouts.
Baltimore finished with six hits — two apiece from Rutschman and Jackson — and seven walks.
The Orioles didn’t have a hit until Jackson’s two-out double in the fourth inning drove in Pete Alonso, who had reached on a walk.
Lambert was removed after giving up Blaze Alexander’s one-out double in the fifth. Then the Orioles loaded the bases off Steven Okert before Rutschman’s grand slam.
The Astros scored on Vazquez’s two-out single in the seventh.
In the bottom of the inning, Baltimore’s Dylan Beavers forced in a run with a bases-loaded walk to set up Jackson for his sixth homer of the season.
Houston’s Yainer Diaz had a two-out run-scoring single followed by Matthews’ infield single for the Astros’ runs in the eighth.
The need for a doubleheader came because of Wednesday’s weather-related postponement. The Orioles go for a series sweep in Thursday’s second game.
