BALTIMORE _ The Orioles badly needed more to go right in the deciding game of their three-game showdown series against the first-place Toronto Blue Jays, but they'll have to figure out some other way to climb back to the top of the division standings.
Starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo pitched all right, but certainly not good enough to overcome another soft offensive performance by the inconsistent Orioles offense. So the Blue Jays prevailed, 5-3, before a sparse crowd of 16,161 on Wednesday at Camden Yards and left town with a four-game lead over the third-place Orioles.
It also dropped the Orioles into a tie with the Detroit Tigers for the second wild card.
This series was going to require more than nine runs for the Orioles (72-61) to chip away at the Jays' American League East advantage. They'll have a day to regroup before starting September with a home series against the New York Yankees.
Maybe they'll have Adam Jones back by then, or maybe their acquisitions of reserve outfielders Drew Stubbs and Michael Bourn on Wednesday is a sign that he won't be back right away. The Orioles certainly need a boost after suffering their fifth straight series loss to a division rival.
Gallardo got off to a rocky start, allowing three runs on a pair of homers in the first inning, but he settled down after the Orioles defense bailed him out of a couple of other early-inning jams.
He allowed a total of seven base runners in the first three innings before retiring the final 10 batters he faced. It certainly didn't look very likely at the outset, but he finished with the Orioles' third quality start in the series.
How unlikely did that seem when the Blue Jays arrived in town to face three veteran pitchers who had each took the mound with an ERA higher than 5.50?
The Orioles had their chances against Blue Jays starter Aaron Sanchez, who allowed just an unearned run on five hits and three walks in six innings. The run crossed the plate in the fifth inning on a broken-bat bouncer by Manny Machado that was bobbled by third baseman Josh Donaldson for an error.
The Orioles went on to load the bases with two outs in that inning when Chris Davis drew his third straight walk, but Mark Trumbo flied out to right field to end the threat.
Sanchez, who came into the game with a 12-2 record and 2.99 ERA, pitched with runners on base in every inning except the second, but only allowed more than one runner in an inning twice.
The Blue Jays obviously were laying for Gallardo, who had lasted just 11/3 innings in his previous start. Leadoff hitter Jose Bautista greeted him with a home run to start the game. Catcher Russell Martin made him pay dearly for a two-out walk with his 16th homer of the season, which put Toronto ahead by three before the Orioles came to bat. Bautista's homer was his 17th of the year and his 28th career home run against the O's.
