NEW YORK _ Nothing was easy for the Orioles this weekend in the Bronx coming down to getting the final out of Sunday afternoon's series finale at Yankee Stadium.
The Orioles were one out away from salvaging the final game of their three-game series against the Yankees but blew a multirun ninth-inning lead for the second time in three games here in New York, this time amid controversy.
In a game that included its share of weirdness, the Orioles eventually won, 7-4, in 11 innings, avoiding a three-game sweep, but not before New York's tying runs came in to score after a questionable balk call; manager Buck Showalter was ejected; the Yankee Stadium lights turned on, then off, then on again; and a Yankees pitcher who pitched the ninth, played first base in the 10th and then pitched again in the 11th.
Ultimately, the Orioles scored three runs in the 11th to win. After the Yankees walked Manny Machado intentionally to face Mark Trumbo with two outs, Trumbo drove in the eventual winning run with an RBI single. Welington Castillo added another RBI single, and Trumbo scored the third run of the inning when he raced for home while Castillo was caught in a rundown.
The Orioles had already been battered in the first two games of the series. Wounded by allowing a total of 26 runs in the first two games of the series _ a pair of humbling losses that knocked the Orioles out of first place for the first time this season _ they needed a win Sunday to avoid being swept out of New York.
Confusion reigned in the bottom of the ninth as right-hander Darren O'Day was called for a critical balk, putting the eventual tying runs into scoring position, prompting manager Buck Showalter to be ejected.
After O'Day walked Chase Headley, left-hander Donnie Hart allowed a two-run single to Didi Gregorius to tie the game at 4.
After Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman shut down the Orioles in the top of the 10th in twilight, the Yankee Stadium lights turned on before the bottom half of the inning, but Orioles interim manager John Russell got them turned off, citing a rule that says stadium lights can't change in the middle of an inning.
With the bullpen bare, Logan Verrett entered the game in the 10th, freshly landed from Triple-Norfolk. After allowing a leadoff bloop single down the right-field line, Verrett threw to second base _ where he had no chance to get the lead runner _ on Brett Gardner's bunt.
The Orioles needed an outstanding play _ J.J. Hardy's charging scoop of Castro's grounder and pinpoint throw to catcher Castillo to nab the potential winning run at the plate _ and Verrett's strikeout of Aaron Judge to get out of the 10th.
The Orioles were just one out away from a 4-2 win after Starlin Castro beat out a double-play ball to third to keep the inning alive. But O'Day walked Judge on five pitches, then made a pickoff move to second _ where Castro was way off the bag _ but the throw sailed into center field as Castro slid back into the bag. Neither runner was able to advance, but O'Day was called for a balk placing both runner in scoring position.
Showalter jumped out of the Orioles dugout to argue the call and was quickly ejected by home plate umpire Stu Scheurwater. O'Day walked Headley, and Russell went to Hart for a left-on-left matchup with Gregorius. But Gregorius looped a single into center field, enabling Castro and Judge to score.
The controversial ninth marked the second time the Orioles bullpen blew a ninth-inning lead in this series. Right-hander Brad Brach couldn't preserve an 11-8 lead in the ninth inning Friday night.
