NEW YORK _ Their first one Saturday showed, at the very least, that it was possible for the Orioles to scratch a win together this season.
In doubling down with a 7-5 win Sunday to clinch an improbable series victory over the host New York Yankees this weekend, the Orioles' second win of this young season confirmed what was clear in their first: the only time they'll use the word easy this year will probably be facetious.
Brandon Hyde's Orioles rode home runs from Renato Nunez, Trey Mancini and Joey Rickard and survived an uneasy start from Dylan Bundy by cobbling together 16 outs from a bullpen that was asked for all 27 on Saturday.
The resulting victory improved the Orioles to 2-1 on this young season, their first winning record since they were 1-0 after Opening Day a year ago.
A 197-minute rain delay came from what was meant to be a passing early-afternoon shower, and it was still drizzling when the Orioles teed off for a big first inning against Yankees starter J.A. Happ. Dwight Smith Jr. doubled and went to third on Mancini's fourth infield single of this young season, and both scored when designated hitter Nunez crushed the Orioles' first home run of the season.
Mancini broke his small-ball run with a towering home run to center field in the fourth inning, giving the Orioles and starter Dylan Bundy a 4-0 lead.
Bundy, however, couldn't sustain his early success and lost his delivery over the course of the third and fourth innings. By the time he left with the bases loaded and two outs in the fourth, he'd struck out eight, allowed just two hits, but walked five Yankees batters.
Left-hander John Means _ one of the only relievers available after the Orioles used six pitchers to secure Saturday's white-knuckle 5-3 win _ came in and allowed all three of those runs to score on an 11-pitch walk to Brett Gardner and a two-run single by Aaron Judge.
But these Orioles, apparently, answer back. Jonathan Villar reached on an infield single, stole second base, and advanced when catcher Gary Sanchez's throw went into center field. The Yankees drew the infield in to try and keep him at third, but Smith flipped a run-scoring single into left field to give the Orioles some cushion.
And though Means ended up using his changeup to great effect in the ensuing three innings, collecting five strikeouts mostly because of the dozen whiffs he got with the changeup against the right-handed Yankees lineup, that extra run came in handy. He finally hung a changeup with two outs in the seventh to Sanchez, who hit it out to left field to cut the Orioles' lead to 5-4.
A wall-scraper of a two-run home run from Rickard went into the first row of seats in right field with two outs in the eighth inning and, for the second inning in a row, brought Mychal Givens in ahead of the ninth-inning assignment that was assumed to be held for him.
Givens made things far more interesting than they had to be when, with one out, he hit DJ LeMahieu, then committed an error trying to start a double play with a throw to second on a comebacker. After striking out Judge, he walked Giancarlo Stanton to load the bases before getting out of the jam with a ground ball.
The ninth inning was on track to be much simpler before a two-out walk and an infield single brought the tying run to the plate. After LeMahieu singled home a run, Givens _ having thrown a career-high 49 pitches a day after throwing 16 _ gave way to Paul Fry.
Fry struck out Troy Tulowitzki for his first career save, and Means' win was the first of his career.
