Impressive start from Povich cannot prevent further defeat (updated)

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde was asked before tonight's game whether rookie Cade Povich could stay in the rotation or perhaps move to the bullpen.

“I think we have 40 games left and right now we're taking it day by day,” Hyde said. “You just never know. And our squads are expanding. A lot can happen.”

A quick return to Triple-A Norfolk was also possible, or rather likely, since there are no plans for a six-man setup. How much of the decision was really in the hands of the rookie?

The left one gave the Orioles a lot to think about.

Povich was brought back early today to make his ninth major league start. He struck out 15 of the first 17 batters and worked a shutout until the sixth inning before allowing a run. He lasted a career-high 6 1/3 in the Orioles' 5-1 loss to the Red Sox before a crowd of 38,921 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles (72-52) were unable to score from Brayan Bello until Gunnar Henderson's home run with two outs tied the game in the sixth inning. They had drawn three walks.

No. 32 to Henderson came on the first pitch and was his third in the last four games. The ball eluded the glove of leaping right fielder Rob Refsnyder and bounced off the roof of the groundskeeper's hall.

Povich had allowed one run and six hits with no walks and six strikeouts and left the field to a standing ovation after Triston Casas hit a single. Pinch-hitter Masataka Yoshida hit a double off Yennier Cano and Jarren Duran delivered a two-run single with two outs to give the Red Sox a 3-1 lead.

One of those runs was attributed to Povich, who threw 89 pitches before leaving.

“The general attitude I have going into this,” he said of his biggest win. “Just trying to give the team a chance. I think just going down there, working on a few things and coming up here and executing that. Definitely something to build on.”

“I think you just have to attack the zone with everything and get an early lead. Probably one of my best games up here or in Triple-A as far as first-pitch strikes go. If you can get success early, it definitely helps a lot.”

This mindset created an alter ego that Povich shared with the group at his locker.

“I think the other games were Cade and I went and talked to a few people about mental stuff,” he explained. “Some of the guys down here call me 'Slim,' so I brought that attitude into this game, a different mindset, a different person, someone who is just aggressive and attacks early while he's in the game.”

The bullpen was shorthanded, with Bryan Baker an option. Burch Smith appeared in a third straight game and gave up a 425-foot, two-run home run to Rafael Devers in the eighth inning. He has been scored against on two consecutive nights and in four of his last six appearances.

“We're down a few runs there,” Hyde said. “Devers is in the middle of a right pocket, about where we landed at this point.”

The same team that scored 10 runs and 17 hits last night was limited to one run and five hits and left eight men on base. Duran caught the ball on a leaping catch at the center field fence, robbing pinch hitter Eloy Jiménez of his first Orioles home run.

Because of the rain, Povich waited 76 minutes to throw his first pitch. Fired up by Billy Joel's “Piano Man,” he put the crowd in a good mood by striking out 14 of 15 batters.

Romy Gonzalez hit a single with two outs in the second inning, and Casas' fly ball pushed Ryan O'Hearn's back against the right-field fence.

The efficiency was highly impressive. Povich had eight pitches with seven strikes in the first inning, had 28 pitches with 22 strikes after the third inning, and had 39 with 30 strikes in the fourth inning. His three strikeouts came on a sweeper, a changeup, and a fastball, and he started the fifth inning by striking out Danny Jensen with a curveball and Gonzalez with his fastball.

Casas hit a single into right field with two outs, and Henderson backhanded the ball and threw it across his body to take Connor Wong out of the game.

Povich, ranked No. 5 in the system by MLB Pipeline, came in with a 6.27 ERA and a 1.688 WHIP. He threw six scoreless innings against the Braves in his second game, but also experienced low points with eight runs in an inning plus in Oakland. The Orioles drafted him 27th.^th Mann in the July 29 doubleheader against the Blue Jays and he allowed three earned runs and six total in 4 1/3.

What was different tonight?

“A little bit of everything,” Hyde said. “I thought he had a really good changeup. I thought he was extremely aggressive in the strike zone. It was great to see him throw multiple pitches for strikes and really attack them. That was great to see. Bello threw great, (Povich) threw great. It was great to see Cade own everything tonight and how he attacked the hitters.”

Ceddanne Rafaela singled to lead off the sixth inning and O'Hearn ran to right-center field for a sliding catch from Duran. Refsnyder hit a single to left and Tyler O'Neill's bloop to center field gave Boston a 1-0 lead.

Bello faced the Orioles four times in his career before tonight, allowing 10 earned runs and 12 total runs in 20 2/3 innings. He walked two batters in the second inning and put Ramón Urías out of action with a ground ball. They didn't pose a real threat to him until Henderson's home run, followed by a single from O'Hearn.

Jackson Holliday had four hits last night, greeting left-hander Brennan Bernardino, last night's opener, with a leadoff single in the bottom of the seventh inning. Ramón Urías reached first base on an infield single with one out, Lucas Sims came in and pinch-hitter Adley Rutschman flied to the warning track in right. Colton Cowser walked in his T-shirt to load the bases, but Anthony Santander was thrown out on a groundout.

The loss stung because it kept the Yankees one game ahead in the division race and brought the Twins within 1 1/2 of the Orioles in the battle for the first wild card, but Povich was a major story. The organization's most promising pitcher acted like it.

The crowd rose to its feet and began cheering for Povich before Hyde reached the mound. The rookie matched his career-high in strikeouts to start the inning, Casas hit a single, and the DJ brought Billy Joel back on.

It was Saturday, well after nine. They didn't like the end result, but the boy caused a stir.

“It was super cool,” he said. “Obviously it was up and down, I've had some problems up here overall with the last couple of starts, so I had another chance to come here, get into the seventh and then leave. That crowd gave me a little bit of goosebumps. I was still kind of in game mode, but I guess I'm trying to suppress a smile a little bit. It was special.”

* Norfolk’s Daniel Johnson beat his 18^th Home run, a three-run shot. Terrin Vavra had a two-run single.

Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann was used as an opener and allowed two runs in the first inning.

Patrick Reilly of Double-A Bowie, signed by the Pirates at the deadline for Triple-A outfielder Billy Cook, allowed four runs and three hits with three walks and three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings. Ryan Long followed, allowing one earned run and two total runs in 5 1/3 innings.

Dylan Beavers had three hits and an RBI. Tavian Josenberger stole his first four bases with the Baysox.

Edgar Portes of High-A Aberdeen threw four scoreless innings and struck out eight batters. Jake Cunningham had three hits and an RBI.

Ethan Anderson of Single-A Delmarva has finished two straight games with three hits.