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Orioles Flex Offensive Muscle, Blast Twins 11-3 Behind Homers from Henderson, Westburg, O’Hearn

BALTIMORE – The Baltimore Orioles flexed their offensive muscle on Tuesday night, pounding the Minnesota Twins 11-3 in an impressive offensive display at Camden Yards. Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg and Ryan O’Hearn all went deep, while rookie pitching sensation Grayson Rodriguez turned in another solid outing on the mound.

The young Orioles continued their power surge, homering three times to extend their streak to four consecutive games with at least three home runs – the first time they’ve accomplished that feat since 2013. Colton Cowser also stayed red-hot, collecting two more hits to raise his batting average to an eye-popping .405.

It was Rodriguez (3-0) setting the tone early, limiting the Twins to just two runs over six innings of work. The top prospect allowed four hits, walking three and striking out six as he continues to dazzle in his rookie campaign.

The Orioles jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning against Twins starter Chris Paddack (0-1). James McCann’s two-out double plated the first run before Henderson crushed a two-run shot to right for his fifth homer of the year.

Baltimore broke it open with a four-run third. Cowser drove in a run with a groundout, then Westburg went deep for a two-run blast. Henderson capped the frame with an RBI single to make it 7-0.

The Twins got on the board in the fourth on Byron Buxton’s RBI triple, but Cowser answered right back with an RBI single in the bottom half.

Paddack was ultimately charged with nine runs on 12 hits over 5 1/3 innings – both matching career worsts for the right-hander.

Santander plated another run in the sixth before O’Hearn launched a two-run shot in the eighth, nearly robbed by Buxton’s leaping attempt at the wall.

The Orioles have taken the first two games of the series and will go for the sweep on Wednesday night behind their formidable offense. Baltimore also received a roster boost with the recall of outfielder Trevor Larnach from Triple-A.