Twins win second in a row, down Orioles 5-3
BALTIMORE (AP) - Francisco Liriano took a two-hitter into the seventh inning, and the Minnesota Twins beat Baltimore 5-3 Monday night to extend the Orioles' losing streak to eight games.
Drew Butera had a career-high three RBIs for the last-place Twins (6-10), who have won two in a row for the first time this season.
Minnesota led 3-0 before Liriano yielded solo homers to Adam Jones and Matt Wieters in the seventh. Baltimore got two on with two outs later in the inning before Derrek Lee to hit a routine fly to center against former Oriole Jim Hoey.
The Twins made it 5-2 in the ninth off Kevin Gregg. After Butera singled in a run, Danny Valencia scored on a wild pitch.
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Liriano (1-3) gave up two runs, five hits and five walks in 7 1/3 innings. The lefthander came in with a 9.42 ERA and had not pitched into the sixth inning of any of his previous three starts.
Matt Capps worked the ninth for his second save -- the second in two games -- despite allowing a pinch-hit solo homer to Luke Scott. Capps took the closer role from Joe Nathan, who blew two save opportunities last week at Tampa Bay.
Orioles starter Chris Tillman (0-2) permitted three runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings. It was decent performance, but he got little support from an offense that has scored only 19 runs during the eight-game skid.
Baltimore got runners on second and third with two outs in the first before Mark Reynolds looked at a third strike with the count full.
Butera then put the Twins ahead for good, hitting a two-run double following singles by Michael Cuddyer and Valencia. Butera came to the plate with a .133 batting average and one RBI.
Minnesota made it 3-0 in the third. Delmon Young hit a leadoff single, took third on a double by Cuddyer and scored on a groundout by Valencia.
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was ejected by home plate umpire Chris Guccione for arguing a called third strike on Jason Kubel in the eighth. It was Gardenhire's 53rd career ejection.
Kubel and teammate Jim Thome each struck out three times.
NOTES: Minnesota is 12-4 at Camden Yards since Sept. 22, 2006. ... The Twins played without 1B Justin Morneau, who was experiencing flulike symptoms. Morneau is batting .208. (Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)