Mitch Moreland homered twice, rookie Joey Gallo knocked in three runs with his first career triple and the Texas Rangers routed the Baltimore Orioles 8-1 in the opener of a four-game series.
Moreland, Carlos Corporan and Shin-Soo Choo all homered off Orioles starter Bud Norris as the Rangers beat the Orioles for just the second time in the teams' last 13 meetings.
They picked up their second victory in their last nine games overall to avoid falling below .500 for the first time since May 29.
Wandy Rodriguez (5-3) struck out seven and picked up the win despite pitching just five-plus innings. The left-hander surrendered one run on eight hits and two walks.
Norris (2-7) lost a third straight start after giving up five runs on nine hits and a walk in six innings.
Baltimore, coming off back-to-back shutouts in a doubleheader against Cleveland on Sunday, had a four-game winning streak halted and lost for just the second time in its last nine.
Rougned Odor and Choo singled for Texas in the first inning, but were both thrown out on the basepaths -- Odor on a pickoff at first base after a successful replay challenge by the Orioles, and Choo trying to steal second.
Moreland looked like he was also thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double in the second inning, but the Rangers challenged the play and officials ruled his drive off the fence above the right-field wall was a home run.
Corporan homered over the right-field fence in the third inning, Moreland hit a towering two-run blast in the fourth and Choo led off the fifth with a shot to make it 5-0.
Adam Jones pulled the Orioles within 5-1 on a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the fifth. J.J. Hardy drew a leadoff walk in the sixth to chase Rodriguez but was stranded at first base after Spencer Patton got three straight outs.
The Rangers blew the game open on Gallo's three-run triple off Tommy Hunter in the top of the seventh, which came after Choo, Prince Fielder and Adrian Beltre loaded the bases with consecutive singles.
Game Notes
Choo and Beltre had three hits each for Texas ... It was Moreland's sixth career two-home run game. He has 12 homers this season ... Rodriguez exchanged words with home plate umpire John Hirschbeck in the fifth inning after issuing a walk to load the bases. Hirschbeck took off his mask and walked in front of the plate to argue back as Corporan, the catcher, got in his way.
[SportsNetwork.com]
