STEPHEN HAWKINS
AP Sports Writer
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rougned Odor had a leadoff single in the seventh and scored the tiebreaking run with the help of two errors by Baltimore Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy as the Texas Rangers avoided a three-game sweep with an 8-6 win Thursday night.
The Rangers blew an early 5-0 lead, but their three-run seventh started when No. 9 batter Odor had an infield single off reliever Brian Matusz (2-2) and moved up on throwing error by Hardy.
Odor came home when Hardy misplayed a grounder hit by Elvis Andrus to make it 6-5. Alex Rios and Chris Jimenez then added consecutive RBI singles off Preston Guilmet, the fifth Baltimore pitcher.
Hardy, an All-Star for the second time last season, also had a throwing error in the fourth for the first three-error game in his career. In 1,152 games at shortstop since 2005 before Thursday, he had only one multi-error game — seven years ago when he had two in a game for Milwaukee.
Adam Jones had three RBIs for the Orioles, including his two-run double in the fifth and his homer leading off the eighth. Nick Markakis also homered for Baltimore, a two-run shot in the third.
Robbie Ross (2-4) struck out two in two scoreless innings before Tanner Scheppers, another reliever who started this season in the Texas starting rotation, gave up the homer to Jones. Joakim Soria worked the ninth for his 12th save in 13 chances.
Scheppers, the opening day starter who went 0-1 with a 9.82 ERA in four starts before going on the disabled list with right elbow inflammation, was recalled from an injury rehab assignment earlier Thursday.
Baltimore starter Chris Tillman faced only 11 batters, and was gone without recording an out in the second inning. Nine of those batters reached, including all five in the second.
Tillman pitched in place of Miguel Gonzalez, the right-hander who was scratched a day before his scheduled start because of soreness in his side.
After Shin-Soo Choo’s leadoff walk and a double by Andrus in the first, both scored on Mitch Moreland’s slicing single to left.
Leonys Martin led off the Texas second with a single before Michael Choice’s two-run homer to left. After Odor and Choo walked, Andrus had an RBI single that made it 5-0 and chased Tillman.
After Jones doubled in the fifth off Texas starter Colby Lewis, he scored on a single by Chris Davis that tied it 5-all.
NOTES: Texas had lost seven in a row against Baltimore. … The Orioles finished 5-5 on a 10-game road trip. They play their next 10 games, and 20 of 26, at home. … Texas picked right-hander Luis Ortiz from Sanger High School in California with the 30th overall pick in the draft. That was the Rangers’ compensation pick for the Orioles signing Nelson Cruz, who was 0 for 4 with three strikeouts in the series finale.
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