Baltimore Orioles at Detroit Tigers

With exactly one week to go until the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline, the Orioles couldn’t have started their critical week much better than they did Monday night. Baltimore belted three home runs to fuel a strong offensive showing in its series-opening 8-5 win over Detroit at Comerica Park. It was the O’s highest scoring output since an 8-2 win over Kansas City on July 12 and their first time hitting three or more homers since hitting four in a 6-1 victory vs. the Royals on July 11. Leody Taveras, Coby Mayo and Tyler O’Neill each went deep for the Orioles (52-55), who moved to only two games back of the third American League Wild Card spot as of the conclusion of the game. This week’s three-game set is an important series for both the O’s and the Tigers, and not only because both teams are trying to decide what their strategy should be for the Trade Deadline. Both clubs are involved in the crowded AL Wild Card hunt, so the results of these games are quite impactful for the standings. But the Orioles continue to focus on handling what they can control -- and what they know they can do, such as performances like this one. “The time of year doesn’t really matter,” Mayo said. “If we’re hitting and doing that and cashing in runs and playing complete baseball, that’s going to win games. It doesn’t matter if it’s in March or if it’s in September. I think if we can play games like that more consistently -- especially on the offensive side -- we’re going to win a lot of games.” Detroit right-hander Keider Montero has been having a strong season, as the 26-year-old entered Monday with a 0.96 WHIP, as well as a 1.80 ERA over his previous 10 outings (four starts). But the Orioles came ready for the challenge. Baltimore tagged Montero for six runs (four earned) in 4 1/3 innings, scoring in each of the first three frames and in four of the first five.