Trumbo slams door on slump, hits MLB-best 32nd

OAKLAND -- The Orioles' offense found its rhythm again Thursday, and Mark Trumbo punctuated the performance with a fifth-inning grand slam that led Baltimore to a 9-6 win over the A's.
It was the third grand slam of Trumbo's career and supplied more runs than the team had combined for in its three previous games in Oakland. It also gave Trumbo sole possession of the Majors' homer lead. His 32nd dinger of the season broke a tie with Toronto's Edwin Encarnación and White Sox slugger Todd Frazier.
The home run came after A's pitcher Daniel Coulombe allowed Manny Machado and Chris Davis to reach base via an intentional pass and a walk, respectively, with two outs. Adam Jones had reached base via a single earlier in the inning. Then, Trumbo pushed all of them home with his shot over the left-center-field fence.
• Grand slams mean 40% off pizza
Trumbo entered Thursday hitless in his previous 13 at-bats. He also was enduring a 16-game slump in which he was batting just .115 (7-for-61) with one home run and four RBIs.
"There's been a sprinkling of hard contact, but overall the at-bats hadn't been that great," said Trumbo. "That's something I try not look too far into."

His offensive futility mirrored many of the Orioles hitters' struggles during a stretch in which the club lost 10 of 15 while averaging just 3.4 runs per game. They continued to appear calm despite the losses, but before Thursday's game, manager Buck Showalter described them as ducks: "calm on the surface, but paddling like heck underneath."
Trumbo's recent skid was nothing Showalter dwelled on, though.
And the right fielder finally overcame it, hitting an RBI single in the fourth and highlighting the day with his grand slam in the fifth. It was his first multi-hit performance since July 22.

"I made a little adjustment today, and I think it worked out all right," said Trumbo.
The runs proved to be significant given the trouble A's batters gave the normally stout Orioles bullpen. The seven-run lead that starter Chris Tillman left with after the seventh inning was trimmed to three by the ninth. Closer Zach Britton loaded the bases in the ninth, but escaped.