BALTIMORE -- Hours before the Orioles let a late lead slip from their grasp in a 6-4 loss to the Yankees on Saturday night at Camden Yards, manager Brandon Hyde sat at the podium and talked about how the addition of Dan Straily wouldn’t just boost the Orioles’ rotation, but lessen the burden on the club’s bullpen as well.

Straily will be eased into action with the intent of starting sometime soon. But the relief can’t come soon enough.

Still playing under the difficulties of sporting a four-man rotation, the Orioles’ bullpen was tasked with covering 5 1/3 innings against the Yankees, further taxing one of the most heavily used units in baseball so far this season. Four relievers were needed in support of Dylan Bundy, who lasted only 3 2/3 innings for the second time in two starts.

The last in that line, Miguel Castro, gave up Clint Frazier’s game-deciding homer in the eighth, a three-run blast that sent the Orioles to their third consecutive loss.

That the stretch has the Orioles back at .500 after starting the season 4-1 won’t dispel Hyde’s positive message.

“I love the fight in our guys, we’re playing really good baseball,” Hyde said. “Take a blow, deliver a blow, that’s what this week has been. A lot of back and forth.”

Down early courtesy of two Aaron Judge home runs, the Orioles fought back to tie the game with a two-run seventh, manufacturing a temporary lead off eventual winning pitcher Adam Ottavino. Chris Davis and Rio Ruiz contributed pinch-hits RBIs in the frame, which also featured a daring steal of third by Jonathan Villar that set up the go-ahead run.

Trey Mancini homered for the fourth time in six games, while John Means and Paul Fry combined to hold New York scoreless across 3 1/3 innings of middle relief.

But it was all wasted when Castro hung a 2-2 slider to Frazier, who socked a 386-foot blast into the left-field seats. While there was much talk postgame about the pitch selection, Castro’s choice was arguable. Frazier had swung through two fastballs already in the at-bat, but nearly half of his 21 career extra-base hits have come off heaters.

Frazier is a .236 career hitter against breaking pitches. Meanwhile, opposing hitters managed only a .182 average against Castro’s slider last season, per Statcast.

“My slider is one of my best pitches,” Castro said through an interpreter. “Unfortunately, it was up and he made a good swing.”

Added Hyde: “I liked the Castro/Frazier matchup, it just didn’t happen tonight. He may have overcooked the slider a little that backed it up onto the inner half of the plate. I think we learn from those mistakes."

What’s clear is how short outings like Bundy’s have resulted in a trickle-down effect. Hyde has asked his relievers to cover nearly five innings a game, on average, over the season’s first week-plus. Bundy recorded 11 outs and allowed eight baserunners; Orioles starters have completed six innings only twice in eight games, though they’ve also used an opener for two of those.

“I’ve got to get deeper in the game,” Bundy said. “I think that’s the first thing.”

Though the Orioles' bullpen owns a collective 6.14 ERA, there are bright spots. Nate Karns, who made his first traditional relief appearance Saturday after opening two games, has faced jams but remains unscored upon. Fry worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam and covered 2 1/3 innings, lowering his ERA to 1.59. Means has the same ERA and has proven reliable in the middle innings.

“We’ve given up some home runs in tough spots and responded the next inning offensively,” Hyde said. “That shows the character of a club. I hope we take that for the next six months.”