Off the mark, Gonzalez stung by homer bug

BALTIMORE -- A night removed from Bud Norris giving up four home runs, Orioles starter Miguel Gonzalez found himself almost as equally susceptible to the long ball.

The righty tied a career high in giving up three home runs, and he lasted just 4 1/3 innings to pave the way for Baltimore's 8-6 loss to Texas on Tuesday night.

"He was up," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Gonzalez, who was charged with a season-high six earned runs. "He was trying to make some pitches. He got some balls in some spots he normally doesn't get them in, and they made him pay for it."

Video: TEX@BAL: Rangers hit four homers in win over Orioles

After allowing a two-run homer in the second to red-hot Mitch Moreland, Gonzalez watched No. 9 batter Robinson Chirinos hit one to open the fifth. One out later, Shin-Soo Choo followed with a solo blast. Gonzalez also allowed a pair of runs in the third in the disappointing 85-pitch outing.

"He just had a little bit of mechanical flaws that were keeping him from throwing strikes like Miggy normally does," catcher Matt Wieters said. "That's the big thing. When he doesn't have his fastball command, you know something is just quite not right with him, but he'll get after it in his bullpen session and try to get back online and he'll be ready to go his next start."

Gonzalez, whose ERA (4.04) is now over 4 for the first time since July 2014, agreed that his mechanics were off and he was flying open too much on the mound.

"This is an aggressive team," he said of a Rangers club that has hit eight homers in the first two games of the series. "They are going to be hacking anything you throw around the plate. And unfortunately the last two games, we haven't been pitching the way we wanted to, but we are going to work at it and hopefully come back and be strong again."