Rare bullpen blip spoils Eovaldi's bid for first win

BALTIMORE -- The Yankees were past the halfway point on Wednesday, Nathan Eovaldi had nine strikeouts in the books, and manager Joe Girardi was looking ahead to having his bullpen -- excellent thus far in 2015 -- wrap up the final four innings.

It did not work out that way, as David Carpenter and Justin Wilson stumbled in the sixth inning. The Orioles batted around for five runs and five hits, powering a 7-5 victory in the rubber game of the three-game set at Camden Yards.

"We just couldn't seem to get through that sixth inning, and it's unfortunate," Girardi said. "I thought Nate battled pretty much all night; threw a lot of pitches in the five innings, and that's why I took him out. But we struggled in the sixth."

The Yankees entered Wednesday with a 1.73 bullpen ERA, second-best in the American League. Jonathan Schoop greeted Carpenter with a game-tying home run to center field, coming on an 0-1 slider.

"You want to attack. You want to go after people," Carpenter said. "Don't pitch scared. It's going to happen. Guys are going to get hits, and they're going to square the ball up some nights. Tonight was their night."

Wilson entered after a single, sacrifice and intentional walk. The left-hander faced two batters and retired none, giving up a run-scoring single to pinch-hitter Delmon Young and a two-run double up the gap in left-center field to Chris Davis.

"It was just a tad bit up; not the tightest breaking cutter I've ever thrown," Wilson said of the pitch to Davis. "That guy's a good hitter. You're going to get beat sometimes."

Video: NYY@BAL: Eovaldi escapes bases-loaded jam in the 4th

Caleb Joseph added a run-scoring single off Chris Martin, a run charged to Wilson, before the Yanks finally escaped.

"You're winning after five, you've got a full bullpen," Girardi said. "You feel pretty good about it."

Eovaldi watched the barrage from the bench and said that despite being happy to showcase a slider with much better tilt, he wished he could have been more economical with his 101 pitches, which might have changed the story.

"I feel like this is a short outing for me," Eovaldi said. "Last year, I was able to go seven, eight [innings], deeper into the game. I've just got to do a better job of staying ahead in counts."