BALTIMORE -- Grayson Rodriguez walked into the Orioles’ clubhouse at Camden Yards on Monday afternoon and quickly received a handshake and an embrace from Gunnar Henderson. Rodriguez exchanged nods with Colton Cowser, and then, soon after, he was getting wrapped up in a hug from Kyle Gibson.

The O’s were happy to have Rodriguez back. The 23-year-old right-hander was happier to be there -- in Baltimore, in the big leagues and taking the mound for MLB’s hottest team.

Rodriguez came out amped up, throwing the eight hardest pitches of his 11-start Major League career -- all between 99.8 and 101 mph, per Statcast -- during a scoreless first inning vs. the Dodgers. From there, however, his outing followed a bit of a familiar path.

In the sixth, Rodriguez didn’t retire any of the three batters he faced. Soon after, right-hander Bryan Baker gave up a go-ahead grand slam to Chris Taylor, the turning point in Baltimore’s 6-4 loss, a defeat that snapped the O’s season-high eight-game winning streak.

The bright spot for the Orioles was the encouraging early results for Rodriguez against a challenging Dodgers lineup -- even if he still didn’t complete six innings for the first time in his big league career.

Over the first five frames, Rodriguez scattered five hits and a walk, while allowing only one run as Baltimore built a 4-1 lead.

“I thought he threw the ball really well,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “I thought the command was improved. I thought the stuff was excellent.”

Rodriguez’s stuff has always been excellent, though. That wasn’t the reason for the former top prospect being sent down to Triple-A Norfolk on May 27, as he routinely flashed a high-octane fastball and plus breaking pitches during his first stint in the big leagues earlier this season.

But Rodriguez needed to show better command of his arsenal. In order to do that, he had to regain confidence, which he said he did during his time back in the Minors, allowing him to carry that into his start Monday night.

“Just being able to go back to Norfolk and gather myself, and get back to the pitcher that I know I am, and that’s throwing a lot of fastballs,” Rodriguez said. “That’s something we were able to do tonight. Left a few over the plate there in the sixth, but other than that, it was a little bit better than when I was up here before.”

Everything about those comments from Rodriguez is true. He threw a lot of four-seamers (45 of his 91 pitches). He pitched better than he did in many of his previous big league outings. But he also made some mistakes at the end.

The sixth began with Freddie Freeman hitting a triple to left-center field, as center fielder Aaron Hicks couldn’t quite make a leaping grab at the wall. Then, Will Smith singled in Freeman to cut Baltimore’s lead to 4-2. Smith advanced to second on a wild pitch, then Max Muncy followed with a walk.

At that point, Rodriguez’s night was over. He was charged with four earned runs, as he was responsible for two of the runners on base (Smith and Muncy) when Taylor took Baker deep with the bases loaded later in the inning.

The Orioles, who were held scoreless by the Dodgers’ bullpen over the final four innings, weren’t pleased with taking their first loss since July 4 at Yankee Stadium. But the O’s liked the majority of what they saw from Rodriguez.

“He looked amazing,” Baker said. “I was really impressed with the way he was attacking the zone, and obviously, his stuff speaks for itself.”

Added Hyde: “He threw the ball really, really well. I’m really excited about him.”

The series opener vs. the Dodgers represented the most high-stakes environment Rodriguez has pitched in during his baseball career. The Orioles (57-36), trying to secure their first postseason berth since 2016, still trail the Rays (60-37) by only one game in the American League East race after Tampa Bay endured a walk-off loss at Texas on Monday night.

Rodriguez is excited he could get an opportunity to help Baltimore play its way into the postseason. And the O’s, hopeful that Rodriguez can provide a boost to the back end of their rotation, may continue to give him a chance to do just that.

“When I was in Norfolk watching all the games, I still felt like I’m a part of the team. Now that I’m back, I’m just trying to help the team win some games,” Rodriguez said. “It’s going to be a fun stretch here in the second half.”