Burres Beats Boston For First Career Win

Markakis, Mora Both Collect Four Hits: Orioles 6, Red Sox 3

Orioles starter Brian Burres, above, allowed two runs in five innings for his first major league win on Friday against the Red Sox. (Charles Krupa - AP)

BOSTON, May 11 -- Brian Burres knew two things could happen when his manager arrived. Sam Perlozzo could extend his palm, ask for the ball, call for the bullpen and tell him, "Better luck next time, kid." Or, Perlozzo could do what Burres hoped: Chat for a moment, pat him on the back and let him try to get this final out of the fifth, the one that would secure his first major league win.

The pressure was thick as Perlozzo trudged to the mound, as it was for nearly all of the Baltimore Orioles' 6-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night. Perlozzo decided he would ask Burres if he was the least bit tired; if the answer was yes, he would ask his bullpen to retire Wily Mo Pe?a. The answer was no, and Burres stayed in.

"I'm not sure I made the right decision," Perlozzo said.

Burres -- and the other 24 men in the Orioles' clubhouse who helped him earn the victory -- would disagree. Burres remained in the game, nearly made Perlozzo's heart stop by throwing three straight balls and then, typical of the rest of his performance, clawed back and struck out Pe?a on his 100th and final pitch.

Burres will remember his first 'W' long into the future, but the victory carried significant meaning for the Orioles' present. It was their fourth straight, tying a season high. It came against Boston, which owns a 17-4 advantage dating from last season. It moved the Orioles to 18-18, back to .500. It also left them wanting more.

"Five-hundred don't mean [anything] to me," reliever Jamie Walker said. "This organization has been losing for nine, 10 years. It's not my goal, and I don't think it's any of my teammates' goal. Our goal is to win this . . . thing and get in the playoffs."

They won this game because Nick Markakis and Melvin Mora pounded four hits each; because Walker struck out nemesis David Ortiz (previously 6 for 10 against him) in the eighth; and because of the defense of Miguel Tejada, who jumped higher for two liners in the late innings than Perlozzo had seen him jump before, so high, "it felt like angels were on the field," Tejada said.

They will remember this game because of Burres's fortitude. For artistry, his outing was like finger painting. For guts, he was like a New York cab driver in rush hour. He allowed at least one base runner every inning and loaded the bases once. Burres, 26, forced himself to pitch around seven hits and five walks. But he stranded nine runners, allowing only two runs against one of the most feared lineups in baseball.

"I had to battle every inning," Burres said. "I kind of had to get myself out of some stuff."

He labored into the fifth, escaping the fourth inning only because Manny Ramirez's bullet of a line drive screamed straight at second baseman Brian Roberts. He walked Mike Lowell, bringing Jason Varitek to the plate. Varitek crushed a ball to deep right field, to the warning track in front of the bullpen. Markakis saved him with a remarkable catch, slamming into the wall afterward.

The blast gave Perlozzo pause, and that's when he walked out. "He did what I hoped he would do," Burres said.

After Burres hurled the three balls to Pe?a, Tejada -- one of the Orioles' most respected players -- jogged to the mound to counsel Burres, one of the greenest.

" 'Hey, you're two pitches away from you're first major league win,' " Tejada told him, pointing at Burres's chest. "Just throw three fastballs down the middle. If he takes one deep, you still pitched a great game."

On fumes, Burres fired three fastballs, none moving more than 90 mph, at a hitter capable of slamming a baseball 500 feet. On the last one, low and inside, Pe?a checked his swing, but he wasn't close.

"It was a great feeling," Burres said.

He walked off the mound and into the dugout, receiving high-fives from all of his teammates. There was debate after Burres's last start, the first of his career, on whether he would receive another. Friday, he set up the Orioles possibly winning a series against Boston for the first time since July 2005, and "I think that warrants another shot," Perlozzo said.

Earlier in the night, Perlozzo figured a decision to give Burres a shot was wrong. But it wasn't, and the game ball resting in Burres's locker could attest.

"I was going with my heart there a little bit," Perlozzo said. "I shouldn't have, I don't think. But, you know, it worked this time."