The first game of the three-game series between the first-place Orioles and the American League West-leading Seattle Mariners turned out to be anything but a classic showdown.
The Mariners took full advantage of the inconsistency that has dogged Ubaldo Jimenez throughout his Orioles career and hammered out a 10-0 victory before a crowd of 14,477 at Oriole Park.
Former Orioles slugger Nelson Cruz always enjoyed hitting at Camden Yards and he apparently does not intend to stop. He drove in five runs with three run-scoring hits, including a two-run single that started the double-digit barrage and a two-run home run off reliever Brian Matusz that gave the M’s that double-digit lead in the sixth inning.