Ramirez Grand, Cantu Clutch in Fish Win

Marlins squander five-run lead, top Orioles in 12th

The Marlins squandered a late five-run lead but still managed to reach the .500 mark for the first time since mid-May.

Jorge Cantu singled home Emilio Bonifacio with no outs in the 12th inning Tuesday night to give the Marlins a 7-6 victory over Baltimore that snapped the Orioles’ five-game winning streak.

Brian Bass (4-2) began the 12th by walking Bonifacio and he advanced to second on a wild pitch with Hanley Ramirez batting. Ramirez was then intentionally walked.

Cantu lined a single to left and Luke Scott’s throw home beat Bonifacio but the ball came out of catcher Gregg Zaun’s glove on the tag.

“I thought he was out. I didn’t see Zaun drop the ball,” said Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez, whose team led 6-1 after seven innings.

Zaun said he should have made the play despite the short hop.

“It’s not one I haven’t made dozens of times in my career before. It just took a funny little squirt to the right and I didn’t catch it in a good part of the mitt,” Zaun said.

Ramirez hit his second career grand slam and Dan Uggla homered for Florida, which improved to 36-36, its first time at .500 since May 13.

Matt Wieters homered and added an RBI single for Baltimore.

Burke Badenhop (5-2) pitched two scoreless innings for the win.

The Orioles scored three runs in the ninth to tie the game at 6 with five consecutive singles off relievers Matt Lindstrom and Brian Sanches.

Pinch-hitter Ty Wigginton’s run-scoring single made it 6-5 and chased Lindstrom. Sanches came on and gave up Oscar Salazar’s single that tied the score.

Lindstrom failed to earn the save two nights after allowing two ninth-inning runs in saving a 6-5 victory against the New York Yankees.

“It’s inexplicable, I can’t put my finger on anything except I have to do a better job and take responsibility for what happened,” Lindstrom said.

Ramirez’s grand slam highlighted a five-run seventh that gave Florida a 6-1 lead.

Danys Baez relieved Koji Uehara to start the seventh and gave up five runs in one-third of an inning.

“It was a hanging split-finger to Ramirez. I threw a good one before that,” Baez said.

Uehara is now 0-4 with six no-decisions since his last win, on April 13.

Florida’s Andrew Miller pitched one-hit ball through seven innings, allowing one run, two walks and striking out four. He retired 13 straight batters at one point.

“I was throwing out of the windup a lot tonight, which was nice,” Miller said.

Uggla’s 14th homer tied at 1 in the fifth.

Baltimore took a 1-0 lead two batters into the game. Brian Roberts led off with a double to left went to third on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nick Markakis.

Florida’s Leo Nunez left the game with a sprained right ankle after facing two batters in the eighth, including Wieters’ homer.
 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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