Orioles 3, Twins 0: Ubaldo Jimenez dominated through 7 1/3 innings and Nelson Cruz homered as visiting Baltimore took the opener of a three-game series.
Jimenez (1-4) struck out 10 and walked one while allowing three hits to pick up his first win as a member of the Orioles. Matt Wieters added an RBI double and Manny Machado recorded his first hit and scored a run for Baltimore, which has won three straight.
Ricky Nolasco (2-3) allowed three runs and nine hits in his first complete game for the Twins, who have dropped four in a row. Eduardo Escobar doubled and Brian Dozier and Sam Fuld each singled for Minnesota.
The Twins missed a chance at a rally when Fuld singled and Jimenez issued his lone walk to start the third before striking out the side. The Orioles struck in the next half-inning when Cruz doubled to left leading off the fourth and came in to score on Wieters' double off the wall in right-center.
Machado singled leading off the sixth and Cruz followed by belting a 1-1 fastball off the third deck in left for his eighth home run. Zach Britton recorded the final two outs of the eighth and Tommy Hunter struck out a pair in the ninth to earn his eighth save.
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GAME NOTEBOOK: The Twins placed CF Aaron Hicks on the 7-day DL for a concussion and will place RHP Mike Pelfrey (groin) on the 15-day DL. LHP Logan Darnell was recalled from Triple-A Rochester and SS Danny Santana is expected to be recalled on Saturday. ... Fuld robbed the Orioles of a possible run in the first when he slammed into the center-field wall to catch Machado's long drive with a runner on first. ... Nolasco needed 110 pitches to post his first complete game since he was with the Miami Marlins on Aug. 28, 2012.
