The Baltimore Orioles secured a dominant 9-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Saturday night, with Emmanuel Rivera standing out by going 4 for 4 with two home runs and four RBIs. This impressive performance helped the Orioles secure the top wild card spot in the American League. As a result, they will now prepare to face either the Kansas City Royals or the Detroit Tigers in the first round of the playoffs.

Ryan O’Hearn and Jackson Holliday also made significant contributions to the Orioles’ win, with O’Hearn delivering a home run and Holliday adding three hits to the team’s tally. In contrast, Brooks Lee managed to collect two hits for the struggling Twins, who have now suffered six losses in their last seven games and were officially eliminated from playoff contention the day before. Despite their tough position, Ryan Jeffers provided a ray of hope for the Twins by hitting a two-run homer in the ninth inning.

Baltimore took an early lead in the game with Matt Bowman as their starter, who effectively secured the first four outs. Left-hander Tucker Davidson, in his first appearance for the Orioles after a season in Triple-A, took over and pitched 4 2/3 shutout innings to earn the win. On the Twins’ side, starter Zebby Matthews struggled, lasting just three innings and giving up six runs on seven hits with three walks and five strikeouts.

O’Hearn set the tone for the Orioles in the first inning with a two-run homer, while Rivera extended their lead to 4-0 with another homer in the second inning. Rivera continued his impressive performance with a double in the third inning, a solo homer in the fifth, and a single in the ninth, marking the first four-hit game of his career.

Looking ahead, the Twins will turn to RHP Bailey Ober (12-8, 3.94) in Sunday’s season finale, while the Orioles have yet to announce their starting pitcher for the game. The Orioles will now focus on maintaining their momentum as they head into the postseason.