Means tosses seven shutout innings in season debut, Orioles beat Reds 2-1

CINCINNATI (AP) — John Means pitched seven shutout innings in his season debut and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 on Saturday night.

Means (1-0) underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery on April 27, 2022. He returned to make four starts last September before landing back on the IL with a left forearm strain to begin this season.

“Felt pretty good,” Means said after the Orioles won for the fifth time in their last six games. “The team's playing so well, just wanted to join them and feel that energy that they're feeling. Felt like the slider and changeup was working, locating well. You want to get that first one out of the way.”

Like Cole Irvin the night before, Means kept Reds batters off balance with no walks and eight strikeouts.

“That was unbelievable,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “To go out and do that, pitch seven shutout innings, first time off of rehab, not been on a big-league mound for a while, that was way more than we anticipated.”

Means made six rehab starts for Triple-A Norfolk before being reinstated on May 1. He recorded an 8.68 ERA in those starts but said he felt fine physically.

“There's something about rehab starts with me, I don't know what it is,” Means said. “There's something about being up here that feels comfortable. Just going to ride with that. I just want to take it day by day.”

A pair of solo home runs off Reds starter Andrew Abbott (1-4) gave the Orioles a 2-0 lead.

Jorge Mateo's second homer of the season came in the fourth. Adley Rutschman, who had three hits, clubbed his fifth home run in the next inning.

The homers accounted for two of the seven hits Abbott allowed in five innings. He struck out eight with no walks.

“The results will come," Abbott said. "Stay true to yourself, stay true to what you can do. Eventually, it will turn the corner and we will be on a nice win streak and we’ll be looking back and say ‘Hey, it’s all part of the process.’ ”

The Reds who hadn't scored a run in Great American Ball Park in 26 innings, rallied in the ninth.

Pinch hitter Jake Fraley led off with a single against Craig Kimbrel to snap a career-long 0-for-22 streak. Jonathan India walked. After Kimbrel struck out Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer singled home a run to make the score 2-1.

Yennier Cano replaced Kimbrel and walked Tyler Stephenson to load the bases. But Cano struck out Christian Encarnacion-Strand and got Jeimer Candelario to fly out to left field for his first save of the season.

“Unbelievable job by Cano,” Hyde said. “Once we got into a groundball double play situation to end the game, Yenni is a great option for that. He walked Stephenson but got a huge punch out after and then the fly ball.”

Cincinnati avoided being shut out for the second straight night and third time in four home games.

“We had good at bats at the end,” Reds manager David Bell said. “We’ve been struggling to score runs. It's going to turn. We know that. It doesn’t make it any easier to go through. We have good players. We have to fight through it.”

UP NEXT

In Sunday's series finale, Orioles right-hander Dean Kremer (2-2, 4.19) will face Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo (3-0, 1.88) who's unbeaten since coming off the IL on April 13.

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Cincinnati Reds pitcher Lucas Sims throws in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Baltimore Orioles' Jorge Mateo celebrates as he scores after hitting a home run in the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. The Orioles won 2-1. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Yennier Cano (78) celebrates with catcher James McCann (27) after winning a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) fields a ball hit by Baltimore Orioles' Jorge Mateo and throws to first for the out in the ninth inning of a baseball game on Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Baltimore Orioles' Adley Rutschman, right, celebrates with third base coach Tony Mansolino, left, as he rounds the bases after hitting a home run in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Yennier Cano throws in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Andrew Abbott throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher John Means throws in the second inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgia’s president on Saturday vetoed the so-called “Russian law” targeting media that has sparked weeks of mass protests.

The law would require media and NGOs to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. Critics of the bill say it closely resembles legislation used by the Kremlin to silence opponents, and that it will obstruct Georgia’s bid to join the EU.

President Salome Zourabichvili, who is increasingly at odds with Georgia’s ruling party, said on Saturday that the law contradicts Georgia’s Constitution and “all European standards,” and added that it “must be abolished.”

The ruling party, Georgian Dream, has a majority sufficient to override Zourabichvili’s veto, and is widely expected to do so in the coming days.

The Georgian government insists that the law is intended to promote transparency and curb what it deems harmful foreign influence in the country of 3.7 million. Many Georgian journalists and campaigners fiercely dispute this characterization, saying they are already subject to audit and monitoring requirements. They say that the law's true goal is to stigmatize them and restrict debate ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for October.

The EU offered Georgia candidate status last December, while making it clear that Tbilisi needs to implement key policy recommendations for its membership bid to progress. The recommendations concern, among other areas, elections that must be remain free and fair, fighting disinformation “against the EU and its values," and safeguarding the independence of public institutions such as the central bank and anti-corruption bodies.

The opposition United National Movement and many protesters accuse Georgian Dream of trying to scupper the EU integration process, and to instead drag Georgia into Russia’s sphere of influence — allegations the ruling party vehemently rejects. Georgian Dream was founded by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a former prime minister and billionaire who made his fortune in Russia.

The bill is nearly identical to one that the party was pressured to withdraw last year after street protests. Renewed demonstrations have rocked Georgia for weeks, with demonstrators scuffling with police, who used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them. An opposition lawmaker earlier this month spoke in Parliament with a bandaged face, visible bruises and cuts. His allies said he had been assaulted by police during the protests.

EU officials and Western leaders have repeatedly expressed concerns over the law, as well as Tbilisi's heavy-handed response to dissent. The EU's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, issued a statement Wednesday in support of the Georgian protesters, and to condemn what he described as a wave of violence against opposition politicians, activists, journalists and their families.

European Council President Charles Michel said Tuesday that if Georgians “want to join the EU, they have to respect the fundamental principles of the rule of law and the democratic principles.”

Zourabichvili told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday that it was hard to say whether the bill was Georgian Dream’s initiative or if Moscow had played any role in its passage, but she emphasized that the Kremlin is unhappy with Georgia’s pro-Western aspirations.

“It’s clear that Moscow is not seeing with lots of appreciation this accelerated pace of Georgia towards the European Union,” she said.

Russia-Georgia relations have been strained and turbulent since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union and Georgia’s departure from its role as a Soviet republic.

In 2008, Russia fought a brief war with Georgia, which had made a botched attempt to regain control over the breakaway province of South Ossetia. Moscow then recognized South Ossetia and another separatist province, Abkhazia, as independent states and strengthened its military presence there. Most of the world considers both regions to be parts of Georgia.

Tbilisi cut diplomatic ties with Moscow, and the regions’ status remains a key irritant even as Russia-Georgia relations have improved in recent years.

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili gestures while speaking during an interview with The Associated Press, in Tbilisi, Georgia, Thursday, May 16, 2024. Zourabichvili said Thursday that a "foreign influence" bill passed by parliament that critics call a threat to free speech is "unacceptable." (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov)