Trading places, Gunkel beats ex 'mates

Score: Joe Gunkel 1, Boston Red Sox 0.

The Orioles' newly minted No. 27 prospect hurled six shutout innings against his former team as Double-A Bowie defeated Portland, 1-0, on Saturday.

Gunkel (3-1) allowed five hits in his longest start of the season. The 23-year-old right-hander struck out three and did not issue a walk, throwing 53 of 73 pitches for strikes.

"Just throwing strikes, trying to attack hitters from the first pitch and get them to hit your pitch and stay ahead in the count," he said. "I threw a majority of fastballs, that was my best pitch tonight. I was able to get a feel for the off-speed later on in the game."

Gunkel spent more than two seasons in the Red Sox system after they drafted him in the 18th round of the 2013 Draft. On Wednesday, the Florida native was traded to the Orioles for big league outfielder Alejandro De Aza. Three days later, Gunkel was on the mound, facing his former teammates.

"I got a call from Ben Crockett, the Red Sox's farm director," he said. "He called me and told me I'd been traded to the Orioles. He wished me the best of luck. Then I got a call from the Orioles' farm director, Kent Qualls. He told me congratulations and told me to meet the team in New Hampshire and then we'd go to Portland.

"It was a big surprise, I definitely didn't expect that. I don't think anyone really expects to get traded. It's a new opportunity for me and I'm excited to get to it."

For Gunkel, who made four appearances for the SeaDogs before the trade, the chance to pitch against his former team proved beneficial in the sense that he had the inside scouting report on the club, something he used to his advantage.

"It was different," Gunkel admitted. "Not many times you go out there and every guy that walks up there you know on a personal level. I tried to focus and execute my pitches and not really think about the circumstances and who was at the plate.

"Just from watching these guys throughout the season and throughout their careers, you kind of know what their strengths are and what their weaknesses are. You just go out there and attack them and use whatever advantage to get them out."

Making things just a little trickier was the fact that for the first time, Gunkel was pitching at Hadlock Field as a visitor. While he would have preferred to make his first Baysox start elsewhere, the 6-foot-5 hurler was happy to get it out of the way.

"It would have been nice to go somewhere else and get acclimated to my new team before I came back to Portland," Gunkel said. "It was nice to see all the same people. Everyone is happy for me and wishes me the best of luck."

Mikey O'Brien followed Gunkel with two hitless innings, striking out three and walking one, and Marcel Prado tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for his first save.

Rossmel Perez provided the game's only run, singling home Ozzie Martinez in the top of the first.

Heri Quevedo (0-1) took the loss in his Double-A debut, giving up a run on four hits and two walks while fanning two over five innings for Portland.