BALTIMORE — Philadelphia fans had their chance to show Craig Kimbrel how they feel.

For the past two days, the Baltimore reliever has had an answer.

Kimbrel struck out the final three batters Saturday to close out the Orioles‘ 6-2 victory over the Phillies. It wasn’t a save situation, but it was certainly a charged atmosphere. The first two games of this series have been sellouts at Camden Yards, with plenty of Baltimore and Philadelphia fans at the ballpark.

“I was in Philadelphia all last year, so I knew that the fans would travel, especially with it being so close,” Kimbrel said. “I figured I’d get a nice reception.”

The greeting, of course, was anything but nice. Kimbrel lost Games 3 and 4 of the NL Championship Series last year, and the Phillies went on to lose the series in seven games to Arizona.

So the Philadelphia fans gave him a decidedly unbrotherly welcome when he came on in the ninth Friday. Kimbrel pitched a scoreless inning, but the Phillies went on to win in 11. On Saturday, he took the mound with a four-run lead. He walked the first hitter before breezing through the next three.

“It’s not something you usually get in your home stadium, but Phillies fans, they travel deep and they were here today,” Kimbrel said. “I definitely heard them.”

Orioles starter Grayson Rodriguez also heard the crowd. He went seven innings and got the win Saturday.

“It felt like a playoff game. It was a pretty hostile environment,” Rodriguez said. “Having a lot of the Phillies fans there, that helped me a lot. Obviously you want to see the stadium packed out in orange, but there was some animosity in there, and man it made pitching fun today.”

LOS ANGELES — Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto left his start Saturday night against Kansas City after two innings due to triceps tightness.

The Japanese right-hander had his scheduled start Thursday against Texas pushed back for extra rest. He threw two-hit ball in seven innings at the New York Yankees on June 7. Yamamoto tossed 106 pitches in that game and had thrown over 100 in four consecutive starts prior to Saturday night.

Yamamoto threw only 14 strikes on 28 pitches against the Royals. He allowed one hit and one walk with one strikeout.

This is Yamamoto’s first year in the majors after he signed a record $325 million, 12-year contract with the Dodgers in December. He is 6-2 with a 2.92 ERA.

Michael Grove replaced Yamamoto in the third inning.

The Houston Astros scratched right-hander Justin Verlander from Saturday’s start against the Detroit Tigers because neck discomfort.

Verlander told reporters prior to Saturday’s game that his neck issue first popped up a couple weeks ago between starts and that he wasn’t sure if it would keep him out for more than one game.

“When I was out there, I felt like it wasn’t really bothering me,” Verlander said. “But when I go home and sit down and really think about it, I think it’s too much of a coincidence and my mechanics were really thrown off.”

Rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti (3-5, 5.33 ERA), who was scheduled to pitch the series finale Sunday, will start in place of Verlander (3-2, 3.95).

Verlander, 41, allowed four runs on seven hits in five innings in each of his past two starts. The former American League MVP, nine-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young Award winner missed the first three weeks of the season while recovering from an offseason shoulder injury.

Arrighetti, 24, has yet to face the Tigers in his career. He allowed one run on four hits in 5⅔ innings in a no-decision against the San Francisco Giants on Monday.

Information from Field Level Media was used in this report.