BOSTON — Samuel Basallo took off his catcher’s mask and walked to the mound, then raised his mitt over his mouth to say something to Trevor Rogers. It was the left-hander’s first jam of an otherwise dominant night, two runners in scoring position in the seventh, and the catcher must have sought to give him a breather, to go over the attack plan, to settle any nerves.

But this was Basallo’s first time catching in Major League Baseball. He debuted Sunday in Houston, then crouched behind the plate and called the game for Rogers — a major test for a 21-year-old who hadn’t caught many games in the minors, even.

He brought an air of calm to the situation that extended beyond his years, though, Rogers said. And it worked. Rogers continued his tremendous run this season on the mound and Basallo looked capable behind the plate. That battery tore through the Red Sox’s batting order and set the tone for Baltimore’s 6-3 series-opening win.

With those two runners in scoring position following Trevor Story’s double, Rogers minimized the damage with a sacrifice fly and strikeout. Then he handed the ball over to the bullpen to close out.

“This is ace-type of stuff right now that we’re seeing in a short sample,” interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “Aces do it for three, four years, but what he’s doing right now is ace-type.”

In the clubhouse after his start, Rogers stood in front of the team and shouted out the work Basallo did behind the plate. Basallo doesn’t know exactly what was said — it wasn’t interpreted as Rogers spoke, and Basallo is still mastering English — but Basallo said it was an honor to be recognized.

Rogers poured on the compliments in his postgame press conference, too.

“He’s been up here for two days but the moment hasn’t sped up on him,” Rogers said. “I think that’s really impressive. He’s 21 years old and he’s doing this. You know, it’s still early, but he’s doing this as a 21-year-old. It’s super impressive. I’m really glad that he’s up here and he’s really going to help us this last month and a half and going into next year. So, tip my cap to that guy. He’s going to be good for a long time.”

Rogers’ 1.41 ERA is the best among pitchers with at least 60 innings pitched this season, according to MLB.com.

This is where it all started for Rogers this season, when served as the 27th man during a May 24 doubleheader at Fenway Park. He pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings with only two hits against him. With the way his short stint during 2024 went, it wasn’t yet apparent that Rogers would make such a habit of this.

Mansolino admitted that “nobody knew this was going to come.”

Rogers didn’t, even.

“Couple months ago when I came here, I was like, ‘Oh, man, let’s see how this goes,’” Rogers said.

Three months later, that is all Rogers has done. The Orioles are 42-33 since the Rogers made his season debut here on May 24.

“A lot of unanswered questions were answered,” Rogers said. “I just continued that stretch and stayed within my process and executed pitches. I finally feel confident and know what I can do every five, six days.”

When he departed the mound after the seventh inning Monday, he did so with a minuscule 0.80 WHIP in 12 starts this season. Considering Rogers may have five or six more starts remaining, it is not absurd to suggest Rogers may receive down-ballot Cy Young Award consideration in the American League. That’s how good he has been.

Rogers has allowed three earned runs once this season, coming in a difficult June outing in Tampa, Florida, that lasted 2 1/3 innings. Apart from that, Rogers has completed six innings or more in 10 of his 12 starts this season, with two runs or fewer each time.

And on Monday, Rogers allowed one run in seven innings on four hits, one walk and seven strikeouts. He threw 18 sliders and drew nine swings against the pitch, and Jarren Duran (whose sacrifice fly brought home the lone run against Rogers) was the only Red Sox hitter who managed to put that offering in play.

“Obviously, I don’t think he always had the results that he would have wanted,” Basallo said through team interpreter Brandon Quinones. “But for him to continue fighting and working on all of those things and get those results now I think is a testament to his work.”

The work from Basallo, too, drew praise from Mansolino, who said Basallo “called a good game.” He allowed one passed ball on a strikeout, but it didn’t cost the Orioles.

They had room to work, anyway. It started with Gunnar Henderson’s solo home run to straightaway center in the third inning off right-hander Dustin May, and then Basallo came close to his first homer himself.

The rookie slugger showed off his opposite-field power with a high blast off the Green Monster. He didn’t hustle out of the box but made it to second with a slide, and he scored on Dylan Beavers’ RBI single two batters later.

In English, Basallo said: “It’s just a big wall.”

The combination of prospects was something to watch. Beavers, called up one day before Basallo, hacked away at a fastball on a 3-0 count. When some new players may take there, he delivered his first career RBI. And in the seventh, Henderson’s triple and Ryan Mountcastle’s third single of the game produced two more runs.

And for good measure, Basallo throttled a two-run single through the infield at 108.3 mph. In two games, the 21-year-old has four RBIs and three knocks.

Basallo is the first Orioles player to record two RBIs in each of his first two games. The only other Orioles player to record four RBIs in their first two games was Manny Machado in 2012.

“The amount of success they’re having in just a couple days up here, and helping us win, and continue the stretch that we’re on, I’m very happy for both of them,” Rogers said of Basallo and Beavers, the latter of whom reached base four times. “And they’re just going to continue to help us, and I’m very excited about that.”

There was a reason Mansolino set this up as Basallo’s first catching experience. Rogers, he said, “is probably a little easier to handle. It’s probably a little more power” than what right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano, Tuesday’s starter, employs.

Plus, Basallo and Rogers have a history. They worked together three times in the minors, twice last year and once this season.

“That’s part of the thought,” Mansolino said. “The fact he has caught him a couple times absolutely helps.”

So, maybe their (comparatively) robust history together combined to make their fourth start this dominant. Maybe that made the mound visit from Basallo in the seventh just the ticket to escape a jam.

Whatever it was, though, it was this: a masterful performance from a pitcher who has redefined himself this season as a force with which to be reckoned.

“This is as impressive a run as we’ve seen in the big leagues this year by any starting pitcher,” Mansolino said.

News and notes

• Right-hander Kyle Bradish is expected to make one more rehab start before returning to Baltimore’s rotation on Aug. 25, 26 or 27 at Camden Yards against the Boston Red Sox. When he does, he will pitch in his first major league game since June 14, 2024, due to Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery.
• Infielder Jordan Westburg departed the game with right ankle discomfort in the first inning. He rounded second hard and after stopping and scrambling back to the base, he exited with a trainer. Mansolino described the injury as “mild.”
• Outfielder Tyler O’Neill, on the injured list with right wrist inflammation, began baseball activities Monday. He doesn’t have a firm return date in mind, with Sept. 1 uncertain.