BALTIMORE -- The Orioles shall not be swept. Not even by the defending World Series champions. Not even when their All-Star closer again doesn’t quite look like himself.

Baltimore staved off another potential sweep by defeating Houston, 5-4, in Thursday afternoon’s series finale at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer cruised over seven strong innings while getting offensive support from the Orioles’ two catchers -- Adley Rutschman (2-for-4 with his first career leadoff home run and two RBIs) and James McCann (2-for-3 with a double and an RBI) -- and Ryan Mountcastle, who extended his season-long hitting streak to 12 games with a two-run homer.

The Astros rallied for one run in the ninth against Félix Bautista, but they left the bases loaded to end the contest as Jon Singleton popped out and the Baltimore right-hander secured his American League-high-tying 31st save -- in his first outing after blowing a save by giving up a ninth-inning grand slam to Houston’s Kyle Tucker on Tuesday.

The O’s have not been swept in 76 consecutive multigame series, a run that dates back to when they lost three in Detroit from May 13-15 last season. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it’s the fourth-longest such streak in AL/NL history.

Most consecutive multigame series without getting swept
1. 1942-44 Cardinals: 125
2. 1903-05 Giants: 106
3. 1922-24 Yankees: 83
4. 2022-present Orioles: 76

“We’re just a good group of guys,” Kremer said. “Every series -- every day, actually -- is independent of the last, so it doesn’t matter whether we lost Game 1 or lost Game 2. Every day’s a new day. Things can change.”

The Orioles, who dropped the first two contests of the three-game set vs. the Astros, avoided being swept with a finale win for the seventh time this season. They previously did so against the Rangers (May 28), Brewers (June 8), Cubs (June 18), Rays (June 21), Twins (July 2) and Dodgers (July 19).

Like many of Baltimore’s AL-high 71 wins, its latest sweep-denying victory didn’t come without late drama. Bautista loaded the bases in the ninth via a Jose Altuve double and walks to Alex Bregman and Tucker. Then, Yainer Diaz’s two-out RBI infield single cut the margin to one.

But there was never any faith lost in Bautista -- and the Orioles were rewarded with their 21st one-run win of the season.

“Honestly, it’s good for him. It’s really good for him,” McCann said. “That’s a playoff atmosphere. That’s a playoff team over there. So not only for him to bounce back today, but also to kind of go through it again and find a way to come out on top today -- he did an excellent job.”

Houston may be among the best teams in baseball annually, but that hasn’t stopped Kremer from having success against the club. The 27-year-old right-hander allowed only two runs on Thursday (solo homers by Diaz and Altuve), and he now has a 1.14 ERA in three career starts vs. the Astros -- each of which Kremer has pitched at least seven innings.

Kremer retired seven of the final nine batters he faced, finishing with 91 pitches (60 of which were strikes). He could have gotten an opportunity to pitch into the eighth, had Yordan Alvarez and Tucker (both left-handed hitters) not been due up to begin the inning.

“Definitely not the easiest team to face or navigate through their lineup,” Kremer said. “Their top four, five, six guys can do damage with the flip of a switch if you make any sort of mistakes. Definitely a challenge.”

But Kremer again rose to the occasion, continuing his impressive second half in the process. He has a 3.29 ERA in seven starts since the beginning of July, lowering his season mark to 4.50.

“A great job of pitching,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “I thought he was feeling for it a little bit early, and then I saw a little bit more intensity there after the second or third inning.”

The Orioles went 4-2 on the homestand, as they previously notched a three-game sweep of the Mets over the weekend. Baltimore will next head to the West Coast for a three-city, nine-game road trip that begins Friday night in Seattle, where the O’s will encounter the red-hot Mariners (seven straight wins).

In addition to keeping their sweepless streak alive, the Orioles preserved their lead atop the AL East and continued their recent strong play, as they’ve won eight of their past 11 games and 23 of 34.

“I’m proud of our club. We do fight,” Hyde said. “They battle, they scrap and they’re pulling for each other.”