BALTIMORE -- Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo hoped something would happen to ignite the fire under his team's sputtering offense. Maybe shortstop Miguel Tejada's return to form from the plate, maybe leadoff man Brian Roberts' consistent output, maybe the heat, or maybe a combination of the factors that are mostly out of his control.

The impetus behind the surge didn't matter Sunday, though, when Baltimore (23-27) used its second three-home run game of the season to defeat Oakland (24-25), 8-4, in the finale of a three-game series at Camden Yards.

Tejada maintained his torrid offensive pace by leading off the scoring for the Orioles with a two-run shot off Oakland starter Joe Blanton in the third inning. Tejada has now homered in three of his last four games after hitting only two in his previous 46.

Perlozzo said Tejada's bat speed has improved over the Orioles' six-game homestand, in which they went 3-3.

"I think he's attacking the inside pitch a little bit more than he did before instead of trying to work it to right field or center field," Perlozzo said. "He's being aggressive and going after it. We sit there and say, 'Be patient, be patient,' but history says he puts numbers on the board at the end of the season so he's got four months to help us out now."

The four-time All-Star agreed with his manager's assessment.

"I feel comfortable right now and I'm swinging at strikes," Tejada said. "That's why my bat looks quicker. I know they've been pitching me inside. I've got to be ready for strikes, and that's why right now I'm really aggressive with the pitches. That's why I'm hitting more home runs."

Other Orioles pitched in to help the team post eight runs in back-to-back games for the first time all season. Third baseman Melvin Mora, whose struggles from the plate have exemplified the O's trouble of late -- he was 5-for-32 since May 15 entering Sunday's contest -- hit a two-run home run off Blanton in the fourth to put the O's up for good.

Right fielder Nick Markakis also hit a three-run blast in the sixth inning after Corey Patterson and Brian Roberts successfully completed a double steal, two of five stolen bases for Baltimore in the game. Patterson had three of them, and the Orioles now lead the American League with 46 stolen bags this season.

Right-handed starter Daniel Cabrera picked up his fourth win of the season, allowing four runs on five hits and four walks in six innings. He walked four batters and gave up a three-run homer to center fielder Nick Swisher, but managed to strike out five batters and induce eight flyouts.

"Today was the best feeling I've had all season," Cabrera said of his performance in his 12th start. "I felt really good today and had all my pitches working. Sometimes when I had one out and runners on first and second, I still pitched strong and felt comfortable."

Perlozzo said a key moment for Cabrera was after he surrendered Swisher's home run in the fifth inning, Swisher's fifth round-tripper in five games against the Orioles this season. Perlozzo said he yelled from the dugout for Cabrera to "keep pitching," and Cabrera was able to escape the game with no further damage.

The game-changing blows, however, came from the Orioles' bats, which had combined for only 36 home runs, an American League low, entering the contest.

"We don't believe that we're a home run-hitting ballclub, per se, but we do feel like we have five or six guys in the lineup that can approach 20 [home runs]," Perlozzo said. "We might not have a guy who's going to get you 35 or 40 like some clubs, but we feel like we have enough guys that can contribute 15-25."

The Baltimore bullpen also rose to the task of preserving the four-run lead, as Chad Bradford, Jamie Walker, and Chris Ray combined to pitch three scoreless innings and retire nine out of the 11 batters they faced.

"We feel like our pitching is going to solidify a little bit like they have been coming around," Perlozzo said. "And if we score our share of runs, we're going to win some ballgames."

Taking the series from Oakland will be important over the next stretch of the schedule, when Baltimore plays a season-high 10 straight games on the road. The team also has a 10-game road trip in September.

"It's a tough road trip; there's no question about that," Perlozzo said. "But we're feeling good about ourselves, the bats are starting to come around a little bit and the hitters are starting to feel better. It's something for us to build on. It's a good sign for us and it's a good positive step going into a long road trip, so hopefully it'll work in our favor."