Toronto’s always been a bit of a bugaboo for the Baltimore Orioles. No matter what the stakes, circumstances, or odds, they seem to find a way to beat the Birds. Dylan Bundy got the start last night, and put the Orioles in a spot to win. Bundy’s line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 5 BB, 8 K.
The O’s took an early 2-0 lead in the first two RBI-doubles; one by Rio Ruiz, and the other by Austin Hays. Toronto immediately cut that lead in half in the second on Bichette’s RBI-single. But in terms of scoring, we didn’t hear from Toronto again for awhile.
Trey Mancini‘s two-RBI double in the second extended the lead to 4-1. The Birds then proceeded to get homers in the fourth from Jonathan Villar and Anthony Santander, and when the smoke cleared they led 7-1. Seemed like a safe lead, right? Not against Toronto.
Bichette tacked on a run with an RBI-single in the sixth. However a seventh inning three-run homer by Hernandez should have put the Orioles on alert that Toronto wasn’t going away. In truth, it did.
The O’s tacked on two runs on sac flies in the seventh and eighth. So if you’re an Orioles fan you’ve seen the Birds all but take their foot off the gas, allow Toronto back into the game, and then tack on a couple more runs to extend their lead back to four. But there was one problem…
…Toronto put up six runs in the ninth to take the lead. Including a dramatic grand slam by Grichuk. The Birds would tack on one more in the ninth, but ended up falling 11-10.
Toronto usually finds a way against the Orioles. It’s almost uncanny how much they have the Orioles’ number. Last night they came back from a six-run deficit. It just doesn’t matter how tough things look, they find a way against the Orioles.
The series concludes tonight at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Gabriel Ynoa gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Wilmer Font. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.
Birdland Crush 