The Baltimore Orioles called Kyle Bradish up from Triple-A Norfolk to make the start tonight against Boston at Camden Yards. Bradish of course was the centerpiece in the Dylan Bundy trade; he made his way to the bigs this evening. and he didn’t look awful. Bradish’s line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R (2 earned), 1 BB, 2 K.
If you’re keeping track at home, that’s a quality start. I’m his major league debut. You just can’t ask for much more than that.
I think the aspect of Bradish’s outing that stands out the most to me is how he closed it out. Bradish retired the last ten batters he faced. That’s impressive for any pitcher, much less a guy making his major league debut. And again, a quality start is pretty darned impressive also.
Bradish had some trouble in the second inning. Arroyo’s two-run homer gave Boston a 2-0 lead. Vasquez would follow with a single later in the inning, however Trey Mancini misplayed the ball in right field, allowing a third (unearned) run to score.
And Mancini’s a guy who’s played various positions in the field this year. And when you have a guy rotating around like that, sometimes you see things as such occur. Even someone as talented as Mancini.
However those were the only runs Boston would score. The O’s threatened, however. They loaded the bases in the seventh inning, but were unable to push anything across. Their lone run of the evening came off of a solo homer by Ryan Mountcastle in the last of the ninth, and they fell 3-1.
And that’s been part of the early season story of this Baltimore Orioles team – leaving guys on base, that is. You can’t squander opportunities like that and consistently win games at the major league level. Oriole pitching was strong this evening, and that includes Keegan Akin (who followed Bradish and pitched 2.2 innings of shutout ball). But Boston simply took advantage of the opportunities they were given. That’s part of winning games in the big leagues.
The series with Boston continues tomorrow from Camden Yards. Spencer Watkins gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Boston’s Nathan Eovaldi. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.
Birdland Crush 