Tough day for Baltimore Orioles’ pitching, namely Albert Suarez. And while Oriole bats did knock Oakland pitching around a bit, they didn’t put any runs across after the fourth inning. Suarez’s line: 7.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K.
You have to give Oakland a fair amount of credit. With all of the politics going on with their team and its move, they’re frisky. This when they have every reason not to be. They set the tone early when Brown smacked a solo homer, and the O’s were behind, 1-0.
However the Birds put some runners on base in the immediate aftermath, and they tied the game at one when Cedric Mullins grounded out with a runner on third. However a moment later they took a 2-1 lead on an RBI-double by Colton Cowser.
However Oakland tied it back up on Bleday’s RBI-double in the third. They would almost immediately then take a 4-2 lead on Rooker’s two-RBI single. While all of the runs indubitably count, it’s worth mentioning that several of the hits Suarez surrendered were bloops or softly-hit pop up’s. While he did surrendered runs, he didn’t do it on hard-hit balls.
But…the O’s battled back immediately. Adley Rutschman smacked a solo homer in the last of the third, cutting the lead to 4-3. Ryan Mountcastle would later smack a two-run homer, and suddenly the Birds had the lead back. One inning later Ramon Urias’ first homer of the season extended the lead to 6-4.
Oakland would smack a solo homer off the bat of Nevin in the seventh, giving Craig Kimbrel a one-run lead in the ninth. After he threw five or six balls to start the inning, manager Brandon Hyde and the training staff came out to check on Kimbrel. And the fact is that if you add together Kinbrel’s rough outing Friday combined with this, it added up that maybe he was injured.
But Hyde opted to leave Kimbrel in the game. And he promptly gave up a two-run homer to McCann which gave Oakland a 7-6 lead. At which point Hyde and the training staff came back out, and promptly removed him. A few moments later, Oakland closed out a 7-6 win, taking two-of-three from the Birds at Camden Yards.
As I write this, it’s unclear what the issue with Kimbrel is. However it appears he’s injured. Which poses a bunch of problems to the Orioles following today. However in the interim, should Brandon Hyde have lifted Kimbrel the first time he went out?
The obvious answer is yes. But we don’t know what was said, how Kimbrel was feeling, etc. It’s a tough way to lose to a team the O’s should have beaten, but the more pressing issue is what happens with Craig Kimbrel going forward. The IL is an obvious possibility, which is a problem. But let the record show that Hyde may have made a miscalculation in leaving Craig Kimbrel in the game.
The O’s begin a huge series with the NYY tomorrow night at Camden Yards. Grayson Rodriguez gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by NY’s Clarke Schmidt. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.
Updated: Craig Kimbrel has upper back soreness according to Brandon Hyde.
Birdland Crush 