Cade Povich turned in perhaps his best start as a big league pitcher tonight for the Baltimore Orioles in D.C. The beleaguered Orioles limped in trying to salvage one in the Battle of the Beltways. And Povich gave them just the jolt they needed from the mound. Povich’s line: 6.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K.
A couple of games ago I wrote about Dean Kremer being in the strike zone too much. Povich was in the zone tonight just the right amount. And he was hitting his spots. When the ball was put in play, it was usually finding a fielder’s mitt.
The lone run Povich surrendered was an RBI-double by Bell in the second inning. That was the closest to a hiccup that he had, as Washington got back-to-back doubles to take the lead. However Povich quickly righted the ship by retiring the side.
With one out in the fifth Ramon Laureano smacked a double. That gave the Orioles a runner in scoring position, and they eventually cashed in. Ryan O’Hearn’s RBI-single would tie the game at one.
Later in the inning it was Cedric Mullins’ RBI-single that scored O’Hearn, giving the Birds a 2-1 lead. Luckily for the O’s, Povich and the bullpen were strong. Jose Bautista allowed the tying run to get to third in the last of the ninth, but the Orioles walked away 2-1 winners.
Brandon Hyde went to Yennier Cano to retire the last hitter in the seventh, and he retired him on one pitch. He then brought Gregory Soto out for the eighth, and I understand why. Washington’s first two hitters of the inning were lefties. Hyde matches up a lot – and sometimes it bites him. But this time it worked like a charm, to Hyde’s credit.
Again, I would submit that this was Cade Povich’s best start as a major league pitcher. And he picked a heck of a time to do it, as the O’s direly needed a win. And they fight on.
The O’s now head to Comerica Park for a weekend series with Detroit. Brandon Young gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Detroit’s Casey Mize. Game time is set for 6:40 PM.
Birdland Crush 