Zach Eflin engaged in a pitcher’s duel for the Baltimore Orioles tonight against the ChiSox. Or late this afternoon, more like. That’s another story. One way or the other, Eflin was strong, as was Chicago’s starting pitching. Eflin’s line: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K.
The game was moved to a 4:30 start time from the previously scheduled 7 PM. This due to some vicious storms that were expected throughout the Baltimore area this evening. And both teams’ bats needed a little bit of time to get going.
The Orioles mounted the first real threat of the ballgame in the last of the sixth when Gunnar Henderson singled and Adley Rutschman followed with a double. That put two runners in scoring position, followed by an infield single by Ryan Mountcastle. But the runners couldn’t score due to the location of the ball – chalk it up as another hit with RISP without scoring a run. A statistical oddity.
It was a subsequent sac fly-RBI by Ramon Urias that gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead. Ryan Mountcastle went to third on the play, leaving two outs with runners-at-the-corners. Then…a double-steal. O’Hearn stole second, and Ryan Mountcastle stole home. Both were safe, and the Orioles led 2-0.
Chicago briefly mounted a rally in the seventh, but to no avail. Felix Bautista shut things down in the ninth save for an RBI-double and putting the go-ahead run on base, and the O’s took game one of the series. This by a 2-1 margin. BUT…
…Ryan Mountcastle was lifted in the eighth, for what the Orioles are terming right hamstring discomfort. To be clear, it’s good that they took him out. You don’t want to further injure him.
But…did Mountcastle possible hurt himself on that steal of home plate? Most fans are going to say it was good that the Orioles took a risk with that play. And hey, it worked. But if in fact Mountcastle injured himself as a result of that play, was it worth the risk?
It’s unclear how much time (if any) Mountcastle will miss. But that’s a tough pill to swallow with all the other injuries the Birds have, especially Cedric Mullins (who went on the IL earlier today). You can’t even hope to be competitive (much less win games) with the caliber of players the Orioles have on the IL.
The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Chicago’s Davis Martin. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.
Birdland Crush 