Charlie Morton turned in his second straight quality start this afternoon for the Baltimore Orioles. He deserved to win today in every manner possible, giving the Birds everything he had in the series finale against the ChiSox at Camden Yards. Morton’s line: 6.2 IP, 6 H, 1 R (0 earned), 1 BB, 7 K.
Morton appears to have been done well by a brief stint in the bullpen, this following a rough start. The Orioles surrendered a couple of early scoring opportunities in the game, stranding runners at the corners in the first. But they came home to roost in the third, taking a 1-0 lead on an RBI-single by Ramon Urias. While not a hit with RISP, Ryan O’Hearn added a sac fly-RBI later in the frame, and the Birds led 2-0.
That’s not to say mistakes weren’t made. Heston Kjerstad recorded a one-out triple in the last of the fourth, and was promptly picked off of third. That cost the Orioles a potential run, and it can’t happen. You have to take advantage of every opportunity.
And sure enough, Chicago made a run. Palacios reached in the sixth on an error by Jackson Holliday, allowing a run to score. That cut the lead to 2-1, but the O’s came back for another run. Dylan Carlson’s RBI-double in the bottom of the frame extended the lead to 3-1.
Chicago would close to within 3-2 on Tauchman’s seventh inning solo homer. But the Oriole pen was solid otherwise. Bryan Baker came on for the ninth due to Felix Bautista having pitched in two straight games. And he sent Chicago down 1-2-3, ending the game. It’s the Orioles’ first series sweep of the season.
All the games were close, but winning the games is all that matters. Two things that stuck out; one is Charlie Morton. This was an outstanding effort, and he was justly given a standing ovation when he was lifted.
The other was Coby Mayo. He’s had a rough start to his big league career, and he didn’t help matters with his comments when he was optioned after spring training. You never criticize your employer. But his hustle around the bases today earned what ended up being the winning run. A win’s a win. And a sweep is a sweep- even against the Pope’s team!
Birdland Crush 