Cade Povich was strong early for the Baltimore Orioles in today’s series finale in San Diego. He fell apart a bit in the end of his outing, but he had room to spare. Barely, that is – as it ended up. Povich’s line: 5.0 IP. 7 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 3 K.
The O’s led from the very beginning today. Jackson Holliday hit the third pitch of the ballgame out of the ballpark, giving them a 1-0 lead. However it was the third inning that was the big catalyst to victory.
The Orioles led off with a walk and a single. Following a strikeout, Colton Cowser came to the plate. And he broke the game wide open with a three-run home run, giving the Birds a 4-0 lead.
But they weren’t done. Coby Mayo and Alex Jackson followed, giving the O’s back-to-back-to-back home runs. Before the inning ended, Ryan Mountcastle would add an RBI-single, and the Orioles led 7-0 after three. And they needed most of those seven runs.
San Diego figured Povich out after five, however. Machado’s two-run home run cut the lead to 7-2. Following a single and two walks, Cronensworth’s softly-hit infield RBI-single cut it to 7-3. Iglesias would ground into a double-play scoring a fourth run, but that was good news for the Birds. Because it gave them two quick outs and helped them out of the inning.
San Diego would get a fifth run off a solo home run in the seventh. But to me one of the biggest plays of the game was perhaps the most unsung. Representing the tying run, Sheets struck out swinging in the eighth. Sheets swore the ball hit the ground. Replays said otherwise.
But what the replay also showed was that catcher Alex Jackson picked the ball so it didn’t touch the ground. It was definitely fouled off, but Jackson stopped it from hitting the ground. Who knows how the game ends if not for that play.
Birdland Crush 