Brandon Young pitched well for the Baltimore Orioles tonight. Wellish. He had his struggles, but also his share of misfortune. Young’s line: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 5 K.
Young gave up an infield single and a walk to lead off the game. And the infield single was a good pitch – Turner just hit it soft enough to be an infield hit. Harper’s RBI-single would give Philadelphia a 1-0 lead. An RBI-single hit the opposite way.
Later in the inning Marsh’s RBI-groundout would extend the lead to 2-0. But keep in mind that the O’s had to come to bat as well – nine times at that. Dylan Beavers would lead off the game with a double, and after a wild pitch that sent him to third, Pete Alonso would tie the game at two with a two-run home run.
Oriole bats couldn’t get much going after that. Philadelphia’s starter (Painter) settled in and shut them down. Philadelphia on the other hand took their lead back at 4-2 thanks to two solo homers. One by Turner in the third, and one by Realmuto in the sixth.
Solo home runs aren’t supposed to hurt you. But they almost hurt the O’s. After Painter left the game, things started to shift. The Orioles had runners at first and second with one pitch in the seventh. Christian Encarnacion-Strand sent a deep liner to the gap in center, which fell as a two-RBI double which immediately tied the game. Talk about a guy who’s been dialed in of late!
But that only set the tone. After Pete Alonso was hit by a pitch the Birds had runners at the corners, needing one to take a lead against a good Philadelphia team. Gunnar Henderson strode to the plate. Gunnar Henderson who’s struggled all season.
You could see in his eyes he wanted this. He wanted to play the hero at least once. And boy did he. He would eventually smack a two-RBI triple, and the Orioles led, 6-4. Gunnar was noticeably animated after sliding in safely. He knew what he had done. And it felt good.
The Oriole pen shut down Philadelphia 1-2-3 in both the eighth and ninth. The eighth inning belonged to Yennier Cano, who of course signed a two-year contract extension before the game. And he earned every penny in that eighth inning.
This is the Orioles’ second consecutive game where they’ve come from behind. Granted, this one wasn’t as dramatic as the other day in Detroit. But it shows a never say die attitude. And at least today, it came off the bat of a player in Gunnar Henderson who had been hoping for such a moment all year.
The series continues tomorrow night at Camden Yards. Shane Baz gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.
Birdland Crush 