Author Archives: Domenic Vadala

Welcome to Birdland Crush! Yes folks, for the record it's a spin off of the popular summer beverage native to the Mid-Atlantic Region - "orange crush." Nevertheless, I've been covering Orioles' baseball since 2009 in some capacity, and it's basically the greatest gig of all time so far as I'm concerned! But for those who aren't familiar with my work or bio, I'm familiar with pretty much every sport out there. But baseball is king - we all know that. So my hope is that you come back and check in after every Orioles' game, and throughout the off-season. I'm always on duty!

Baltimore Orioles: Pesky Seattle outlasts the Birds

You have to wonder sometimes if the Baltimore Orioles aren’t overly used to AL East play. In baseball’s toughest division, you seemingly beat one another’s brains out. However once the coup de grace occurrs in a game, it’s done. Teams don’t have that pesky nature and don’t want to go away. And that’s haunted the O’s for the better part of the year.

Ubaldo Jimenez was effective for a few innings, but he struggled after going through the order once. Jimenez’s line: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 2 K. The Orioles gifted Jimenez with the lead – twice. But he couldn’t hold it…due to the fact that Seattle just didn’t want to go away.

Tim Beckham started the game with what’s become a familiar pattern for the Birds: a solo home run. It’s really amazing how he’s come to the Orioles and made such an immediate and strong impact. It’s tough to argue at this point that he wasn’t a great acquisition by Dan Duquette.

Seattle would tie the game at one in the last of the third on an RBI-double by Heredia, and later in the inning they took a 3-1 lead on Alonso’s two-run homer. But the Birds weren’t out of it. Rickard scored from third on a wild pitch in the fifth, and Gentry would later add an RBI-triple to tie the game. Up comes Beckham again, and his RBI-single gave the Orioles the lead back at 4-3.

And in many cases, that right there might be the coup de grace in an AL East game. The O’s had both the momentum and the lead back. But Seattle’s not an AL East team, and they’re scrappy by nature. Jimenez immediately put runners on base in the last of the fifth, and Seattle tied it on Cano’s RBI-single. They would then get back-to-back RBI-singles to take a 6-4 lead. Add on a solo homer by Martin an inning later, and the O’s trailed 7-4.

However the O’s did make it very interesting in the top of the ninth. Manny Machado tacked on a sac fly-RBI, and via two walks and a hit batsman, Seattle loaded the bases. Trumbo was then hit by a pitch, and suddenly it was a one-run game at 7-6. However Davis struck out to end the game, and the O’s fell by that 7-6 score.

The Orioles finished the road trip at 4-6, which although is a losing mark – you have admit that this was a really tough road trip. No off days until now, when they’re back home. And the west coast swing is always the worst trip of the season given the longevity and distance. However the tables will turn now, as the O’s will host those same teams at Camden Yards as they come east – after an off day today.

Baltimore Orioles fall in Seattle

One Jonathan Schoop homer isn’t going to cut it for the Baltimore Orioles. Especially when your starter doesn’t even last five innings. Wade Miley was lifted early on in this game, even though it was far from out of control by any means. Miley’s line: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 4 K.

Miley wasn’t missing by much. And in fact he seemed to indicate after the game that he perhaps felt he was getting squeezed by the home plate umpire (quote courtesy of Greg Johns & Josh Horton, MLB.com):

I was barely missing with some fastballs and cutters in. I’m talking, like, inches in. Could have been strikes and kind of fell behind a little bit.

In fairness, Miley didn’t come out and say that he was getting squeezed. However that’s the implication there. If you feel that they could have been strikes, you’re indirectly saying that you were being squeezed.

Nevertheless, the Orioles had an early lead in this game. Schoop’s homer came in the first inning. For the second consecutive night the Orioles took a 1-0 leaed in the first off of a solo homer. In this particular case we just didn’t know that it would be the only run the Birds would muster.

Seattle tied the game at one in the last of the fourth on a Cruz RBI-single. One inning later they took the lead on an RBI-single by Segura, and later in that fifth inning Cano grounded into a force out which allowed a run to score as well. And that’s your ballgame.

The bright spot of course was Jonathan Schoop, who’s having a career year. It’s really amazing in terms of what this guy’s been able to do if you think about it. Because he’s doing it both on offense and defense.

Schoop seemingly has timing down pat, and in reality he has a clock in his head that keeps him on task. And that was how Buck Showalter described Schoop’s successes when asked after the gae (quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports)

He’s good, he’s a good player. He’s just graduating. Two plays tonight give you a good idea. He had two great clock plays. The ball he backed up and took on the short hop to possibly turn the double play. The other one, we were a little slow with the exchange on the 6-4-3 and he didn’t throw the ball to first and went to third base. Those are the little things you see. You see him take a walk in an RBI situation because they’re not throwing good pitches to hit. Those are things that have allowed him to grow.

The Orioles will try to take the series in this afternoon’s finale in Seattle (also the end of the west coast swing). Ubaldo Jimenez will get the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Seattle’s Marco Gonzales. Game time is set for just after 3:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles, Manny Machado get back on track

Unlike in the finale in Oakland, the Baltimore Oriole’ offense showed up in the opener in Seattle last night. They also got a quality start out of Kevin Gausman, who’s really been coming into his own of late. Gausman’s line: 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K.

Tim Beckham set the trend for the game when he smacked the first pitch out of the ballpark in the top of the first. However in the wake of that it appeared that the Birds were in for a dog fight. Seattle would score on an RBI-double in the last of the first to tie the game. They also had runners at second and third with nobody out. Yet Gausman pitched out of it, and the game remained tied.

And the Birds took the lead back immediately for good. Chris Davis’ RBI-double in the second gave them a 2-1 lead. Davis would later score on a fielder’s choice, and the O’s led 3-1.

However the big damage wasn’t done until later in that inning. Manny Machado smacked a grand slam, which broke the game wide open and gave the Birds a 7-1 lead. As I said, Oriole bats came untracked in this game.

Chris Davis would add an RBI-single in the fifth. He would later score on a two-run homer by Seth Smith. Mancini would add an additional solo homer of his own in the seventh, When the dust settled, the O’s handed Seattle an 11-3 loss.

The O’s are two games out of the second wild card spot. But Seattle is right behind them. So this was a huge game and this is a huge series overall. The O’s need to take two-of-three at a minimum. They got off to a good start last night.

In order to take two-of-three, the bats need to remain hot. They can’t be inconsistent, especially seeing that Seattle is a pretty decent team.  Sunday they weren’t really up for the challenge. Last night they were. That’s how it needs to continue to be.

The series continues this evening from Seattle’s Safeco Field. Wade Miley gets the start for the Orioles. Seattle will counter with Andrew Albers. Game time is set for just after 10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Some days you’re the bug

The Baltimore Orioles found themselves to be “the bug” yesterday in Oakland. You know the old saying; some days you’re the windshield, and some days you’re the bug. However the O’s need to figure out how to cease switching between the two – and quick – if they’re going to stay in the race. Let me rephrase that; they need to cease switching between the two and become mainly the windshield.

Jeremy Hellickson made it through five innings, however it was the fourth that did in him and the O’s. Hellickson’s line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 4 K. The O’s held the lead in this game – early on, at least. They got RBI-singles from Schoop and Davis in the first and second innings respectively. And it looked like the Birds were picking up right where they left off on Saturday night.

However Oakland’s Healy provided an RBI-double in the in the last of the fourth, and Olson reached on a fielder’s choice which scored a run. That tied the game at two. However later in the inning Chapman came to the plate with two on, and promptly smacked a ball out of the ballpark. It wasn’t a deep shot by any means, but the story of the Orioles’ season is other teams getting fat on bloops, seeing eye singles, and cheapie-type home runs.

Oakland would add a run an inning later on a sac fly-RBI. Joyce would later add a two-run homer, and Olson a solo shot before Oakland was finished for the day. Those were sandwiched around Manny Machado‘s solo homer in the eighth inning. The final of course ended up being 9-3 in favor of Oakland.

In the entire series, yesterday’s game was the only one in which the Orioles may not have really had a shot to win. Even still, they did have an early lead. However what I’m saying is that the score was a bit lopsided at the end. They had a lead in the eighth on Friday that was blown – if not for that, the Birds would have taken three-of-four from Oakland.

Mind you, Oakland’s a team that’s in full rebuilding mode. So the O’s should have been able to handle themselves in that sense this weekend. But some days you’re the windshield, and some days you’re the bug.

The O’s now head to Seattle for a three-game set. Kevin Gausman gets the start in the series opener tonight for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by former Oriole Yovani Gallardo. Game time is set for just after 10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Tim Beckham was the right guy at the right time

Some Baltimore Orioles fans complained when the Birds acquired Tim Beckham. Admittedly I wondered what the strategy was, although the fact is that he came cheaply. But he’s done nothing but get on base and hit historic home runs since being with the Orioles. He went 4-for-5 again last night against Oakland, in a game that got out of control quickly.

Dylan Bundy pitched the Orioles to a quality start, but he also had a massive lead well before he even took the field. Bundy’s line: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 10 K. Bundy was the benefactor of a seven-run first inning. Yes you read that correctly – the O’s put up seven runs in the first inning last night.

And it started with Beckham getting on base and setting the table in a sense. The O’s then used RBI-doubles by Machado and Jones to take a 2-0 lead. Mancini and Davis would add RBI-singles to run the score to 4-0, and Castillo would play a run on a ground out. The Birds sent 11 men to the plate in that first inning, capped off by Tim Beckham’s RBI-double in his second at-bat of the inning (and the game).

But the O’s were only getting warmed up. Bundy would surrender a two-run homer in the last of the first and a solo shot in the second, so for awhile it looked like multiple innings like that might be necessary. Jones added a two-RBI single in the fourth, but Oakland would also tack on two more runs an inning later. As if 9-5 wasn’t enough, the end of the game still loomed.

The Orioles put three runs across in the top of the ninth – you know, just in case Oakland had any ideas about coming back. They got RBI-singles from Davis and Beckham, and an RBI-double from Machado. And as I stated above, the final score was thus 12-5.

It can’t be stressed enough however the effect that Tim Beckham is having on the Orioles. He wasn’t just 4-for-5 last night – he’s having that type of game everyday for the most part. This also means that when Hardy returns at some point this month Buck Showalter‘s going to have a decision to make. He’s said that shortstop was Hardy’s job – but…is it really at this point?

One way or the other, Beckham’s been a shot in the arm for a team that direly needed it. Many of Dan Duquette’s moves have been scrutinized time and time again ad hoc by fans. Whatever you may think about his other moves, this seems to be one he’s gotten right. Beckham’s a guy that the Orioles will need to focus on keeping long term, as he could be the shortstop and lead off man of the future.

The Orioles will attempt to take the series with Oakland in this afternoon’s series finale. Jeremy Hellickson will be on the mound for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Oakland’s Kendall Graveman. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles blow late lead in Oakland

Ubaldo Jimenez has been steadily better of late than he was in the first half of the season. Last night he came within two outs of a quality start, but still looked decent in doing so. Jimenez’s line: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 11 K. Yes you read that correctly; 11 strikeouts.

However the Orioles’ bullpen couldn’t hold onto a late lead, with Brad Brach allowing Oakland to come back in the eighth inning on his watch. The Birds took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Adam Jones smacked his second homer in as many games. This one obviously was of the solo variety, but it put the Orioles on the right track. Two innings later Jones would ground into a double-play, which also yielded a run and gave the O’s a 2-0 lead.

But in the bottom of that inning Oakland fought back. Davis’ RBI-double cut the lead to 2-1. Later in the inning Olson’s two-run home run gave Oakland the lead at 3-2. But the Birds weren’t out of it – yet. Schoop’s two-RBI double in the fifth gave them the lead back at 4-3.

Oakland may be in full rebuild mode, but they’re scrappy none the less. An RBI-double in the last of the eighth tied the score back up at four, and Oakland would later take a 5-4 lead (which turned into a 5-4 win) on a sac fly-RBI. All of this off of the aforementioned Brach, who took the loss and the blown save.

These types of games will happen, but they really hit home when you’re a team like the Orioles who are trying to get back into the race. The Birds now sit two games out of the final wild card spot. However there are several teams ahead of them as well, which makes it tougher. Buck Showalter admitted afterwards that while it wasn’t Brach’s night, all games are the sum of the parts (quote courtesy of Steve Melewski, MASNsports):

There’s a lot more to the game than that, but I know everyone’s focus is there. Brad has been great for us, but tonight just wasn’t his night. A couple balls elevated and command was a little off, but so was Mychal (Givens) a little bit.

The O’s will try to get back on track in the series this evening. Dylan Bundy will head to the mound for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Oakland’s Sean Manaea. Game time is set for just after 9 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Adam Jones captains a power surge

Adam Jones was only the first member of the Baltimore Orioles to go yard last night in Oakland. It turned out there were others. In fact, it turned out that the Birds smacked two sets of back-to-back homers in one of the most cavernous ballparks in the league. And that was the key to winning last night’s series opener in Oakland.

The Orioles also get an effort above-and-beyond what Wade Miley is normally capable of turning in. Miley’s line: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R (0 earned), 3 BB, 7 K. Miley recorded outs, and stayed out of full and deeper counts. Normally he gets a boatload of those and turns in five innings – win or lose. Last night he obviously was able to go deeper.

The O’s took an early lead in the first inning on a Machado RBI-groundout, however Lowrie’s sac fly-RBI in the last of the first tied the game at one. But that’s as close as Oakland would ever be. In the fourth Jones smacked a solo homer, and suddenly the O’s led once again.

But the Orioles weren’t done there. Trey Mancini came up to bat behind Jones, and promptly smacked a second homer – in back-to-back fashion. Suddenly the O’s had a two-run lead in Oakland, which again is one of the biggest ballparks in baseball.

And the Orioles decided to pull the back-to-back homers deal once again in the sixth inning. Mancini was involved in it once again, however this time he started it. Immediately following Mancini’s second solo homer of the game, Mark Trumbo hit one of his own. And the O’s led, 5-1.

But while the homer parade was over at that point, Jones himself wasn’t quite done. He would add an RBI-double in the seventh to run the score to 6-1. Lowrie’s RBI-double one inning later would bring Oakland to within 6-2, however they weren’t getting any closer than that.

The Orioles felt like they let an opportunity go by the wayside to win a series in Anaheim, so this was a good way to get that taste out of their mouths. It also successfully opened a series in a ballpark that hasn’t always been kind to the O’s. Yet they not only managed to win, but they did it playing their power game.

The series continues this evening at the Oakland Coliseum. Ubaldo Jimenez gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Oakland’s Paul Blackburn. Game time is set for just after 10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Bats can’t get on track

Keep in mind that when the Baltimore Orioles left home they were putting up ten runs or so in games. So how do they go from that to only netting one or two? Well as I’ve said before, good pitching will often shut down good hitting. The Birds ran into some decent pitching in Anaheim, however there can be little doubt that they lost yesterday’s game and the series due to the bats going to sleep early.

Kevin Gausman didn’t turn in a quality start, however he did pitch well enough to put the O’s in a spot to win the game. Gausman’s line:5.1 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 6 K. He also had a couple of runs score as a result of plays that were makeable by the Orioles’ defense. But that’s another story.

The Orioles held a lead in the game in the third inning. Welington Castillo smacked a solo homer, which was ultimately held up by instant replay. Anaheim challenged the call claiming that a fan had reached over the railing to catch the ball. The umpires reviewed the play, and the replay was inconclusive, giving the O’s a 1-0 lead.

Anaheim would tie the game in the last of that third inning on a sac fly-RBI by Simmons. Now here’s where Gausman might have not so much deserved the fate he suffered in this game. Simmons was on base to begin with as a result of a softly-hit bloop to shallow center. Jonathan Schoop didn’t get a good read on the ball, because he probably should have had a play on it. But them’s the breaks.

Anaheim took the lead an inning later on a seeing eye RBI-single by Puello. And tha’s the type of luck the Orioles have had this year. A seeing eye single by a guy making his second major league start puts them behind. Cron would add a two-run homer in the sixth, and Cowart would walk with the bases loaded in the last of the eighth to run it to the eventual final of 5-1.

Perhaps the biggest concern coming out of the game was for outfielder Joey Rickard, who was hit in the helmet with a pitch and had to leave the game. That’s a sobering thing to see regardless of who it is, but especially when it’s your player. Rickard will be evaluated today, but luckily for everyone involved it doesn’t appear to be serious.

The Orioles now head to Oakland for a four-game set. Wade Miley will get the start for the Birds, and as of this morning Oakland hasn’t named a starter. Game time is set for just after 10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles fall despite Caleb Joseph’s efforts

The Baltimore Orioles’ offensive output in last night’s game in Anaehim came from Caleb Joseph. And when I say it came from Caleb Joseph, I mean exclusively from Caleb Joseph. Oriole bats were silent, but in essence so were the bats of Anaheim. It was a pitcher’s duel, and the O’s were outlasted.

Jeremy Hellickson turned in a quality start for the Orioles, albeit in a losing effort. Hellickson’s line: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 9 K. It’s tough to be critical when your starter turns in numbers and an effort like that. However that’s where your bats need to step up for you, and the Orioles were unable to do that last night.

Anaheim’s Cron smakced an RBI-single in the second inning, giving them a 1-0 lead. Caleb Joseph would do the same on the Orioles’ behalf in the fifth, which tied the game. He plated Beckham – who yes was on base yet again. Beckham’s a guy that a lot of people questioned when the Orioles traded for him. But he’s left little doubt that he’s been the right man for the organization.

Valbuena would give Anaheim the lead back in the last of the seventh with an RBI-double, and Cron would add an additional RBI-single. Jospeh would homer in the ninth to bring the Orioles to within 3-2, however they were unable to tie the game up past that. At the end of the day, you’re only as good as the sum of all your parts in any given day. On this night the pitching was definitely there, but the bats were not.

Buck Showalter was very complimentary of Hellickson after the game in his postgame comments, highlighting how difficult it can be to pitch on the road against a good team (quote coutesy of Steve Melewski, MASNsports):

Good. He was outstanding. Pitching on the road, tough lineup, team that’s playing real well. I can’t find anything to fault him with. Even that last inning, some well-placed balls that are usually outs. Simmons hit a ball hard, that’s about it. Darren did a great job to get out of that inning.

The Orioles will attempt to take the series in this afternoon’s series finale in Anaheim. Kevin Gausman heads to the mound for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Anaheim’s Troy Scribner. Game time is set for just after 3:30 PM this afternoon.

Baltimore Orioles lifted by Manny Machado’s grand slam

On one hand Manny Machado and the Baltimore Orioles are lucky in the sense that they get all of their west coast games out of the way in one fatal swoop. However make no mistake about the fact that this west coast swing is a tough road trip which might make or break the season. Paramount in difficulty is the fact that there are no off days literally until the Birds head home. So what’s the best way to deal with that issue? Win games.

The Birds got a stellar effort out of starter Dylan Bundy, who set the tone for the O’s in the series opener in Anaheim. Bundy’s line: 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 10 K. Those last two stats in the line are telling in terms of how Bundy was dealing last night. Not walking anyone and striking out ten batters is a pretty special game.

Anaheim did strike first, as they took a 1-0 lead in the last of the fourth on a sac fly-RBI. However the Orioles took care of that one inning later when Joey Rickard singled Beckham (who was on base yet again) home to tie the game. Adam Jones would add a sac fly-RBI later in the inning, and the Orioles held a 2-1 lead.

Anaheim battled back ever so briefly, as they tied the game in the sixth on a solo homer by Trout. But this was an Orioles team bent on victory on this night. Manny Machado came to the plate in the seventh with the bases loaded, and promptly smacked a grand slam which gave the Birds a 6-2 lead. And that held up as a 6-2 victory.

The win put the Orioles back at the .500 mark for the season. They’ve been below .500 since the end of June, which capped of a really poor stretch for the Orioles. But since then they’ve righted the ship. And we saw that again last night – is this a game that they would have won in May or June? Probably not.

To his credit, Machado was simply trying to have a productive at-bat with the bases loaded. And he indicated as much in his comments after the game (quote courtesy of Steve Melewski, MASNsports):

I was just trying to get something over the plate. He was running the ball in and using that slider the whole game. He was pitching a hell of a game. Just had a couple mistakes and we were able to take advantage of it. Played overall a great game. That was a great inning, started off with Castillo getting a base hit and getting guys over. It was a team win today.

The series continues this evening in Anaheim. Jeremy Hellickson makes the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by former Orioles’ farmhand Parker Birdwell. Game time is set for just after 10 PM.