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: Jeremiah Jackson leads the Birds to an unlikely win

After dropping a few games, the Baltimore Orioles needed a win last night at Progressive Field in Cleveland. Starter Chris Bassit walked a tightrope throughout his outing, but remained clean in the runs box. Bassit’s line: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 2 K.

Bassit pitched himself into a few jams, namely loading the bases. But he also pitched out of those jams. The same was true on the other side as well. The Birds were able to put runners on, just not get them in. They would square balls up and hit them hard, but they would either be right at someone or the fielder would make the play of his life to get to it.

The O’s loaded the bases again in the last of the seventh, with the final runner being out on by an intentional walk. Grant Wolfram entered the game, and immediately struck out a hitter for the second out. But the Birds couldn’t walk the tightrope again, as Wolfram surrendered a grand slam to Schneeman, and the O’s trailed 4-0.

After dangling by a thread the entire game, it appeared that the O’s wouid fall to their fourth straight loss. But baseball can be funny. Especially when there’s still an inning or two left.

The Orioles turned around and loaded the bases in the eighth with nobody out. This on two walks and a hitter batsman. Jonathan Rodriguez’s sac fly-RBI cut the lead to 4-1. Following a walk, Weston Wilson slugged the O’s back into the game with a two-RBI double, cutting the lead to 4-3.

That in and of itself was something, right? In a tie game if you give up a late grand slam, you probably feel like it’s over. Not this team. Jeremiah Jackson came to the plate with two runners still on in the eighth. And…

…his three-run homer propelled the Orioles into the lead. In the sequence of events leading to Cleveland’s grand slam, Jackson’s error helped to load the bases. I’d say he more than made up for it.

Cleveland went relatively quietly after that.. And how could they not?! They had their moment. Then it was the Orioles’ turn. And behind a mammoth shot by Jeremiah Jackson, they seized their opportunity.

The series continues this evening at Progressive Field. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Gavin Williams. Game time is set for just after 6 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Tough loss in Cleveland opener

The Baltimore Orioles didn’t get their first hit in tonight’s game in Cleveland until the 9th inning. Shane Baz surrendered four runs, but also put his team in a spot to win. Oriole bats just didn’t cooperate until the end. Baz’s line: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 6 K.

Following a first inning walk, Baz surrendered a two-run homer to Ramirez to give Cleveland a 2-0 lead. However as the game wore on the O’s couldn’t even muster a hit. Cleveland would tack on two more as the game wore on, taking a 4-0 lead into the ninth.

The question is, how could the O’s not even get a hit to that point? This against a starter in Cleveland’s Messick, who’s a rookie? The answer is that Oriole bats were impatient this evening. Very impatient.

You have to work counts. You can’t swing at the first halfway decent pitch you see. Furthermore, keep in mind that the league knows that the Orioles adhere only to analytics. Do we think that even a rookie pitcher isn’t going to know to pitch them a certain way, inducing outs?

However luckily, even Messick tired. Leody Taveras’ single in the ninth broke up the no-hitter. One thing led to another, and the Birds had the bases loaded with nobody out. Gunnar Henderson would get the O’s on the board with a sac fly-RBI. Pete Alonso would then smack an RBI-double, and the O’s were in business. However Cleveland would close it out, and the O’s fell, 4-2.

On a side note, if you follow me on Twitter, I’ve been hacked! I’m not sure I can recover my account, but I’m trying – if possible at all, it may take a few days. But you can follow me on Threads at a similar handle: @@domenic_vadala.

The series continues tomorrow at Progressive Field. Chris Bassitt gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Tanner Bibee. Game time is set for just after 6 PM.

Baltimore Orioles’ win streak snapped at three

Trevor Rogers suffered his first loss of the season this evening at Camden Yards against Arizona. Also a game which snapped the Birds’ three-game winning streak. But you know what that means; time to start a new streak tomorrow. Rogers’ line: 4.2 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K.

The Orioles seemed to pick right up where they left off last night. Samuel Basallo smacked a solo homer in the second to give the O’s a 1-0 lead. The Orioles would also load the bases in the third, and tacked on a second run when Leody Taveras walked.

However that was all they got out of that inning. When you load the bases you need to yield more than one run. Only getting the one is a win for the defense.

Rogers would surrender a three-run homer to Vargas in the fifth, putting Arizona in the lead, 3-2. Fernandez would tack on an RBI-double, and Arizona extended their lead to 4-2. That stemmed from a single and a walk. Remember folks, nothing good happens after a walk.

The O’s did try to battle back. Leody Taveras’ RBI-single in the eighth cut the lead to 4-3. But Arizona closed out the Birds the rest of the way, ending their winning streak.

You have to take advantage of opportunities with runners on base. Arizona did tonight. The O’s didn’t. That’s the story of this game. But again, there’s always tomorrow, and a chance to win the series.

The series concludes tomorrow at Camden Yards. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Arizona’s Eduardo Rodriguez. Game time is set for just after 12:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: “Action Jackson” for the win!

The Baltimore Orioles called Dean Kremer up from triple-A Norfolk for his first start of the season tonight. In short, “Deano” needs to prevent the long ball. That’s what plagued him tonight. Luckily his teammates picked him up. Kremer’s line: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R (2 earned), 0 BB, 9 K,

Kremer and the Orioles trailed from the first pitch. Marte hit it over the wall for a solo homer. Arizona appeared poised to make contact, and Kremer was pitching to contact. Not a good combination. The zero walks also indicates that. To prove he wasn’t kidding, Marte smacked another solo shot in the third to extend the lead to 2-0.

The O’s tried to battle back against Arizona starter, Nelson. Gunnar Henderson’s RBI-triple in the last of the third cut the lead to 2-1. However Arizona issued what they felt was a coup de grace with a two-run homer by Arenado in the fourth. To make matters worse, he would smack a three-run shot in the sixth, and the Birds trailed 7-1.

Needless to say, you don’t want to spot someone a 7-1 lead. That much goes without saying. However this is a group of Orioles who over the past few seasons have learned a thing or two about coming back. That’s one of the good parts about having a core group that’s played together for awhile. That and becoming new talent.

With two on in the last of the sixth, Leody Taveras smacked an RBI-single in the last of the sixth. A walk would then bring Jeremiah Jackson to the plate with the bases loaded. The rest, as they say, is history.

Keep in mind, Jackson wasn’t always going to be on the roster. At least to start the year. But due to injuries, he’s here. And it’s a darned good thing he is.

With the bases loaded in the last of the sixth, Jackson sent a deep fly ball to left. Bear in mind also that at one time the O’s trailed 7-1 – overall a fairly safe lead. But when Jackson’s shot in the sixth went over the wall, the comeback was on. Jackson’s grand slam cut the lead to 7-6.

One inning later the struggling Pete Alonso smacked a two-run home run to give the Orioles the lead at 8-7. But to show he wasn’t kidding, Jackson came back up in the eighth and smacked a solo home run. The Birds would close out Arizona in the ninth, and went home 9-7 winners.

Make no mistake, that’s the biggest and most surprising win of the young season. It’s the kind of game that fans saw in 2023. Despite Jeremiah Jackson being the MVP by far, this was also a big game for Pete Alonso. We may well look back on him stealing that base on Saturday night as the catalyst for a big season.

The series continues tomorrow night at Camden Yards. Trevor Rogers gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Arizona’s Merrill Kelly. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Cade Povich gifts a win on his birthrst

The Baltimore Orioles sent Cade Povich to the mound in this afternoon’s series finale with San Francisco at Camden Yards. The twist? It was his 26th birthday. Also the Oriole Bird’s birthday. And Povich didn’t back down on his special day. Povich’s line: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K.

Povich you’ll recall began the season in triple-A. He came up and last weekend gave the Orioles good innings to save the bullpen in Pittsburgh. As a result he was tabbed to start today. And on his birthday, he didn’t disappoint.

The two guys in the lineup who have been struggling the most, Pete Alonso and Samuel Basallo, may have attempted to break out today also. Mirroring last night( Alonso drew a walk in the last of the first. Which is good – despite the power outage, he’s getting on base.

Basallo followed, and smacked a two-run home run into the Orioles’ bullpen. With a 2-0 lead, Povich didn’t allow his first hit or base runner until the fifth. That runner would later score on an RBI-single by Susac. But he buckled down and closed out the inning.

That part’s big. You aren’t going to retire every batter. But you can attempt to limit damage when guys to get on. Povich stayed out of a big inning, and got back in the dugout.

In the home half of that fifth inning it was Alonso’s turn. With two runners on base, his two-RBI double extended the lead to 4-1. One inning later it was Coby Mayo’s turn, who followed through with an RBI-single to extend it to 5-1. Colton Cowser would tack on an infield RBI-single in the seventh, and San Francisco a solo homer by Schmidt in the ninth to run the final to 6-2.

Conventional wisdom says that Povich might be ticketed to go back to the minors. And in fact, the O’s need a starter tomorrow. But after this outing, who knows. He saved the bullpen, and steadied the ship even further.

As did Alonso and Basallo. Are things coming together more, despite the injuries? The future will tell us that. However that may have been the best start of Cade Povich’s career.

The Orioles are set to welcome in Arizona tomorrow night for the first of three at Camden Yards. The Orioles are yet to announce a starter, but Arizona will be throwing Ryne Nelson. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Costly win, spearheaded by Jeremiah Jackson

Chris Bassitt needed a good start for the Baltimore Orioles this evening against San Francisco. He got that in a way, but he didn’t stick around long enough to be in line for the win. Manager Craig Albernaz decided to match up in the fifth. Luckily it worked; Bassitt pitched well, just not the requisite five innings. Bassitt’s line: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R (1 earned), 1 BB, 2 K.

Perhaps a harbinger, Adley Rutschman was sent to the IL before the game. He was in the starting lineup, was scratched with an inflamed ankle before the game, and just moments before first pitch the Orioles announced he was going to the IL. Shades of last year, once again.

And that in a sense haunted the Orioles early. With Devers on first, Samuel Basallo allowed him to go to second on a passed ball. Ramos’ RBI-single gave San Francisco a 1-0 lead. But the O’s would immediately tie it at one with an RBI-groundout in the bottom of the inning by Colton Cowser.

It was Dylan Beavers who scored the run. He was originally on the bench, but Ryan Mountcastle took the DH role after Rutschman was scratched (and later IL’d). Mountcastle led the second off with a solid double to center. Good piece of hitting; however Mountcastle appeared to stumble after hitting first, and slid head-first and injured into second. It was all but immediately apparent that he would have to leave the game. The Orioles later said he had ankle soreness.

Despite the mounting injury concerns, the Orioles took the lead an inning later on a solo home run by Gunnar Henderson. Yet they would load the bases in the fourth, and San Francisco tied it at two on an RBI-groundout by Ramos. It was softly hit, and approximately 42 MPH off the bat. But it tied the game.

A Colton Cowser single in the last of the fourth put runners at the corners. Coby Mayo would ground into a fielder’s choice-RBI, giving the Orioles the lead back at 3-2. Mayo would later score himself on an RBI-double by Jeremiah Jackson. Incidentally Mayo appeared to injure his knee sliding into home plate on that play. But mercifully he came back out to play third base and appeared to be fine. It might have been the only break the Orioles have caught with injuries since the first half of 2024. Coby Mayo would add an insurance run in the form of an RBI-single in the eighth, and the O’s won it 6-2.

Jeremiah Jackson may have had the best game of his career, incidentally. On top of the RBI-double above, he added a solo home run in the last of the seventh. He’s proving to be an important and key member of this team. And maybe a very sleek pickup from last year.

The win puts the Orioles back at .500 for the season, with a chance to win the series tomorrow. Which is good. But the injury bug is adding up again. At the time last year the O’s had nine players on the IL. Now they have 11. Could be 12, depending on Ryan Mountcastle’s situation.

It almost takes your breath away if you think about it. Before the game even started the Orioles had players dropping like flies. But as Buck Showalter used to say, other teams don’t care about your problems. They’re just glad you have them.

The series concludes tomorrow at Camden Yards. Cade Povich gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by San Francisco’s Adrian Houser. Game time is set for just after 1:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Continued struggles with analytics?

The Baltimore Orioles debuted their new “city connect” uniforms this evening against San Francisco at Camden Yards. With Shane Baz on the mound, sadly the results were largely similar to what we saw out of the previous city connect jerseys. Baz’s line: 5.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K.

Baz seemed to cruise through the early innings of the game. However a third inning homer to Adames seemed to spook him. The interesting thing is that every pitch in that at-bat was on the outside corner. Every pitch. The final of which went for a home run. Might that be over-analyzing data?

One inning later Ramos would tack on an RBI-single, bringing Adames back to the plate later in the inning. Baz kept him in the ballpark this time, however he did rip an RBI-double which extended the lead to 3-1. The Orioles’ lone run would come in the bottom of that fourth inning, with an RBI-double by Leody Tavares.

San Francisco would tack two on, including one on another solo homer by Lee in the sixth. The Birds however did mount a small rally, in the form of a Gunnar Henderson two-run homer in the last of the ninth. However if not for the additional San Francisco runs, obviously it’s a different game.

It wasn’t the Orioles’ night, but they a there more than that going on? There were multiple at-bats where Oriole pitching (both Baz and the bullpen) stayed in the same half or quadrant of the plate. That’s evidenced by the MLB pitch track. Granted, scouting reports and spray charts play a role there. However the fact that the Orioles are married to these charts and reports is the worst-kept secret in sports.

Contrast that with various Oriole at-bats where guys got steady diets of pitches all over the plate. Many of these ended up being strikeouts, ground ball double-plays, etc. Why? Because you have to sprinkle in feel for the game with analytics. If you can do that, you’ll probably see decent results – in short, keeping guys guessing. But when you pitch only to a chart, all the opponent needs to do is look at their own chart. And they’ll know what to expect.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Chris Bassitt gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by San Francisco’s Logan Webb. Game time is set for 7:15 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: In the clutch, it’s Gunnar Henderson

Trevor Rogers and the Baltimore Orioles ended up in a mid-afternoon matinee today at Rate Field in Chicago. Rogers left in line to be the loser, however he still dazzled. Rogers’ line: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 6 K.

That’s a quality start, if you’re keeping score at home. This game was supposed to be a night game, however due to expected frigid temperatures this evening throughout Chicagoland, it was moved to the afternoon. A good move for everyone involved, and not the only game across MLB today which did that.

Chicago plates two runs in the third on Meidroth’s RBI-double, followed by Sosa’s RBI-single. Those were the only two runs that Rogers yielded. And again, he left in line to be the losing pitcher, but pitched to a quality start.

However Ryan Mountcastle would get the Birds on the board before Rogers departed, with an RBI-groundout in the fifth. Blaze Alexander would double a few innings later with one out in the eighth. He would later score on an RBI-double by Taylor Ward. And we went on tied at two.

But it wasn’t like that for long. Ward wasn’t on base for more than a few minutes. Because Gunnar Henderson was striding to the plate, with the fortunes of Birdland riding on his bat. And he didn’t let Orioles’ fans down.

Henderson sent a deep shot to right center, which cleared the wall for a two-run homer. Make no mistake, this was a big win for the O’s. On the heels of being swept in Pittsburgh, it feels like at the very least winning this series restores some sort of equilibrium to the operation. Granted, the Orioles beat a team they should have beaten. But that’s a start.

The series concludes tomorrow at Rate Field. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Chicago’s Sean Burke. Game time is set for 2:10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: “Hell’s Bells” by the skin of their teeth

After having been swept in Pittsburgh, the Baltimore Orioles needed a win tonight on the south side of Chicago. It’s never easy, especially when you have to call up a starter from triple-A this early in the year – Brandon Young, in this case. Young’s line: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K.

Young stepped up big this evening fresh up from the minors, on a cold night. The Orioles needed a stopper. And he was it.

Following an Adley Rutschman walk in the fourth, Tyler O’Neill sent a flair down the left field line. Former Oriole Austin Hays was playing left field, and he appeared to pull up lame on the play. He was immediately removed, with an apparent injury. However the ball bounced fair, and in the shuffle Adley Rutschman was able to score and give the O’s a 1-0 lead.

Tyler O’Neill seemed shocked that the ball wasn’t caught, and on top of that shocked that it fell fair. In short, he should have been at second base. But it went as an RBI-single. That sort of mental lapse cannot happen. Run hard. Play hard.

Gunnar Henderson would add to the lead in the sixth with a solo homer, and the O’s took a 2-0 lead to the ninth when Ryan Helsley took the ball. Maybe it was the cold, but Helsley walked the first two hitters. He would later give up an RBI-groundout to Sosa, and put the winning run on due to a flukey infield single. But he ultimately closed the door on Chicago, helping the Orioles to snap a three-game losing streak.

The series continues tomorrow at Rate Field. Trevor Rogers gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Chicago’s Shane Smith. The game was moved up into the afternoon due to expected frigid temperatures in the evening in Chicago, and will begin at 3:10 PM.