Baltimore Orioles fall, but Thomas Eshelman is a key piece

Thomas Eshelman is one of the most versatile guys in the Baltimore Orioles’ bullpen. He can pitch in relief, he can spot start (as he did tonight), and really just about be anything that is needed. It’s also a great way to stay at the big league level. While he goes as the loser tonight, he pitched valiantly. Eshelman’s line: 3.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 4 K.

Freeman smacked an RBI-double in the top of the third, giving Atlanta a 1-0 lead. They doubled that an inning later when DuVall smacked a solo homer. Atlanta would also add three insurance runs in the ninth to run the final to 5-1 after the O’s added one in the ninth. And the lack of offense doesn’t fall on Eshelman.

However make no mistake that manager Brandon Hyde and company are happy with Eshelman in general. As I said above, he pretty much is ready to go whenever he’s tapped. Again, be it as a starter or in relief. And on short rest at that.

Granted tonight he started, however I suspect he wasn’t expected to go deep into this game. In other words, this was probably meant to be a “bullpen game” in general. To a traditionalist such as myself, that’s still a foreign concept. But is it really?

I would submit that Eshelman’s probably setting himself up to pitch the way that baseball might exist moving forward. We already know that the idea of a 20-win starter is gone. However the number of innings starters are going is getting to be fewer and fewer. That isn’t going to change.

It wouldn’t shock me if someone like Eshelman becomes the norm in Major League Baseball. Shorter outings, removing the emphasis on starters and relievers. This also would force people such as myself to in effect re-learn the game and how it’s approached. Which isn’t necessarily a good thing.

Again, the onus in this game was on Orioles’ bats. They put up 14 runs last night, but couldn’t muster anything in this game. And that does happen. Incidentally, manager Brandon Hyde was ejected in the fourth inning for arguing balls and strikes.

The series concludes tomorrow night at Camden Yards. Keegan Akin gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Atlanta’s Cole Hamels. Game time is set for just after 7:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Monday night delight

Baltimore Orioles’ starter Jorge Lopez was the benefactor of a donnybrook of runs this evening. After the weekend in New York, that was good to see. It was also good to see that Lopez held his own. That does make a difference. Lopez was the first Orioles starter to go seven innings this year. Lopez’s line: 7.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 K.

Ryan Mountcastle got the party started early in the game with an RBI-single in the last of the first. But that was only getting things warmed up. The O’s would explode in the last of the third, which effectively ended the competitive portion of the game.

DJ Stewart stayed hot, which is obviously great news for the Orioles. His three-run homer kicked off the biggest inning of the year for the Birds. That brought Mountcastle to the plate again, and he went back-to-back with Stewart for a solo homer. That gave the O’s a 5-0 lead.

Cedric Mullins added a two-RBI single, and Jose Iglesias a three-run homer. By the end of the third inning, the O’s led 10-0. The bats may have struggled in the Bronx over the weekend, but they snapped back in one fatal swoop.

The Orioles were ferociously smacking Atlanta pitching around tonight. Jose Iglesias, DJ Stewart, and Ryan Mountcastle would add RBI-singles in the last of the fifth. It all kind of made you wonder if the O’s might call the dogs off early up 13-0. But, that also would go against the idea of playing to the final out.

Atlanta would tack on one run, but the Birds would get it back. Pat Valaika‘s solo homer in the last of the seventh cushioned the lead back to 13 runs. Count this as a game where the O’s put it all together.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Thomas Eshelman gets the start for the O’s, and Atlanta is yet to announce a starter. Game time is set for just after 7:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles swept in the Bronx

The Baltimore Orioles got a quality start this afternoon at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx our of starter John Means. He was stingy, surrendering just one solo homer. The issue of course was that Oriole bags couldn’t get going, causing the Birds to suffer a sweep at Yankee Stadium this weekend. Means’ line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K.

The O’s got on the board in the second inning on a solo homer by Renato Nunez. However Means’ aforementioned surrendered solo homer came in the last of the third. Wade smacked a Means pitch out of the park, tying the game at one.

But New York couldn’t muster much more against Means. This start combined with his previous start bodes well for the future of this franchise. Everything came together for Means this afternoon, in an effort for which he was non-decisioned.

The O’s got the first two outs in the last of the eighth, and then New York put two runners on base. Torres then proceeded to smack a two-RBI double, which in effect won the game for New York. And in fact your final from Yankee Stadium, New York defeats the O’s 3-1.

The Orioles may have seen their playoff chances end with this sweep in the Bronx. And if that’s true, that’s okay. Keep in mind that this team wasn’t supposed to win twenty games. So they’ve turned some heads. But there’s still some season left to go; anything can happen.

The Orioles now return home to open a series with the Atlanta Braves tomorrow night. Jorge Lopez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Atlanta’s Touki Toussaint. Game time is set for just after 7:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Hunter Harvey’s wild pitch sinks Birds

The Baltimore Orioles got a good start this afternoon out of Dean Kremer. You have to figure that it’s been tough for the kid; his first two big league starts have come agains the Bronx Bombers. But he won the first start last week, and held his own this afternoon. Kremer’s line: 5.0 IP, 4 H 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K.

The lone run that Kremer gave up was on a sac fly-RBI by Frazier in the last of the first. Other than that, Kremer and subsequent pitchers were stingy. Not much seemed to shake Kremer. And that’s a good sign.

The O’s tied the game at one in the top of the sixth when Ryan Mountcastle dropped a bloop RBI-single behind second base. This was a classic pitcher’s duel, and both teams struggled at times to put runners on base. Something had to give as we went to extra innings.

And unfortunately, it was the new extra innings rules that forced something to give. And for the O’s at that. Hunter Harvey was brought on to pitch the tenth, and of course New York got to start with a runner on second base.

Harvey uncorked a wild pitch, and the runner went to third. He would later score on Voit’s sac fly-RBI. It’s really a shame; this was a game the O’s had a golden opportunity to win. And that one slight mistake cost them the game.

As I said after last night’s loss, defensive mishaps like that can cost you games. And in this case it did. Now granted would a wild pitch setting up a run be such a problem in the third inning? Maybe, maybe not. In a 2-1 game it would still stick out. However the O’s would have had time to overcome it. In extra innings it’s a different story.

The series concludes tomorrow at Yankee Stadium. John Means gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s J.A. Happ. Game time is set for just after 1 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Defensive mishaps make a huge difference

Baltimore Orioles’ starter Keegan Akin only lasted for two outs in the first inning. But please don’t take his stats and make assumptions as to how he pitched tonight. He was far from perfect. But he was done wrong by the defense behind him. Akin’s line: .2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 1 K.

DJ Stewart stayed hot with a solo homer in the first inning. He was the lone bright spot for the Birds. I can’t stress enough how promising it is for the organization that he’s coming along. He’s been having a field day of late with major league pitching.

But again, that was the Birds’ line bright spot. New York immediately put two runners on with nobody out in the last of the first. Hicks flies out to left fielder Ryan Mountcastle. Now keep in mind that Mountcastle isn’t a natural outfielder. He’s being turned into one.

LeMahieu, the runner at second, decided to test Mountcastle and tag up to try to take third. Mountcastle’s throw was a bit under thrown, allowing New York an extra base. Frazier would eventually reach on a fielder’s choice, however the throw home from Jose Iglesias was off line, giving New York a 2-1 lead.

Later in the inning Andujar would add a two-RBI double. Later in the game New York would blow it wide open. Bout smacked two-run homers in both the fourth and fifth innings. Ten runs to the Orioles’ one appeared to be all they needed.

Granted you can’t blame two mishaps in the first inning for giving up ten runs. However those two mishaps (which for the record neither of which were errors) set the tone for the game. It also drove Keegan Amun’s pitch count way up, causing him to exit in the first inning.

It’s those types of mistakes that can be accepted from this team right now. But moving forward they need to keep that under control. If in the future they’re in a pennant race and this sort of thing pops up, that’s going to be a big league problem.

Look at it this way, if Iglesias’ throw (which wasn’t a tough okay) is online, the O’s gun down a run at the plate. Does the rest of the game unfold the way that it did? Tough to say.

The series continues tomorrow afternoon at Yankee Stadium. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Jordan Montgomery. Game time is set for just after 1 PM.

Baltimore Orioles fall in game one of a doubleheader

Alex Cobb came off the IL to make the start for the Baltimore Orioles in game one of a doubleheader against New York in the Bronx. Cobb has trouble finding his way, but righted himself later. Cobb’s line: 4.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

New York got off to a quick start in this one. LeMahieu led off the last of the first with a solo homer. Gardner added a two-run shot later in that first inning. Before the non-existent crowd would have otherwise settled down, the O’s trailed 3-0.

Cobb didn’t fair much better in the second. Higashioka smacked a two-run home run in the second, running the score to 5-0. At this point if you’re the O’s you’re trying not to get yourself run out of the ballpark. But things stabilized.

Neither Cobb nor any other Oriole pitcher gave up another run. Save for a bloop RBI-single. They got very stingy, in fact. But the damage was done.

New York starter Cole made a no-hit bid. Mind you, the game was only seven innings long. But Hanser Alberto broke that up in the fifth inning. That was about as much offense as the Birds could muster in game one.

The doubleheader and the series continues later this evening at Yankee Stadium. Keegan Akin gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Masahiro Tanaka. Game time is set for about 40 minutes from now.

Baltimore Orioles fall, split with NYM

The Baltimore Orioles stayed hot at the plate last night against the NY Mets. Unfortunately New York’s bats got hot as well, however. And that happened slowly as the game went on. Jorge Lopez didn’t make it out of the fifth inning, but was victimized by the long ball. Lopez’s line: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

Renato Nunez and Ryan Mountcastle smacked RBI-singles in the first inning, and the Birds took an early 2-0 lead. New York would get a run back in the last of the second on an RBI-single flew by McNeil. But the good news was that the O’s were getting guys on base, which puts pressure on opposing pitching.

But the O’s were able to open up a bigger lead later on. Rio Ruiz‘s two-RBI double in the third have the O’s a 4-1 lead. Hanser Alberto would add an RBI-single later in the inning. And the Birds held a 5-1 lead.

But even with a decent lead, New York was only a couple of big homers out of the game. McNeil’s two-run home run in the fourth cut the lead to 5-3. Now the Orioles did tack on one more run an inning later. DJ Stewart‘s bar stayed hot, and he hit a solo homer. Stewart is really coming along and of late has really been clicking against big league pitching. That bodes well for the Orioles’ lineup.

But the last of the sixth saw the Orioles’ lead evaporate. Conforto smacked a solo homer, Cano an RBI-single, and Giminez a solo homer of his own. That tied the game at six.

Two innings later Alonzo added a solo homer of his own, giving New York a 7-6 lead, which turned into a 7-6 victory. The O’s had chances in the later innings, but couldn’t bring anyone in. They also should have had at least three additional runs. With two outs and the bases loaded in the sixth, Rio Ruiz hit what rightfully hooks have been a bases-clearing double…

…but Conforto made an amazing over-the-shoulder catch. That obviously ended the inning as well. That’s to Conforto’s credit, incidentally. At the time the O’s held a slim one-run lead. But it’s a moment on which you look back as a big one in the game. If that ball falls, the Birds sweep the series. Instead they split it.

The O’s now head to the Bronx for a four game set with the New York Yankees. Keegan Akin gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Gerrit Cole. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Big wheels keep on turning in Queens

The Baltimore Orioles got the best start of the season out of John Means this evening against the NY Mets in Queens. In fact, Means resembled his first half, 2019 self. Means’ line: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K.

Means qualified for a quality start, and in fact Oriole bats also posted up. That’s the other aspect of the game. You can pitch great but if your offense doesn’t score you runs you’ll end up a hard-luck loser. The Birds put it all together tonight at once.

DJ Stewart remained hot, smacking a two-run homer in the second inning. Keep in mind that between Saturday and Sunday Stewart homered in three straight at-bats. So he’s really starting to get with it at the big league level.

New York would get their lone run in the last of the second on a solo shot by Marisnick. Other than that, Means shut New York down. And the O’s just kept chugging along.

Ryan Mountcastle also stayed hot. He smacked a two-run homer of his own in the fourth. That was followed up later in the inning by an RBI-triple from Cedric Mullins. Again, that’s great to see. Both Stewart and Mullins have struggled at various times in the bigs. The fact that things seem to be clicking for them is welcome for this team.

Pat Valaika and Rio Ruiz would also homer later in the game. When the smoke cleared the Birds had themselves an 11-2 victory. But following a big weekend against the New York Yankees, the Birds turned in perhaps one of their most complete performances of the season. And that in and of itself is an excellent sign.

The series concludes tomorrow night at Citi Field. Jorge Lopez gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Rick Porcello. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Dean Kremer dazzles in debut as Birds take series with NY

The Baltimore Orioles finally got to see the first piece from 2018’s trade of Manny Machado come to the big leagues this afternoon in starter Dean Kremer. And he didn’t disappoint. Kremer carried himself and played like he belonged in the big leagues. He sent New York down 1-2-3 in the first inning, and his outing took off from there. Kremer’s line: 6.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K.

Also for the Orioles, DJ Stewart picked up right where he left off last night. Stewart’s two-run homer in the first inning got the Orioles going. It was Stewart’s third home run in as many at-bats. New York would score in the second on an RBI-ground out, cutting the Orioles’ lead to 2-1.

But when your starter is as effective as a Kremer was today, that’s not an issue. In fact, the bases were loaded in that second inning. Kremer figured out a way to get out of the inning while minimizing the damage.

That thin 2-1 lead held until the sixth inning before the Birds broke it open. They would load the bases, and Bryan Holaday would draw a walk, extending the lead to 3-1. Andrew Velazquez‘s RBI-single would further the lead, and Ryan Mountcastle‘s sac fly-RBI in the seventh pushed it to 5-1, which was the final.

This game of course was played under the backdrop of the 25th anniversary of Cal Ripken Jr. breaking the consecutive games played record. Cal tossed out a virtual first pitch to his son, Ryan (the first baseman for the Bowie Baysox), and he appeared on the MASN telecast and the Orioles Radio Network. 2131 is a moment that no Orioles fan of a certain age will ever forget. It’s a moment that stands alone in time and marks a generation of Orioles fans. So in a sense, it’s poetic justice that the Birds won today.

The Orioles also very quietly took three-of-four in this series with New York. Mind you it was originally a three-game set, but one was a makeup game. Either way, they took three-of-four. While New York is at a reduced power level, they’re still New York. We went from talking about an epic losing streak to them, to the Birds taking the series. Also noteworthy for Dean Kremer’s first major league start, and his first major league win.

Baltimore Orioles: DJ Stewart breaks out in another win vs. New York

Baltimore Orioles’ starter Keegan Akin put the Birds in a position to win last night against New York. And that’s all you can ask a starting pitcher to do. The rest of the team has to kind of take it from there. And they did. Akin’s line: 5.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 8 K.

Unfortunately Akin didn’t qualify for the win. He was lifted in the top of the sixth, and the score was still 0-0. So Akin was non-decisioned. But he pitched well enough to have gotten the win. It just didn’t work out accordingly.

This game was also a coming out party of sorts for DJ Stewart. Which is a good thing because with Santander suddenly on the IL, Stewart is probably going to be getting more playing time. However his solo homer in the last of the sixth broke the scoreless tie and gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead.

Later in that sixth inning Ryan Mountcastle‘s two-RBI single extended the Birds’ lead to 3-0. A two-RBI double would then run the score to 5-0, and the O’s were off to the races. After being held scoreless for nearly six innings, the runs came in buckets. This against a team that had previously won 19 straight games against the O’s.

Just to show he wasn’t kidding, DJ Stewart smacked an additional solo homer in the last of the seventh to extend the lead to 6-0. New York would get one back in the top of the eighth on a solo homer by Frazier. But in the end, the O’s won their second straight against New York. Hardly a 19-game winning streak, but hey you have to start somewhere.

The O’s will go for the series win this afternoon at Camden Yards. The Birds are yet to announce a starter, but they’ll be facing New York’s Masahiro Tanaka. Game time is set for just after 1 PM.