Baltimore Orioles: Silent J gets loud off the bat

Cade Povich scored his first big league win tonight for the Baltimore Orioles. Unfortunately, it was overshadowed by Heston Kjerstad’s big game. Make no mistake however that you win and lose as a team. Everyone made a difference tonight. Povich’s line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 3 K.

If you’re keeping score at home, that’s a quality start for Cade Povich. However he did surrender a solo home run early in the game to Seager. This in the first inning. But remember, solo home runs rarely hurt you too much.

And the same was true in the last of the second when Anthony Santander smacked a solo shot to tie the game at one. However Texas had another solo homer in them, this one off the bat of Hill – in the fifth. And the Orioles trailed 2-1.

But as opposed to a week ago or so, recently it’s been the Orioles who’ve taken advantage of opportunities thrown their way. The O’s loaded the bases in the last of the fifth, while freshly down 2-1. Heston Kjerdtad, effectively called the “Silent J” (due to the pronunciation of his name), came to the plate. And he didn’t disappoint.

Kjerstad smacked a grand slam, giving the Birds a 5-2 lead. That was a huge moment, as Texas would narrow things. Lowe smacked a two-run home run in the sixth, but Anthony Santander’s RBI-double in the seventh gave the Birds some insurance.

And they needed it. Garcia’s solo home run in the eighth brought things to within 6-5, and Craig Kimbrel go-ahead run on base in the ninth. However he was able to record the final out, giving the O’s a 6-5 win.

Kjerstad was outstanding tonight, as was Cade Povich. As I said however, team effort. That’s how you win games. Grand slams don’t hurt, either.

The series concludes tomorrow night before a national television audience on Sunday Night Baseball at Camden Yards. Cole Irvin gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Andrew Heaney. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Firing on all cylinders

To be clear, tonight’s game wasn’t “revenge” for the Baltimore Orioles against Texas. This from last year, when Texas beat the Orioles in the ALDS. However it did do a few things for this season, behind starter Corbin Burnes. And needless to say, Oriole bats followed suit. Burnes’ line: 7.0 IP, 9 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K.

The Orioles led from the beginning. Heston Kjerstad’s bat came to life, both in the first inning and later. His RBI-single in the first inning gave the Orioles a 1-0 lead. That was followed by a two-RBI double later in the inning. And the O’s led 3-0. Ryan Mountcastle’s sac fly-RBI gave the Birds a 4-0 lead.

But that wasn’t the end in the third inning. There was more to come. As I said, Heston Kjerstad’s bat came to life. He smacked two-run homer later in the fourth inning, busting the game wide open.

Texas would get a run in the fourth on a solo homer by Garcia. But they could have afforded a run or two. Especially given that Cedric Mullins smacked a two-run homer in the last of the fourth. Adley Rutschman added on a solo shot in the seventh.

Texas would tack on a run in the eighth, but the Birds weren’t blinking. Colton Cowser added a solo home run in the last of the eighth and Adley Rutschman a sac fly-RBI. Capping off an 11-2 victory over Texas.

Again, this has nothing to do with last year. But everything to do with this season. The Orioles were in a lull, until yesterday. The fact that they won the way they won tonight cemented that. This for 2024. Not 2023.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Al Suarez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Max Scherzer. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles squeak by Cleveland, snap losing streak

Grayson Rodriguez had one job as the starting pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles tonight: be the stopper. The Birds came into tonight’s series finale with Cleveland having lost five straight for the first time in just over two years. Folks were getting restless. Luckily Rodriguez delivered for the most part. Rodriguez’s line: 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 4 K.

I say he delivered for the most part. I probably could have left that last part off. He delivered in more ways than one. He pitched a quality start, and made it through seven innings. That really helped out the bullpen tonight. So make no mistake, Grayson Rodriguez was a superstar for the Orioles tonight.

He did give up a solo homer to Noel in the first inning, which gave Cleveland a 1-0 lead. Not only was it Noel’s first big league game, but it was his first big league at-bat. And thus his first hit and first homer. However following a Jorge Mateo double in the last of the first, Gunnar Henderson’s RBI-single tied the game at one.

It seemed we were set for another slog of a game between these two. But overall, the pitching settled in. Rodriguez gave up another solo homer in the fifth to Arias, but other than that he was solid.

And the good news is that the Orioles weren’t behind for long. Come the last of the fifth Gunnar Henderson smacked a long solo shot of his own, tying the game at two. Two innings later, Cedric Mullins sent a deep shot down the right field line. A shot that was high and deep…

../it hung in the air forever. And it barely stayed fair, landing on the flag court. Another solo homer for the Orioles, who at that point led 3-2. It wasn’t a big lead. But it was a lead. And when you’ve lost five straight, it feels big.

But…the Orioles needed some insurance. And they got it in the eighth. Ryan O’Hearn’s solo homer, the third of the game off of Oriole bats, extended the lead to 4-2. Craig Kimbrell walked a batter with two outs in the ninth, but it wasn’t an issue. And honestly in his pitch sequences on the first two outs, he was definitely crisp.

End of the day it doesn’t matter how you end a losing streak. What matters is that you snapped it. This is a team that has championship aspirations. Losing streaks happen to everyone, but you have to nip them in the rear. The Orioles did that tonight, and now they can move on.

Tomorrow the O’s open a four-game set with Texas at Camden Yards. Corbin Burnes gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Jon Gray. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Did Brandon Hyde call an errant seventh?

Cole Irvin struggled for the Baltimore Orioles this evening. He had what appeared to be a revolving strike zone, with his mound opponent seeming to get the outside corners and he not, but Cleveland continued their trend of swinging early and often. And it paid off – again. Irvin’s line: 4.0 IP, 10 H, 8 R (4 earned), 0 BB, 1 K.

Through the first two games of this series, Cleveland’s never backed off taking risks in games. And it’s paid off. The aforementioned strike zone issues…were they getting the calls because for the most part their pitchers were attacking the strike zone, whereas Irvin and subsequent pitchers were nibbling? Were they getting good pitches to hit with two strikes because they forced Oriole pitchers to give in? Tough to say.

Irvin recorded two quick outs, then surrendered back-to-back doubles. However the O’s immediately made their presence felt with a two-run homer by Gunnar Henderson in the last of the first. However Arias’ two-run double in the second gave Cleveland the lead back at 3-2.

And that set the table for the type of game this was going to be. An RBI-single by James McCann in the second and an RBI-double by Jordan Westburg in the third put the Birds back in the lead at 4-3. However both last night and tonight, the O’s couldn’t stay out in front of Cleveland. They’d slap Cleveland down, and they’d pop right back up.

Rocchio and Kwan would hit run-scoring single s in the fourth, re-taking the lead for Cleveland. However Ramirez would slug a three-run homer, extending the lead to 8-4. And that’s the frustration with an opponent like Cleveland. To that point they had piecemealed runs across innings. Then suddenly they put out some big time power.

However, the Orioles weren’t quite done yet. James McCann and Colton Cowser would slug back-to-back solo home runs in the last of the fourth. That cut the lead to 8-6, and it reminded people that the Orioles don’t give up either. However in my mind, the game was decided in the seventh inning.

With a walk to Ryan O’Hearn, the Orioles loaded the bases with nobody out in the seventh. Brandon Hyde sent rookie Heston Kjerstad up as a pinch hitter, and he struck out. James McCann then appeared to hit into an inning-ending double-play. It was a tough play to make, and it required the Cleveland infield to make a bit of a caddywampus maneuver…

…after the play the umpires huddled up and said that the call on the field was that the runner at second was safe. Which was the right call, as the infielder never touched second base while he had the ball. The Orioles challenged that the runner at first (James McCann) was safe, but the call was upheld. The inning ended moments later.

O’Hearn (who walked to load the bases) was a pinch hitter. Heston Kjerstad was a pinch hitter. Brandon Hyde burned two pinch hitters and left Cedric Mullins on the bench, all at once. And the fact that Mullins later got on base in the ninth as a pinch hitter should be duly noted.

It’s tough to look at Brandon Hyde’s body of work and criticize that one move. It’s just something that stuck out at me. Heston Kjerstad is also a rookie; that’s a high pressure moment…is it fair to put a rookie in there? As I said above, all of Cleveland’s risks paid off. That was one the Orioles took, and it did not.

Cleveland would put across two more in the eighth, although the O’s had one more in them as well. Anthony Santander smacked a solo homer in the last of the eighth. But Cleveland closed the Orioles up, and the Birds have now lost five straight for the first time since 2022.

Again, the seventh inning is what sticks out at me. They mustered one run after having the bases loaded and nobody out. And for a split second, it appeared that Cleveland had gotten out of it without surrendering a run. That ended up not being the case, but I digress.

The two pinch hitters were curious in that seventh inning. And McCann, the backup catcher, was the guy who was allowed to see by the bat. Granted McCann had already homered in the game, so there’s that. But if that was anyone other than a backup catcher running, odds are the Birds either score two runs or they have a run in and the bases still loaded.

And again, this is a tough position in which to put the rookie Kjerstad. Granted he has to learn how to play in high leverage situations if he’s going to be a major league player. But it’s a tough situation in which to put him. In no way am I saying Brandon Hyde hung him out to dry or anything like that. I’m just suggesting maybe there was someone better to use as a pinch hitter, or maybe not pinch hit at all.

The series concludes tomorrow at Camden Yards. Grayson Rodriguez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Carlos Carasco. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM,

Baltimore Orioles outlasted by Cleveland

Cade Povich wasn’t perfect for the Baltimore Orioles. But he battled, And he was also far from the problem. Povich’s line: 5.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

The Orioles were 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position this evening, That’s far from 0-for-13, or something like that. It’s fair to say that you probably need more than five opportunities with RISP to have a legit shot at winning. But you have to take advantage of the opportunities you do have. Even one more base hit would have made a world of difference; that can be the line between winning and losing.

Cleveland got after it fast. And that’s part of the issue the Orioles have always had with AL Central teams. They hit the ground running. Ramirez’s RBI-single in the first inning was only one run. But it put the Orioles on the defensive immediately.

And the story of this game was Cleveland always seeming to have an answer for Povich and the O’s. This despite Povich battling hard. Ryan O’Hearn got that run back in the last of the first with an RBI-single of his own. And you kind of felt that the Birds had righted things.

And they had – for that brief moment. Naylor’s RBI-double in the second put Cleveland ahead again. This time at 2-1. Anthony Santander however would tie the game in the third with a sacrifice fly. For what’s worth, that goes as an unearned run. Adley Rutschman scored from third, but since he was on third due to an error the run is unearned.

Povich was helped out in the fourth with one out when Arias flew out with one out and a runner on third. They should have taken the lead; it was a fairly deep fly ball, and a run should have scored. But Anthony Santander promptly threw the runner from third out at home plate.

However Cleveland would take the lead back for good in the sixth. Ramirez smacked a solo homer, giving them a 3-2 lead. The the Cleveland bullpen shut the Orioles down the rest of the way, and closed out a 3-2 win at Camden Yards.

On a side note, that Anthony Santander put out at home plate would have meant more had the Orioles won. But no matter what, it was huge. I can’t stress enough that the runner should have scored. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a ball hit to that part of the park where a runner on third didn’t score. Santander stole a run back for the Orioles on that play. It was all but irrelevant, but he stole a run back.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Cole Irvin gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Logan Allen. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles need to buy pitching

In a way, you have to credit Baltimore Orioles’ starter Al Suarez. He had a very rough first inning, which in effect ended up being the game. But he did hang in there enough to go five innings, sparing the bullpen – a little bit, at least. Suarez’s line: 5.0 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 3 K.

Houston led 1-0 after the first pitch in the last of the first after Altuve cranked a solo homer. He ambushed the first pitch of the game. And that was a motif for Houston hitters all day; swing early and often. And it worked – all day. All weekend, actually.

Diaz would add an RBI-single later in the inning, Pena and RBI-double, and Dubon an additional RBI-single. All of those runners got on base and got in as a result of getting at it early in the at-bat. After one, the Birds trailed 4-0.

Suarez also elevated many of his pitches. He was throwing strikes – too many of them, if anything. But they were elevated in the strike zone. When you have a team set on hitting everything you throw out there, that’s a deadly combination.

Diaz would tack on a sac fly-RBI in the fifth, and the O’s finally got on the board in the sixth with a solo home run by Jordan Westburg. However Houston would get their margin of victory back in the bottom of the inning on an RBI-double by Pena. Diaz would tack on a sac fly-RBI in the eighth. For what it’s worth, that’s a run that probably didn’t need to be scored, however Houston opted to manufacture a run up five plus in the later innings,

The Orioles have performed valiantly this month, with the schedule being what it is. Their lone off day was this past Monday, and they don’t have another one until next Monday. This series should show them more than ever that they need to acquire pitching at the deadline. If not before.

Houston started this season in a rough manner. But they’ve been getting hot of late, and are working their way into the playoff race. There are lots of teams out there such as that, who are hovering around, and potentially trying to decide if they should buy or sell.

In short, let’s say a team like Houston (or Boston, or even Tampa) decides they’re going to go for it and buy. Does that put them automatically in a stronger position than the Birds? NO. But as we saw last year, all it takes is to get hot at the right time – which the Texas Rangers did. If another team makes the right moves, they could easily ambush the Orioles in October – similar to what Houston did this weekend.

And I have news for Orioles fans…that means they’ll have to part with prospects. You can’t have it both ways. You can’t keep everyone all while trading for quality players. Something has to give, and it all but has to be on the side of trading for pitching. Perhaps multiple arms. Keep in mind that two starters (John Means and Kyle Bradish) have undergone Tommy John’s this month.

You can’t be reactionary either. None of this means you need to make trades this week. But why wait until the deadline? It’s easy enough to say that the Orioles have more to offer than other teams, because they do. But do you really want to let things go straight down to the deadline and let things fall where they might?

The O’s now head home to open up a three-game set with Cleveland. Cade Povich gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Tanner Bibee. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Bats go silent in loss

It would stand to reason that Baltimore Orioles’ bats would cool off eventually. They put up seven on Wednesday, 17 on Thursday, and 11 last night. But this afternoon with Corbin Burnes on the mound in Houston, it was a different story. Burnes’ line: 7.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 5 K.

The O’s did take an early lead of 1-0. Jordan Westburg hit a solo homer in the second inning. However Houston seemed to take a solo homers don’t hurt you approach. They would all but immediately tie the game in the last of that second inning on Dubon’s sac fly-RBI.

One inning later they had the lead. Alvarez’s two-run homer put the Birds in a 3-1 hole. And Houston would put two more on the board, both by way of…you guessed it, solo homers. Both by McCormick, one in the fifth and one in the eighth.

The O’s couldn’t muster much offensively, but again you had to know that was going to happen eventually. They’re too good of a lineup to let that span too long. I wouldn’t think it’s a trend that will continue.

Despite taking the loss, it’s noteworthy that Corbin Burnes pitched seven today. The Oriole bullpen’s been taxed, both from the New York series, and from last night. Brian Baker pitched the eighth, and he was the only reliever to play today. That helps the pen going forward.

The series concludes tomorrow afternoon at Minute Maid Park. Al Suarez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Houston’s Frambler Valdez. Game time is set for just after 2 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: A valiant effort

A day after putting up 17 runs against New York, the Baltimore Orioles put up 11 against Houston. And lost. Grayson Rodriguez was able to last five innings, but was ineffective in his home state. Rodriguez’s line: 5.0 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 2 BB, 8 K.

End of the day, it wasn’t a game for pitchers. Houston put one across on a double-play in the first, and an Altuve RBI-double in the second. Ryan O’Hearn would ground into a force out pushing across a run in the third, and Anthony Santander’s RBI-single would tie the game at two.

The O’s actually did hold a brief lead thanks to Ryan Mountcastle’s sac fly-RBI in the fifth. However in the bottom of the inning Meyers’ three-run homer put Houston back in the lead at 5-3. However a nine-run sixth rallied Houston big time. Houston may be down, but they’re still a potent offense and they can strike fast.

Having nine runs dumped on you and trailing 14-3 in the sixth is usually the end of the game. Not so in this case. The O’s chipped away. Gunnar Henderson’s solo homer in the seventh cut the lead to 14-4. Jorge Mateo smacked a two-run homer in the eighth, followed by another home run by Gunnar Henderson – this of the two-run variety.

Ryan Mountcastle’s two-RBI double and Anthony Santander’s two-run homer later in the inning brought the final to 14-11. It goes as a loss, but certainly a valiant comeback. And I think it shows that this team never gives up. And similar to Houston, they can strike quickly.

The only people in the building who thought the Orioles had a chance at 14-3 were…the Orioles. Anthony Santander confirmed that after the game (quote courtesy of Jake Rill, mlb.com):

There’s always a chance. We go out there and compete. If we would get out, it’s part of the game. But our mentality is always go out there, compete and try to get on base to be able to score some runs.

Luckily for the Birds, New York didn’t faire much better. They dropped their game 8-1 against Atlanta. The Orioles remain a half game behind them in the standings, and one up in the loss column.

The series continues this afternoon at Minute Maid Park. Corbin Burnes gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Houston’s Ronel Blanco. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Bronx Tale’s last laugh goes to the Orange & Black

For the second consecutive game a Baltimore Orioles’ starting pitcher came within an out of qualifying for the win in the Bronx. The only difference is that had he lasted one more out, Cole Irvin would have gotten the win. Although the Orioles did win the game last night, it took until extras. Irvin’s line: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 2 K.

Today’s game was without controversy. From the beginning, it also didn’t have the drama of the other two games in this series. Ryan O’Hearn’s first inning RBI-single set the table, and foreshadowed what was to come.

And for starters, what was to come was a six-run second inning against New York starter Gil. Cedric Mullins’ two-run homer started things off. In the wake of that the Birds would load the bases, and Ryan Mountcastle would subsequently clear them with a double. And the rout was on.

O’Hearn would later score with the bases once again loaded, when Jordan Westburg was hit by a pitch. And that was only in the second inning! Torres would smack a solo homer in the last of the second in an attempt to claw away at the lead by New York, but again…the rout was on.

After an O’Hearn sac fly-RBI in the third, New York would try to close again. Judge smacked two-run homer, cutting the lead to 8-3. However all that seemed to do was remind the Birds that there were still two teams playing in this game.

If the game wasn’t already blown wide open, Anthony Santander did that in the fifth with a three-run homer. Judge pulled New York back to within 11-5 on an RBI-single, but…did it really matter? I guess it did to the O’s as they continued their onslaught.

Gunnar Henderson would ground out into a run in the sixth, and Austin Hays’ two-run homer in the seventh ran it to 14-5. Tack on RBI-singles by O’Hearn and Ryan Mountcastle, and the Orioles closed out a 17-5 win in New York.

The Birds took two-of-three from New York, and now sit only .5 games back of first. They’re also one up in the loss column. That’s a huge takeaway.

You can’t help but mention the bluster and controversy that came from this series. One team handled it well. The other didn’t. You know who’s who.

The O’s tomorrow open up a three-game set against Houston at Minute Maid Park. Grayson Rodriguez (native Texan) gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Houston’s Jake Bloss. Game time is set for just after 8 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: It came down to Adley Rutschman’s throw

Cade Povich came within one out of being in line for the win for the Baltimore Orioles. He had a high pitch count due to a couple of early arduous innings, and manager Brandon Hyde opted to pull him before the fifth inning ended. Not that this game didn’t have a ways to go at that point, and with a lot of drama at that. Povich’s line: 4.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 5 BB, 1 K.

The O’s took a 1-0 lead in the first on Ryan O’Hearn’s RBI-double. New York would tie it in that same inning with Torres’ sacrifice fly-RBI. And that sort of back-and-forth foreshadowed the end of the game.

The reason Povich could have been in line to be the winning pitcher was due to the Orioles putting three runs up in the fifth. Ramon Urias smacked a two-run homer, and Ryan O’Hearn added an RBI-double. Ryan Mountcastle added an RBI-double of his own in the seventh…amid some drama.

The runner on second was Gunnar Henderson, who got there by stealing the base. But he was on base as it was due to being plunked in the back. This of course after New York made a big deal out of Aaron Judge being hit last night. To his credit however, Henderson dropped his bat and walked to first base.

Later in the game Colton Cowser was hit, and for a split second it appeared things could escalate when Cowser threw his bat down, but the situation was diffused. It’s worth noting how both teams behaved in these situations…and which one wore it better. It speaks for itself.

Many people think the umpire should have issued warnings. I agree; New York should have been warned. And that’s precisely why I suspect warnings weren’t issued. When’s the last time you saw only one team get warned? The umpire felt he couldn’t warn one team and not the other, and he probably didn’t want to have to eject Brandon Hyde, who indubitably would have gone crazy at being warned. Now if it escalates into tomorrow, that might be another story.

New York tightened things up however in the last of the seventh, with a three-run homer by Stanton. The O’s would load the bases in the ninth, and end up getting nothing. Anthony Santander made a play for extra bases, but Verdugo made a lunging catch in center on the run. Stanton’s RBI-single in the last of the ninth would tie the score, sending the game to extra innings.

And that’s when the running game and being aggressive took over. The O’s took advantage of the ghost runner rule, with Cedric Mullins lining a run-scoring single to center. He would take second on the throw home, putting him in scoring position.

Mullins then proceeded to try to steal third, and with an errant throw that sailed into left field, he ended up scoring. Speed kills, and it certainly helped the Orioles in that first instance. And they led 7-5.

However New York made one final push. With runners at the corners and nobody out, Rice’s sacrifice fly would cut the lead to 7-6. The O’s needed two outs before New York could score a run. This with a runner on first. The runner, Oswaldo Cabrera, decided to be daring himself. He tried to steal his way into scoring position by swiping second base…

…however Adley Rutschman may have made the play of the year from behind the dish. He coldly threw Cabrera out at second base, giving the Orioles the second out and erasing all base runners. And it was over after they recorded the final out.

Make no mistske, it’s for moments such as that that the Orioles drafted Adley Rutschman. It’s impossible for a ball to be more on the money than that one was. New York pressed the issue big time tonight across the board; and Rutschman and the Orioles matched them point-for-point. Hit people in the back all you want. But when it really counts and the game’s on the line, don’t complain about giving away runs with free bases such as on a hit batsman.

When asked after the game, Brandon Hyde neglected to say if he thought Gunnar Henderson (or Colton Cowser) was hit intentionally. But end of the day in a tight division race, this all-important game went to the Orioles. If the Birds somehow win the division by the skin of their teeth, think back to this game, and to that throw by Adley Rutschman.

The series concludes tomorrow at Yankee Stadium. Cole Irvin gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Luis Gil. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.