Baltimore Orioles: Legends never die

Grayson Rodriguez and the Baltimore Orioles had to put in overtime last night. LOTS of overtime. Last night’s series opener against the New York Yankees at Camden Yards was delayed two-and-a-half hours by a cataclysmic rain storm that hovered over the Inner Harbor. But once it got started, Rodriguez turned in perhaps the best start of his career. Rodriguez’s line: 6.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K.

Rodriguez was pitching-to-contact. And New York was swinging early and often. Which was fine with the fans, all of whom waited out the delay. That in and of itself speaks to the grandiosity of this series.

This of course with the backdrop of Mo Gaba Day at Camden Yards, with none other than Adam Jones on hand to catch the first pitch – thrown out by Mo’s Mom. Jones of course stayed for the game as well, becoming the first guest “Mr. Splash.” However Jones’ customized City Connect Jersey said something different. He wore his familiar number 10, but the name plate said “Captain Splash.” Fitting for a guy who was very much the Orioles’ Captain during his tenure.

Unfortunately for the Orioles and the fans, New York starter Cole was equally as outstanding as Grayson Rodriguez. The two went heel-to-heel on the Camden Yards bump. Both sides had a chance or two. But nobody could push so much as a run across.

Until it really mattered, that is. With one out in the last of the ninth with midnight in the rear view mirror, Anthony Santander strode to the plate in a still scoreless tie. And he set off a blast equal to what the “Mighty Casey” (of CASEY AT THE BAT) was envisioning when he famously struck out…

…425 feet later, the ball landed. And the Orioles had a walk off 1-0 win over their division rivals. When you add it all up, the rain delay, Mo Gaba, Adam Jones, the season the Orioles are having, the Yankees, and the walk off homer, it was a scene almost out of THE NATURAL.

This game personifies the essence of what sports can embody. It has to be in the correct context to be that special, and with the Orioles it is. There are few teams who are as embedded in their communities in the manner that the Orioles are. There are few teams who are representative of their regions, states, or cities in the manner of the Orioles. That’s why “Orioles Magic” is a thing. And both on the field and in the stands, we saw it last night. With a tip of the cap to the past in the form of “Captain Splash.”

The series continues tonight at Camden Yards. Tyler Wells gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Clarke Schmidt. Game time is set for 7:15 PM.

Baltimore Orioles host the biggest series in years at Camden Yards

The Baltimore Orioles open up the biggest series in the history of western civilization this evening at Camden Yards. Maybe there’s some exaggeration there. But…is there?

In truth, the standings say that last weekend’s series in Tampa was bigger. But part of the Orioles’ struggles over a long period of time had to do with this weekend’s opponent, the New York Yankees. This even as recently as ten years ago when the Birds had great teams.

Whether it was New York fans “taking over” Camden Yards and treating it as their own, or whether it was them snatching victory from the jaws of defeat against the Orioles at the 11th hour. Go back as far as you want; the ALCS where a young fan reached over the wall and took an out away from outfielder Tony Tarasco, or the claims that J.J. Hardy hit the foul pole in 2012. The Orioles’ issues begin and end with New York.

So by that virtue, this series has the feel of the biggest one in a long time at Camden Yards. The league itself feels good enough about it that they slid the series finale into the Sunday Night time slot. Yes, O’s and Yanks from Camden Yards on national television. You read that right.

You want to be able to point back to this series as a moment in time where the Birds continued their already great season, and took it up a notch. However New York, despite being in last place, isn’t making it easy on the Orioles. They still feel they’re in the thick of the race, despite the aforementioned standings. And the fact is that they’re correct. Especially given that they get slugger Aaron Judge back tonight from injury.

The series begins tonight at Camden Yards. Grayson Rodriguez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Gerrit Cole. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Birds fall late in Philly

The Baltimore Orioles got an interesting start out of Kyle Bradish this evening at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. He had two bad innings, in which he couldn’t locate his breaking pitches. Once he got a hold of it, he got into a groove. Bradish’s line: 6.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 3 K.

The O’s did get off to a good start, which is always important. Adley Rutschman came up to bat in the third inning with two runners on. And Bradish smacked a three-run homer, giving the O’s a 3-0 lead.

However it was the third and fourth in which Bradish couldn’t locate his pitches. He seemed to not have his normal control, which happens to pitchers sometimes. Cave’s RBI-double got Philadelphia on the board and cut the Orioles’ lead to 3-1. Castellanos’ RBI-single later in the inning cut the lead to 3-2.

One inning later Philadelphia took a 4-3 lead on a two-RBI double by Realmuto. But in the wake of that, Bradish buckled down. He got his control back, and started to mow hitters down.

And the Orioles ended up tying the game. Austin Hays’ seventh inning RBI-single knotted things up at four. However manager Brandon Hyde may have left Kyle Bradish in for one hitter too many. Maybe one pitch too many – this is the last of the seventh. Sosa’s solo homer gave Philadelphia the lead back, and a lead that they would pad an inning later after Bradish had left the game. This on a Harper RBI-single, giving Philadelphia a 6-4 lead – and a 6-4 win.

There are a lot of things you can mention regarding this ballgame. First off, did Brandon Hyde leave Kyle Bradish in for too long? Maybe he did, and maybe not. It’s tough to say. One thing we can say is that Bradish struggle in the third and fourth innings, but he was able to right himself. To stick around through the seventh was a gritty performance by Bradish.

End of the day, you don’t want to drop any games or any series’. However the O’s leave Philadelphia a game-and-a-half in first place in front of Tampa. And yes, they dropped this series, but in effect it’s semi-meaningless in that it’s against a National League opponent. That makes a difference.

Baltimore Orioles: Early offensive miscues haunt Birds late

Kyle Gibson pitched to a quality start for the Baltimore Orioles tonight. Left with the lead and everything – problem was that not only did he get the win, but neither did the O’s. Through no fault of his, of course. Gibson’s line: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 5 K.

The O’s took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on Austin Hays’ RBI-double. More on that down the line. However one inning later it was Adam Frazier’s RBI-double that doubled the lead and put the O’s ahead by a 2-0 margin.

Gibson struggled one inning, and it was in the last of the third. Rojas’ RBI-single cut the lead in half. Other than that, Harper smacked a solo homer in the sixth off of a Gibson changeup, and the game was tied.

However the O’s got the lead back in the eighth. Ryan O’Hearn smacked a solo homer, giving the Birds a 3-2 lead. That prompted the Orioles to use Yennier Cano in the last of the ninth in the closer’s role. The assumption was that Felix Bautista was unavailable tonight. And that cost the Orioles.

Stott’s RBI-double scored Harper from first, tying the game. Later in the inning Bohm came to the plate, and his RBI-single gave Philadelphia a 4-3 walk-off win over the Orioles. Those last two runs scored with two out, for the record. Which is always tough to stomach.

Going back to the second inning, the O’s loaded the bases following Hays’ RBI-double. This with nobody out. And they allowed Philadelphia starter Walker to pitch out of it, settling for the one run. That was a golden opportunity for a big inning, and the Orioles let Philadelphia off the hook.

As manager Brandon Hyde said after the game, you can’t continue playing one-run games and expect to win all of them. That’s why you can’t allow a team to pitch out of a bases loaded with nobody out situation early in the ballgame. What happens in the second inning counts just as much as what happens in the ninth.

On top of that, Gunnar Henderson left the game early with lower back soreness. Hyde said they expect him to be fine, but it’s something to watch. Newly-acquired reliever Shintaro Fuginami also pitched two perfect innings, striking out three. Which was good to see.

The series concludes tomorrow evening at Citizens Bank Park. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Philadelphia’s Ranger Suarez. Game time is set for just after 6 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Brotherly love magically delivered by Colton Cowser

The Baltimore Orioles needed a deep start from Dean Kremer tonight. And they got it. The likes of Yennier Cano and Felix Bautista weren’t available out of the bullpen tonight, so the Birds were hoping for a strong outing deep into the game to hold them through and give the bullpen some relief. Kremer’s line: 7.0 IP, 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 K.

The O’s took an early lead on Jordan Westburg’s solo homer in the second. For the record, it was the first major league home run of Westburg’s career. And it came on a night when runs were going to be at a premium.

Philadelphia would tie the game at one on Schwarber’s sac fly-RBI in the fifth. Unfortunately however, they also lost centerfielder Asron Hicks for the game. Hicks valiantly dove and caught a ball, injuring himself in the process. He was replaced by Colton Cowser.

Ryan Mountcastle would smack his first homer since May in the sixth, giving the Orioles the lead back. However two innings later with Kremer already out of the game, Philadelphia would tie it back up on an RBI-single by Castellanos. For what it’s worth, that, while helping Philadelphia, might also have been the biggest defensive play of the game for the Orioles….

…Harper tried to score all the way from first. Colton Cowser came up throwing, and gunned Harper out at home plate. If he holds up at third instead, Harper keeps the go-ahead run for the home team in scoring position with two outs. Instead he tested the rookie, and that was a bad idea. It ended the inning and we played on. Harper seemed to think he was safe and seemed to want Philadelphia to challenge the call. But needless to say, he was out by a country mile.

Cowser came up to bat in the ninth inning with the go-ahead run on second. And he sent a bloop liner towards the line in left, and it barely landed fair off the left fielder’s mitt. That gave the O’s a 3-2 lead, which despite some tight moments in the last of the ninth, was good enough to win the game.

To review, Colton Cowser wasn’t supposed to play tonight. And his throw home to nail Harper combined with his RBI-double saved the game for the O’s. But that’s part of the story of the 2023 Baltimore Orioles. Every game has a different star. I think we’ve sung this song before. That’s the magic of Orioles baseball.

The series continues tomorrow night at Citizens Bank Park. Kyle Gibson gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Philadelphia’s Taijuan Walker. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Class of the AL East

The Baltimore Orioles sent Tyler Wells to the mound in the series finale at Tropicana Field. Interesting start to say the least; Wells was wild, but gave up only one hit (which was a two-run homer). At one point he seemed to argue with manager Brandon Hyde in the dugout, potentially about whether he was staying in the game or not. Wells’ line: 4.1 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 5 K.

Adley Rutschman got the Orioles on the board right away with an RBI-double in the first inning. One inning later Gunnar Henderson extended that lead to 3-0 with a two-run homer. Overall, Henderson had a great day and a great series overall. He was on base numerous times, and made several dazzling plays in the field.

Tampa battled back, with Lowe grounding into a force out which scored a run in the fourth. One inning later Diaz’s two-run homer tied the game at three. That of course was the aforementioned sole hit surrendered by Tyler Wells. Luckily for the Birds, Mike Bauman was outstanding in middle relief today.

But with the low roar of Orioles fans starting to reverberate throughout the Trop, the Birds wanted to make sure that memories of this series would be cloaked in orange and black. They wanted to ensure that there would be no doubt coming out of this series who the best team in the best division in baseball was. Brandon Hyde kept Ryan O’Hearn in the lineup for his sixth inning at-bat, a rare appearance against a southpaw…

…and it paid off. O’Hearn ambushed a pitch and sent it deep towards left. It smacked off the foul pole for a solo homer, putting the Orioles back in the lead. That also put Mike Bauman in line for the win, which was well-deserved this afternoon.

The O’s would also get an RBI-single from Anthony Santander in the seventh, extending their lead to 5-3. The likes of Bauman and later Yennier Cano closed things out, and the Birds got the win. They took three-of-four in Tampa this weekend, and are alone in first place in the AL East.

Nothing’s over yet. For all we know things could go south and the Orioles could miss the playoffs. So this settles nothing. But the Orioles announced to the world this weekend that they were the current class of the best division in baseball. And make mistake, it’s no fluke. You don’t get to this point by simply being lucky. With the stands clad in orange & black, the Orioles announced to the world that they’re here to stay.

It’s also worth noting that the O’s have one more series against Tampa, in September at Camden Yards. In order to win the season series against the Birds, Tampa would have to sweep that series. Tampa’s a great team as well so you don’t put it past them totally, but…you get the point. Which would mean that the Orioles would hold all tie-breakers against Tampa.

The Orioles now head to Philadelphia for the first of three at Citizen’s Bank Park. Dean Kremer gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles delivered to Mountain Time by Ryan O’Hearn

The Baltimore Orioles got dove plus innings of quality ball this afternoon from Grayson Rodriguez. He wasn’t perfect, but he did the job of a starter, which as I’ve classically said for years is to put the team in a position to win the ballgame. Rodriguez’s line: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K.

The Birds supported Rodriguez with a big inning in the fourth, prompting a big roar from the numerous Orioles fans in attendance at the Trop this afternoon. With the bases loaded and two outs, James McCann delivered a two-RBI double to give the Birds a 2-0 lead. This on the first pitch he saw, also; he ambushed Tampa starter McCanahan.

Jorge Mateo immediately followed with a two-RBI double of his own, and the O’s doubled their lead to 4-0. Austin Hays followed with a mere RBI-double (driving in one run), and the O’s led 5-0 after four. With the Trop sounding like Camden Yards, the O’s looked right at home.

But Tampa slyly chips away. No lead is safe against this team. The same is true of the Orioles, but it’s frustrating to play against a team like that. Franco’s two-RBI single in the sixth got them to within 5-2. Paredes’ RBI-single in the seventh cut the lead to 5-3.

The O’s went to newly-acquired reliever Shintaro Fujinami in the eighth, and Tampa was ready for him. He put two runners on base with nobody out, and then allowed both runners into scoring position. Franco’s groundout would bring Tampa to within 5-4. Arozarena would plate the runner at third with what was scored an RBI-single, but just as easily could have been an error. The ball took a hop in front of Jorge Mateo, grazed off his glove, and went into left field.

And that typifies the idea that sometimes things happen when guys get on base. The ball might take a funny hop, you might get a wild pitch, or maybe a passed ball. And Tampa’s been the beneficiary of weird and quirky moments like that over time. And it almost cost the Orioles today.

But it didn’t. Ryan O’Hearn came up with a runner in scoring position in the top of the ninth, and came through big in the clutch. His line drive to right dropped in, and it gave the O’s the lead back at 6-5. Felix Bautista sent Tampa down 1-2-3 in the last of the ninth, earning a win for the Birds.

Obviously it would have been better had they not surrendered the lead at all. But as I said, that’s how Tampa does business; they chip away. They let you feel secure in the idea that “it’s only one or two runs – no worries.” Then you turn around and suddenly it’s tied, and while it’s still anyone’s game, they have the momentum. But Ryan O’Hearn came up clutch and gave the Orioles the lead back, getting them through to “Mountain Time.” And that speaks for itself.

The Orioles are now again in sole possession of first place in the AL East. They’re guaranteed of at worst a series split with Tampa this weekend. Meaning that again at worst, they’ll leave Florida in a statistical tie for first.

The series concludes tomorrow at Tropicana Field. Tyler Wells gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Taj Bradley. Game time is set for just after 1:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles’ Kyle Bradish a hard-luck loser

Quite honestly, Kyle Bradish pitched better than his stat line indicates this evening for the Baltimore Orioles. And his stat line was pretty darned good. But end of the day, you can pitch to a quality start all day long, and if your team can’t score any runs behind you it has no shot at a win. And this evening at Tropicana Field, that’s exactly what happened. Bradish’s line: 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

Unfortunately for the Orioles, Tampa starter Eflin was pretty darned good also. He kept Oriole bats at bay on this night. The Birds only mustered two hits.

Ramirez smacked an RBI-double in the second, and Paredes a solo homer in the last of the sixth. Those were the only two runs that Bradish surrendered. New Oriole reliever Shintaro Funinami also surrendered a solo homer in the seventh to Siri – on the first pitch he threw in the game and as an Oriole.

The Orioles remain in a statistical tie atop the AL East standings with Tampa. Which makes tomorrow and Sunday’s games huge for both teams. Neither the division nor playoff seedlings will be determined in a series in July. Heck, the O’s could still miss the playoffs for all we know. But this series will ultimately go a long way to deciding the future.

The series continues tomorrow afternoon at Tropicana Field. Grayson Rodriguez gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Shane McClanahan. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: In command of the AL East

Kyle Gibson got the start in what might end up being one of the biggest wins of the season for the Baltimore Orioles. Gibson was outstanding, but he was non-decisioned. But he played a role, as the O’s won a game in Tampa. Gibson’s line: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 8 K.

The O’s spotted Tampa a 1-0 lead on an RBI-single by Mejia. However Gunnar Henderson foreshadowed the magic we’d see in this game in the fourth inning by in essence extending a single into…a triple? Yes, you read that right. He first extended it into a double, and while the Tampa infield lallygagged around with the ball, Henderson kept on going. And he ended up at third base.

That’s the sort of thing Tampa’s done over the years to the Orioles and other teams. They’ve taken extra bases when they were given the opportunity. But tonight it was done to them – by the Orioles. Henderson would score on Adley Rutschman’s RBI-single, tying the game at one.

Ryan O’Hearn would add a sac fly-RBI later in the inning giving the Orioles the lead. Aaron Hicks’ RBI-single would extend the lead to 3-1. However Gibson’s final two surrendered runs came in the seventh after he had departed the game, and they came off of Diaz’s two-RBI double. And we went on in a 3-3 tie.

Tampa would threaten a few other times. Ramon Urias would get the O’s out of a jam in the eighth with he dove to his left to snag a ground ball with two outs, and threw the runner out at first to end the threat and the inning. That might have been the defensive play of the season. It certainly was such for the game. And those are the plays good teams find a way to make when they win big games.

The game went to extra’s tied at three, and the Orioles bunted ghost runner Aaron Hicks to third with one out. He would later score on a sacrifice fly by Colton Cowser, giving the Birds a 4-3 lead in the tenth. Manager Brandon Hyde sent closer Felix Bautista back out after he had pitched the ninth, and after a HBP and a strikeout, he induced a game ending ground ball double-play. And the O’s took the opener of this huge series, 4-3.

This leaves the Orioles in sole possession of first place in the AL East. Which is a huge thing in and of itself. But it also marks the 71st consecutive series in which the Orioles haven’t been swept. You can’t make this stuff up, folks. These guys are for real.

The series continues tomorrow night at Tropicana Field. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Zach Eflin. Game time is set for 6:40 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Tyler Wells struggles in Birds’ loss

Tyler Wells had a tough time in his first start for the Baltimore Orioles in the second half. He only lasted two innings, the second of which found him giving up five runs. In fairness, it had been nine days since Wells pitched. That can at times make a difference. And the fact is that some days you just don’t “have it.” Wells’ line: 2.0 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 2 K.

Heyward smacked a three-run homer in the second inning to start things off for Los Angeles. Freeman and Smith would add RBI-singles later in the inning, putting the O’s in a 5-0 hole early. Aaron Hicks’ RBI-double in the last of the inning got the Orioles on the board, cutting the lead to 5-1.

The Oriole bullpen however did stabilize things a bit after that. Until the seventh inning, that is. Los Angeles put four on the board in the seventh, including one that came on a double-steal and an Adley Rutschman throwing error. However the O’s would also pad their stats a bit in the last of the eighth. Ryan O’Hearn smacked an RBI-single, and Aaron Hicks a two-RBI single.

In the end, the Birds fell 10-3. It begins and ends with starting pitching, and Tyler Wells owned his outing after the game:

I think each and every time I take that ball, regardless of how long it’s been, it’s equally important. Definitely felt like I kind of failed the team a little bit tonight. Didn’t really set a good pace, and definitely that long inning in the second got to me. But we’re just going to drop this one and move on to the next.

Quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports

Luckily it’s not something that we have to see or hear very often. But these guys are always accountable, which is good to see. Sometimes you’ll have games like this. As Tyler Wells said, you have to move past it.

The O’s close the series with Los Angeles (and the home stand) this afternoon at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Los Angeles’ Julio Urias. Game time is set for just after 1 PM.