Baltimore Orioles fall in Boston

Dean Kremer got the start for the Baltimore Orioles in their one-game “series” against Boston at Fenway Park this evening. This was a makeup for a previously postponed game earlier in the year. Kremer’s line: 5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K.

Boston took an early 1-0 lead in the last of the first on an RBI-single by Verdugo. They would put two more across in the last of the third as well. Pham’s RBI-double and Bogaerts’ sac fly-RBI ran the score to 3-0, Boston.

However the Orioles fought back. Terrin Vavra stayed hot, smacking a two-RBI triple in the sixth. Vavra would later score on an infield RBI-single by Austin Hays.

In short, Hays legged out an infield single. Originally he was called out, but Brandon Hyde challenged the call. Replays upheld the challenge, and the O’s had managed to tie the ballgame.

But it wasn’t meant to be, tonight. Hosmer smacked an RBI-double in the last of the sixth, giving Boston a 4-3 lead. Which turned into a 4-3 victory.

So technically the O’s are once again a half game out of the post season. But they now head to Tampa for a three-game weekend set. And Tampa’s the team they once again trail. Tampa this weekend and Toronto early next week might be the biggest series’ the O’s have played in years.

The series at Tropicana Field opens tomorrow night. Austin Voth gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Cory Kluber. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles’ game against Toronto postponed

The Baltimore Orioles were supposed to complete the current home stand and series against Toronto this evening. But that’s not happening now, as the game was officially postponed. It will be made up as part of a September 5th doubleheader.

September 5th happens to be Labor Day, for the record. The O’s were previously scheduled to take on Toronto in a 1:30 PM matinee at Camden Yards. But now it’ll be a single-admission doubleheader, with game one starting at 1 PM. So you read that right, folks. Two games for the price of one on Labor Day!

The O’s now head to Boston for a one-game makeup tomorrow night at Fenway Park tomorrow night. Austin Voth was the previously scheduled starter, but it’s unclear if it’ll be him of tonight’s scheduled starter (Dean Kremer) on the mound tomorrow. Whomever pitches, he’ll be opposed by Boston’s Josh Winchkowski. Game time is set for just after 7 PM at Fenway Park.

Baltimore Orioles sit half game out after Rougned Odor helps defeat Toronto

The 2022 Baltimore Orioles are typifying the concept of something magic happening everytime you go. This team finds ways to win, and they have more heart than any Orioles team we’ve seen in some time. Kyle Bradish took to the mound last night against Toronto at Camden Yards, setting the tone for the O’s. Bradish’s line: 5.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K.

One of the more important plays in the game was subtle, and it came in the first inning. With runners at first and second (nobody out) Anthony Santander sent a soft line drive to center. Toronto’s center fielder (Merrifield) appeared to catch the ball, okay it back in, and catch both runners (who thought the ball would fall in) off base for an inning-ending triple play. Or was it?

Something looked “off” on the play from the beginning. Sure enough Brandon Hyde challenged the call, and sure enough the umpires ruled that Merrifield had trapped the ball. Meaning it was in play, and everyone was safe – thus loading the bases with nobody out. That’s a HUGE difference in terms of the result of the play. Ryan Mountcastle would later ground into a double-play and Terrin Vavra would smack an RBI-single, giving the O’s a 2-0 lead.

Toronto would get on the board in the second with a solo homer by Bichette. Vavra’s sac fly-RBI in third extended the lead to 3-1. However in the sixth Toronto struck back. Kirk’s RBI-single brought them to within 3-2. But Bichette would strike again later in the inning, giving Toronto a 5-3 lead with a two-run homer.

The teams went back to their respective clubhouses in the middle of the sixth, sitting through a 78-minute rain delay. When play resumed Ryan Mountcastle got the O’s back to within one with an RBI-double in the last of the seventh. One inning later Rougned Odor came to the plate with a runner on base…

…Rougned Odor, mind you, who the Orioles were widely criticized for signing. Granted he’s only hitting .196 for the season, but is a vocal leader in the clubhouse. And yes that’s the same Rougned Odor who would smack a two-run homer last night in the last of the eighth, sending the Birds to a 6-5 victory over Toronto.

Going back to the triple play that wasn’t in the first inning, the O’s put two runs across in the wake of that. In a one-run ballgame, that’s a huge moment. It played a big role in the win, and a big role in the Orioles now having won the series with Toronto.

And it played a big role in the Orioles now sitting a half game out of a playoff spot. Tampa, who currently occupies that spot, plays in Milwaukee this afternoon prior to the O’s playing tonight. And the Orioles go to Tampa this weekend for three games. Moments of consequence. For the Orioles. In August.

The series with Toronto concludes this evening at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Jose Berrios. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Long balls help the Birds in CHASING OCTOBER

Coming into tonight’s game against Toronto, Ryan Mountcastle hadn’t homered for the Baltimore Orioles since July 3rd. One of the stranger storylines of the past month or so. Nevertheless, Jordan Lyles got the start in the series opener against Toronto, a game that ironically was Toronto’s first visit of the year to Camden Yards. Lyles’ line: 5.2 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 1 K.

This series is huge in the grand scheme of the playoff chase. Toronto came in as the top Wild Card team. And the Orioles of course are competing for a playoff birth. Can we officially say that yet? I feel like we can. And we should.

The O’s took an early 3-0 lead when Ramon Urias smacked a three-run homer in the last of the first. Biggio would get Toronto on the board in the third with a solo shot, but the O’s would get their three-run margin back in the bottom of the inning on Anthony Santander’s solo homer.

Ryan Mountcastle tacked another run on in the fourth, again with a solo home run. It was Mountcastle’s first home run since July 3rd. It would really help the playoff push if he would heat up right about now. He certainly made a difference tonight.

The teams would swap solo homers in the sixth, with Austin Hays hitting one out for the O’s. Tonight was Hays’ return to the lineup after being hurt for a few games. And similarly, now would be the time to heat up if you’re Austin Hays.

Toronto would put two runs across in the eighth, and bring the tying run to the plate. The Oriole bullpen bent…but it didn’t break. Felix Bautista came on to get the final two outs of the inning, and did so by inducing an inning-ending double-play.

Mountcastle would strike again in the last of the eighth, with an RBI-single. That ran the score to 7-4 (in the Orioles’ favor), and acted as an insurance run given that Toronto put two on in the ninth. But the Orioles’ pen was strong once again, with Bautista grounding into a game-ending double-play.

What the Orioles are doing is nothing short of amazing. Brandon Hyde deserves more than just token consideration for Manager of the Year. But more importantly, the Orioles are in this thing, and they have a real shot. Whether they make it or not remains to be seen.

But one way or the other, the Orioles are no fluke. They haven’t just lucked into winning games. They’re a “good team.” And the math says that they’re CHASING OCTOBER.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Alek Manoah. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Controversy mars Birds’ loss

Spencer Watkins’ start for the Baltimore Orioles this afternoon in the series final at Camden Yards didn’t go quite according to plan. The second time through the order seemed to be his bugaboo, as Pittsburgh hitters figured him out. Watkins’ line: 5.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

The Orioles took a 1-0 lead on Jorge Mateo’s solo homer in the third. However Allen’s RBI-single in the fifth tied the game at one. Mitchell singled a second run home later in the inning, and Pittsburg held a 2-1 lead. After an RBI-groundout, that was extended to 3-1.

Following a fourth run being tacked on, the Birds trailed 4-1 in the seventh. To be clear, it’s tough to argue that you got screwed by the umpires when you only put across one run. But this game will go down as one that did feature controversy, and almost predictably it went against the O’s.

Newman hit an infield single which smacked off of Mateo’s glove and trickled away. Allen was at third and he tried to score. And he was thrown out at home plate – the ball beat the runner to the plate by a country mile.

Pittsburgh challenged the call, citing the rule stating you can’t block home plate. The umpires reviewed the play, and ruled that catcher Robinson Chirinos had in fact violated the rule. The runner was ruled safe at home, and Pittsburgh led 5-1. They would tack on three more, including two on a two/l-run homer by Hayes, to close out an 8-1 win.

The Orioles took two-of-three in this series, so that’s not a bad weekend with Pittsburgh at all. However that was a tough call on the reversal. Crew Chief Rob Kulpa told Brandon Hyde not to come out of the dugout and argue the reversal. He did, and was promptly ejected. And Hyde was LIVID.

Major League Baseball released a statement before the game even ended regarding the call:

The catcher’s initial setup completely in foul territory was illegal and he maintained that position without possession of the ball.

I suppose my question is what exactly is Robinson Chirinos supposed to do there? It was a bang-bang play for sure, however maybe the league needs to review this rule and amend it. Mind you, the ball beat the runner by a long shot. In seeing the play, one could hardly argue that Chirinos impeded the ability of the runner to touch home plate.

The Orioles open a three-game set tomorrow night against Toronto. Jordan Lyles gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Yusei Kikuchi. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles blow out the candles for Camden Yards

The Baltimore Orioles yesterday commemorated 30 years of playing at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. This in front of a raucous crowd of 41K plus. Austin Voth took to the mound, and provided yet another good outing. Voth’s line: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

Oriole Park at Camden Yards, THE BALLPARK THAT FOREVER CHANGED BASEBALL, opening in April of 1992. President George H.W. Bush was on hand to throw out the first pitch. For one reason or another, the O’s picked this weekend to commemorate the ballpark’s 30th anniversary. (The season obviously started late.) Needless to say, former players AND the fans showed up. So did the current Orioles.

The Orioles took the lead early when Terrin Vavra smacked an RBI-single in the last of the first inning. Jorge Mateo added one of his own an inning later, and the newly-acquired Brett Phillips tacked on an RBI-double. The O’s led 3-0 after two.

Pittsburgh would net two runs of their own in the top of the fourth on a two-run homer by Cruz, which quieted the crowd for a short period. But Ryan McKenna’s two-RBI double in the fifth got the party started again. Both teams would tack on an additional run, the O’s on a sac fly-RBI by Cedric Mullins in the last of the seventh.

On such a momentous occasion, the Orioles took care of business. They’ve won the series with Pittsburgh going into the finale this afternoon. And ALL appears right with the world.

The series concludes this afternoon at Camden Yards. Spencer Watkins gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Pittsburgh’s Bryce Wilson. Game time is set for just after 1:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Camden Yards’ commemorative weekend starts with a win

The Baltimore Orioles had to wait awhile before last night’s game against Pittsburgh was able to begin at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Storms rolled into the Baltimore area, causing the Birds and starter Dean Kremer to sit through an hour and 49 minute rain delay. But once the game started, we were reminded of the first game ever at Camden Yards, this on the ballpark’s 30th anniversary weekend. Kremer’s line: 6.1 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K.

Opening Day of 1992, 30 years ago this year, of course saw the opening of Oriole Park at Camden Yards – which is being commemorated this weekend. It seemed that most people knew and understood that it was a special place right away. You almost felt like the “Ballpark That Forever Changed Baseball“ had been standing for generations and already had a storied history.

Incidentally, I would submit that when they trademarked that phrase ten years ago, they should have made it “The Ballpark That Forever Changed Baseball BACK.” Because baseball had gotten used to the cookie cutter stadiums that didn’t have as much character as say the Fenway’s and Wrigley’s of the world.

Then Camden Yards comes along, with it’s old fashioned feel to it. And it rejuvenated the game, along with starting a trend of retrofitted ballparks. Cleveland got one, then Texas, Denver, and others. Oriole Park at Camden Yards brought baseball back to it’s roots in a sense, and yes it forever changed baseball.

The first game at the ballpark was started by journeyman veteran Rick Sutcliffe. He pitched a complete game shutout, and the O’s won 2-0. People walked away thinking that the new park would be a pitcher’s park. Little did we know that was an outlier!

Last night’s game was kind of a reminder of that in a sense – once it started, of course. Kremer, while not pitching a complete game, did a pretty decent Sutcliffe impression. Ramon Urias’ RBI-single in the last of the sixth gave the O’s a 1-0 lead.

And when your pitching across-the-board is as solid as that of the Orioles has been, you’re in good shape at that point. And in fact, the Orioles were. Felix Bautista got the save, and the O’s cruised to a 1-0 win over Pittsburgh.

The series continues late this afternoon at Camden Yards. Austin Voth gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Pittsburgh’s Jonathan Brubaker. Game time is set for just after 5 PM.

Baltimore Orioles sweep themselves closer to the playoffs

2022 is already a success for the Baltimore Orioles. It was a success well before this afternoon’s game. Last year they won 52 games total. In 2022 and this afternoon, Kyle Bradish went to the mound to try to get the Birds their 54th win, and more importantly to keep pace in the playoff race. Bradish’s line: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 5 K.

Bradish had a bit of a tough afternoon today, but pushed through five innings. He gave up an RBI-single to Garcia in the first, however one inning later Ryan McKenna tied things up at one with a solo homer. Both teams left a large number of runners on base, meaning Bradish did allow some base runners. As did the Oriole pen.

But it was once again the later innings that proved fateful for the Birds. They seem to do their best work around or after the seventh inning stretch. Robinson Chirinos smacked a solo homer in the top of the seventh, giving the O’s the lead at 2-1. But Texas came right back on Heinz’s solo homer in the bottom of the seventh. And we played on.

But again, the O’s do their best work in the later innings. They got the lead back in the eighth on an RBI-double by Terrin Vavra. Chirinos would add a sac fly-RBI, and the O’s led 4-2 after eight.

But while the O’s were smelling a sweet deep in the heart of Texas, they weren’t done yet. Santander would tack on an RBI-double in the top of the ninth. He would later score on a wild pitch. Texas would get a run back in the last of the ninth with a solo homer by Semien, but the O’s wrapped up a 6-3 win.

And with that, they swept Texas in Texas. (This after sweeping them in Baltimore last month.) they remain a game behind Tampa for third place in the AL East, and a game-and-a-half out of the final wild card spot. Whether they make it remains to be seen. But they’re “in it” for sure!

Again, 2022 is a success. The rebuild is working! The expectations thus will be higher next year. But the Orioles have unfinished business in 2022 before we flip the calendar.

Baltimore Orioles: Birds stand a game-and-a-half out of the wild card

Despite the trades that were made the past few days, the Baltimore Orioles have been taking care of business in Texas. Jordan Lyles went to the mound last night, and he was dominant. Lyles’ line: 6.1 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 7 K.

The Birds took the lead in the third on Jorge Mateo’s three-run homer, and of course never looked back. They would also score twice more before the inning ended. Adley Rutschman added an RBI-double, and Ryan Mountcastle a sac fly-RBI. And after three innings, the O’s had a 5-0 lead.

Anthony Santander would smack an RBI-double in the fifth, extending the lead to 6-0. Texas would get on the board in the bottom of the inning on an RBI-single by Semien. But this was the Orioles’ day. And the Orioles’ week.

Jorge Mateo would homer again in garbage time, a two-run shot. Texas would tack on a meaningless run in the last of the ninth, and the O’s wrapped up an 8-2 win. This, deep in the heart of Texas.

It’s August. So maybe it’s at least worth looking at the playoff standings. Especially given that they’re relevant. For those who care about such things, the O’s are a game-and-a-half out of the final wild card spot.

And it’s really shocking if you think about it. There was nothing about this team that made people think they could compete. Least of all the way they started the season. But quietly they’ve worked their way into the discussion. Granted, most people feel like they’re playing with a house of cards, that could collapse at any moment. But they’re also playing with house money, and they’re competing hard. And the fact remains that they’re in it. They have a shot!

The series in Texas concludes this afternoon at Globe Life Park. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Martin Perez. Game time is set for just after 2 PM.

Baltimore Orioles trading Jorge Lopez to Minnesota

According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Baltimore Orioles are trading closer Jorge Lopez to Minnesota. This in exchange for LHP Cade Povich, RHP Yennier Cano, RHP Juan Nuñez and LHP Juan Rojas. I’ll admit that it’s a bit ironic given that Lopez hit a bit of a skid while in Minnesota last month. But history makes for strange bedfellows at times.

The guys the Orioles are getting back aren’t by any means top prospects. However as good as Lopez has been, I would remind fans that he’s basically a one-inning pitcher. Will any of the four prospects make it to the big leagues? Tough to say. Right now they have highish ERA’s. But could they help the Orioles at the big league level? Absolutely.

They way you have to look at it (regarding this Lopez trade as well as the Mancini trade yesterday) is that the Orioles aren’t necessarily looking to contend this year. Now if they back into a playoff spot, great. However they’re already ahead of schedule. Next year the expectations might be a totally different story.

So the more prospects, even low-level prospects, you have in your system, the better. Because those prospects could be flipped to another team in exchange for a big league player in future years. This when the window to win is in the here and now, and for a player who could help the Orioles compete. Point being that “the plan” has never been just to rebuild the big league roster as a winner. But also to rebuild the minor league system.

In order to do that, you want all the prospects you can get. Obviously depending on the player being acquired (by the Orioles in the future), certain top prospects might be off the table. But the more prospects in your system overall, the more chances you’ll have at packaging a few together to net a return of a great player. Nevertheless, yesterday it was Mancini; today the news du jour is Jorge Lopez to Minnesota.