Baltimore Orioles: Like a fine Cali wine

The Baltimore Orioles sent Southern California native Dean Kremer to the mound in the series opener in San Francisco last night. Of course, his skipper, Brandon Hyde, is also from the region. It’s always good to come back to your hometown (or home region) and perform well. Especially when you’re a team in the pennant race. Kremer’s line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K.

That’s a quality start for Kremer, if you’re keeping track at home – and I know you are! It didn’t start well, however. The first pitch he threw was hit out of the ballpark and into San Francisco Bay by Wade. And before they knew it, the Orioles trailed.

However solo homers rarely beat you. Especially when they come on the first pitch of the first inning, and you have the entire game to make up the run. And the Orioles did that right away.

Austin Hays led off the second with a double – a double that almost left the ballpark, incidentally. But he would later score on Ryan O’Hearn’s RBI-single. Later in the inning Jorge Mateo plated a second run with a swinging bunt at home plate. Newly signed Aaron Hicks scored from third, giving the O’s a 2-1 lead.

And make no mistake that part of that run scoring was the placement of the ball – which was mainly luck. However Mateo’s speed also played a major role. He was quick out of the box, and his blazing speed got him to first. San Francisco never had a chance at preventing the run from scoring.

However they did quickly tie the game. Yastrzemski’s RBI-double in the last of the third tied things up at two. But let’s back up for a moment – all things being the same, that could have been a go-ahead run. Davis hit what should have been an RBI-single to right field with a runner on second. However Anthony Santander came up throwing…

…and he gunned the base runner out at home plate. Plays as such are huge in close games. And luckily for the O’s, this one went their way.

Speaking of “gunning,” it was Gunnar Henderson who put the Birds back in the lead. His solo home run in the seventh gave them a 3-2 lead. The bullpen did it’s job, and the O’s took game one of three in the Bay Area.

As I said, manager Brandon Hyde and starter Dean Kremer were playing in their old stomping grounds. It has to be a cool moment to come back to your home region as an athlete or coach. Hyde addressed this point before the game when asked if it meant anything to him:

Yeah it does (mean something to manage here). We drove by Candlestick going to the hotel two nights ago and I have special memories of going to those games. Watching Joe Montana with the Niners and watching Will Clark with the Giants in my younger days with my dad and friends.

Quote courtesy of Steve Melewski, MASNsports

The series continues this evening at Oracle Park. Kyle Bradish gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by San Francisco’s Alex Cobb (former Oriole). Game time is set for just after 10 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Birds hold on late to win

The Baltimore Orioles we’re hoping that Kyle Gibson would go deeper into tonight’s game against Cleveland. But they rode him as far as they could, and he came technically one out short of a quality start. But make no mistake about the fact that it was a quality start – just not a quality start. You read me?! Gibson’s line: 5.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K.

The O’s took the lead right off the bat in the last of the first on Gunnar Henderson’s two-RBI single. One inning later they broke the game open – for the time being. Adley Rutschman walked with the bases loaded, extending the lead to 3-0. The bases of course remained loaded at that point, but they were cleared on a double by Anthony Santander.

At this point the Birds led 6-0, and that was extended to 7-0 on Austin Hays’ sac fly-RBI. Cleveland would get a run back in the fourth on Bell’s RBI-single, but they themselves put a an additional run on the board in the last of the fifth on an RBI-single by Gunnar Henderson. A seven-run lead should be safe, right? Yes and no; Cleveland would make it interesting, narrowing the lead to within 8-5. But the Birds would eventually close out the game with Felix Bautista getting the save, and they cruised to an 8-5 win.

The issue is that the Birds are suddenly having issues hitting in the clutch. They had the bases loaded with nobody out in the seventh, and Gunnar Henderson grounded into a double-play – with one out being made at home plate. And they ended up not scoring.

They need to find a way to not sit on leads, as that’s something which eventually will come back and haunt them. Furthermore, if they put even one more run on the board, they aren’t in a save situation. Meaning they don’t have to use Bautista in the ninth. These are things they need to correct as they go along, or eventually they’ll find themselves blowing games late. This as opposed to winning them late.

Before the game the Orioles out Cedric Mullins on the IL, and signed former NYY Aaron Hicks (who was recently DFA’d). Mullins of course injured his groin in yesterday’s game, and could miss a few weeks. Hicks wasn’t available for tonight’s game, but odds are he’ll be in the lineup tomorrow.

The series with Cleveland concludes tomorrow at Camden Yards. The Orioles are yet to announce a starter, but whomever gets the start will be opposed by Cleveland’s Shane Bieber. Game time is set for just after 3 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Lineup controversy in Birds’ loss?

Tyler Wells turned in another stellar outing for the Baltimore Orioles this afternoon against Cleveland on Memorial Day Monday. And yes, he deserved a better fate than what he received. Wells’ line: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K.

Wells was outstanding today. Plain and simple. His lone mishap was a balk in the fifth inning, allowing a runner to get to third. That runner would later score on Gallagher’s sac fly-RBI. That’s the lone run that Wells surrendered, and the Birds trailed, 1-0.

Cleveland got a lot of favorable bounces in this game. This in the sense that they got on base by dumping fly balls in front of Oriole outfielder’s, and by way of Baltimore chops. Simplistic for sure. But effective. They also seemed to get to just about everything that came off of Oriole bats, making some amazing plays in the field.

Gallagher’s RBI-single in the seventh would extend their lead to 2-0. Kwan would later smack an RBI-double, and Ryan Mountcastle would commit a two-run throwing error trying to gun out a runner at home plate. This all amounted to a 5-0 Cleveland victory.

That error was charged to Ryan Mountcastle, and I’ll be honest I’m not sure why. The throw home to James McCann was slightly high. But McCann bobbled the ball – this on a play that should have been made.

McCann was also at the center of a slight controversy in this game before it even started mainly by virtue of the fact that he was in the lineup at all instead of Adley Rutschman, The same for Ryan McKenna being in right field.

I would say this; Adley Rutschman isn’t Cal Ripken Jr. He can’t play everyday, especially as a catcher. However it is somewhat interesting as to why Brandon Hyde seemed to put the “B Lineup” out there today. It’s fair however to say that again…nobody’s playing every game.

Personally I don’t think that Hyde’s “punting” games with lineups such as what we saw today, and what we’ve seen in the past (often on the final day of a series). He’s just ensuring that guys remain rested and fresh. It’s part of the job as manager.

Regarding Rutschman, you also have to look down the schedule. The O’s have a night game tomorrow, so he’ll have some additional time off. Then a mid-afternoon game on Wednesday to close out the series. Following that game, the O’s head out to San Francisco.

Point being, the pending road trip to the west coast may have had something to do with why McCann and McKenna played that day. You have to take all of that into account. It’s also worth mentioning that James McCann smacked a double which pushed another runner to third in this game. So what little the Orioles did offensively, he was a participant.

One other thing to watch; Cedric Mullins limped off the field after running out a ground ball in the eighth inning. His status is unclear going forward. He appeared to pull up “lame” running out the ball. Certainly something to keep an eye on.

The series continues tomorrow night at Camden Yards. Kyle Gibson gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Cal Quantrill. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles avoid sweep, lifted late by Austin Hays

Kyle Bradish looked outstanding this afternoon for the Baltimore Orioles. The Birds we’re trying to avoid being swept for the first time this season, this potentially at the hands of the Texas Rangers. Bradish gave the Orioles a solid outing, putting them in a position to win the game. Bradish’s line: 6.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K.

The Orioles took an immediate 1-0 lead in the game. Austin Hays’ RBI-single got them on the board in the first inning. Later in the inning Ryan Mountcastle’s sac fly-RBI would extend the lead to 2-0.

The only problem with that is that the Mountcastle fly out came with the bases loaded. And the Orioles were only able to get tone run. With the bags juiced and nobody out. That’s a huge problem.

And the fact is that Texas is a good team, And they showed it in the first two games of this series. And again today. You have to take opportunities as they come against good teams.

And sure enough, Texas’ bats eventually came to life. Semien’s RBI-double in the sixth got them on the board and cut the Birds’ lead in half. Texas also got a runner to third base in the eighth, and he scored on Seager’s RBI-double, tying the game at two.

However the O’s are a pretty good team also. In case you didn’t notice! They put runners at the corners in the top of the eighth with nobody out. This brought Austin Hays to the plate, abs his RBI-single gave the Orioles the lead back at 3-2.

And while everything worked out and the O’s took the win, they could have used more than one run there. Felix Bautista closed things out, but one run games are always tough. Insurance runs are always appreciated.

And with that, the O’s avoided being swept. While this series with Texas didn’t go quite according to plan, it’s always good to salvage at least one. And the fact is that Texas is a good team – as I said above. Just one win is better than being swept.

The O’s open up a three-game set tomorrow (Memorial Day) with the Cleveland Guardians at Camden Yards. Tyler Wells gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Cleveland’s Logan Allen. Game time is set for just after 1 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Have to tip your cap to Austin Voth

Things didn’t exactly as the Baltimore Orioles wanted on the night they debuted their City Connect uniforms. Gunnar Henderson pitched okay for three innings, and fell apart in the fourth. Henderson’s line: 3.1 IP, 6 H, 9 R (8 earned), 3 BB, 6 K.

The Orioles actually held an early lead in this game. Adley Rutschman’s solo homer in the last of the first put the Birds ahead, 1-0. But that was short-lived. Taveras’ two-run homer in the second gave Texas the lead at 2-1. Unfortunately for the O’s, that was a harbinger for the rest of the game.

Texas got an RBI-single by King in the fourth, followed by a two-run homer by Grossman. Following Grossman’s at-bat, they would proceed to load the bases. And with the bases loaded, Seager’s grand slam would finally chase Rodriguez to the showers, and Texas led, 9-1.

Jung would add an RBI-single before the inning ended, and the Birds trailed 10-1. However Austin Voth came into the game in Rodriguez’s place, and was solid. He brought the Orioles back to a place of stability, pitching 3.2 innings and striking out one. He gave up one run.

And that’s the story of the game for the O’s. Voth ate up innings and stemmed the tide. The result of the game itself was basically decided. However he saved one or two bullpen relievers. And that makes a huge difference going into tomorrow – and onward.

The O’s even mustered an additional run. Terrin Vavra’s RBI-single in the eighth cut the lead to 10-2. Now Texas would put two back on the board in the ninth, but who’s counting. And for what it’s worth, those runs came against…Ryan McKenna. For the first time this year, we saw a position player pitch.

The series continues tomorrow at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Andrew Heaney. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Kyle Gibson owns the Bronx as Birds pull away late

Kyle Gibson was outstanding for the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium tonight. The Birds keep stockpiling wins and quality starts. Not to mention series wins. And in this case, a win and a series win in the division. THAT is huge. Wells’ line: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 3 K.

Gibson gave up a hit in the game’s opening at-bat, and didn’t surrender another until the seventh inning. Which was his last inning. He kept a fairly potent lineup at bay for quite some time. And that’s how you put yourself in a position to win games.

Of course however, Gibson could have pitched a perfect game. But it basically doesn’t matter unless you put runs on the board. And you have to rely on your bats to do that.

The O’s got an RBI-single from Anthony Santander in the fifth, giving them a 1-0 lead. Austin Hays added a two-RBI double in the eighth, extending the lead to 3-0. New York would get one back in the last of the ninth on Calhoun’s RBI-double, but on this night and in this series, the O’s were just too much. They took two-of-three in this series, winning this game 3-1.

And when your pitching is as good as the Orioles’ was tonight, that’s all you need! New York manager Aaron Boone was ejected in the third inning for arguing balls and strikes. So he wasn’t around to see the end. But the Birds are carefully writing the end of their story here in 2023. And so far, the ending appears to be favorable.

The O’s now head home to open up a three-game set with Texas at Camden Yards. Grayson Rodriguez gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Jon Gray. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: The cream always rises to the top

It took longer than the Baltimore Orioles would have liked, but the Birds got the job done in the Bronx last night. The Orioles, and starter Tyler Wells, sat through an hour-and-a-half rain delay before starting last night’s game at Yankee Stadium. Wells’ line: 5.0 IP, 5 H 5 R, 2 BB, 8 K.

New York took an early lead on a two-run homer by Torres in the third. But Ryan Mountcastle’s solo shot an inning later acted as a harbinger for what was to come. Even still, before that could happen New York extended their lead to 5-1 on a two-run shot by Kiner-Falefa and Torres’ second homer of the game (a solo shot) the last of the fifth.

New York was feeling pretty comfortable. Heck, the Orioles would have been also had it been them – a four-run lead going into the later innings. Especially at Yankee Stadium. But the “later innings” are just that…later innings. They count as much as the earlier innings. And you have to play them out.

The O’s put two runners on before recording an out in the seventh. Adam Frazier came to the plate and put New York on notice that it wasn’t going to be their day with an immediate three-run homer. And that injected a shot in the arm into the hearts and minds of the Orioles.

The O’s would once again put two runners on (later in the seventh) for Gunnar Henderson’s at-bat. And Henderson pulled a tight grounder down the right field line, scoring two – and giving the Orioles a 6-5 lead. You can’t keep this team down for long.

Before the inning ended, the O’s would add a sac fly-RBI from Ryan Mountcastle, an RBI-single by Anthony Santander, and a run-scoring single by Austin Hays. (That final run was unearned due to an error on the Santander hit.) New York would get one back with an RBI-single in the last of the seventh, but the damage was done. By the Orioles.

You aren’t going to win every game. That goes without saying. Tuesday’s game was one of those for the Birds. But the beauty of baseball is that it’s played everyday. You come right back to the ballpark the next day and play again. And despite being down early, the Birds overcame incredible odds to win this game. That shouldn’t be lost on fans.

The series in New York concludes tonight at Yankee Stadium. Kyle Gibson gets the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Clarke Schmidt. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles drop game one in the Bronx

News flash, the Baltimore Orioles won’t win every game. But we knew that. And sometimes losses are going to churn your stomach. It’s just the nature of the beast. Kyle Bradish wasn’t spot on, but he ate innings and was semi-effective. Bradish’s line: 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 3 K.

The Orioles were in the driver’s seat in the game for awhile. Adam Frazier’s two-RBI double in the first inning got the Birds off to a good start with a 2-0 lead. Cedric Mullins extended the lead to 3-0 with a solo homer in the third, and Gunnar Henderson added a solo shot of his own in the fourth.

But regardless of the standings, your lead is never safe when you’re playing the pinstripes. Especially at their place. Bader got New York on the board in the fourth with a solo homer. They would plate three runs in the fifth to the game at four. They also chased Bradish following that inning.

But the O’s did get the lead back an inning later. They loaded the bases, and Terrin Vavra grounded into a fielder’s choice, which goes as an RBI. The Orioles led, 5-4.

And they took that lead to the last of the ninth. Judge came up against closer Felix Bautista with one out, and ran the count to 0-2. Bautista elevated a fastball, and Judge smacked a no-doubter out of the ballpark to tie the score at five. New York would later win it on Volpe’s sac fly in the tenth, sending the Birds down to defeat on this night in the Bronx.

Felix Bautista’s been lights out for the Orioles. So it’s tough to criticize, however it would have stood to reason to me that you’d bury a pitch in the dirt on an 0-2 count. Interesting choice of pitch location, but again he’s proven he’s trustworthy. One blown save shouldn’t taint everything he’s done to this point.

The series continues tomorrow at Yankee Stadium. Tyler Wells gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Nestor Cortes. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles sweep a series for the ages

I suppose the question for the Baltimore Orioles is which win in Toronto this weekend was bigger? Which was the seasons’s “signature win” (to date, at least)? Was it yesterday’s slow slog, or today’s game, started by Dean Kremer? Dean Kremer, who incidentally put the O’s in a spot to win today. Kremer’s line: 5.1 IP, 9 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K.

Similar to yesterday, today’s game seemed to have a late-season or post-season big game feel to it. The air was thick all day, and neither side was seemingly ready to blink. Toronto took a 1-0 lead in the second with a solo homer by Chapman. But solo homers rarely beat you.

The O’s would tie the score in the third on an RBI-groundout by Adley Rutschman. Anthony Santander would then reach on a fielder’s choice, scoring Cedric Mullins from third. And the Orioles led, 2-1.

A downside to this game (following yesterday’s) for the Orioles was that the bullpen was taxed. They potentially had only three or four relievers available – short of an emergency, that is. In fact, I might even argue that there could have been consideration of using a starter out of the ‘pen had it been necessary. Luckily, that didn’t happen. And the O’s have an off day tomorrow.

One of the fresh relievers was Mychal Givens, who came off the IL before the ballgame. Givens of course was an Oriole for many years, and has now returned after three years away. He showed some rust, however overall it was a good outing – save for letting Toronto tie the score at two on a sac fly-RBI by Chapman in the seventh.

And just like that, we went to extra innings again, tied at two. As the title states, this was a series for the ages. So it was only fitting that the game went to extra innings. Cedric Mullins opened the extra frame(s) with a run-scoring single, and suddenly the Birds had the lead back at 3-2. However Merrifield added a run-scoring single of his own in the bottom of the inning, and we played on.

Those runs of course were courtesy of the ghost runner rule. As was the first run the Orioles scored in the 11th, off a single by Austin Hays. However all things being the same (which is always a tough argument to make), the O’s still would have taken this game. Terrin Vavra went up with two runners in scoring position as a pinch hitter, and smacked a two-RBI single. Cedric Mullins followed with a two-RBI double, and suddenly the Orioles walked out with an 8-3 win.

It goes without saying that this is a huge sweep of a division rival. Not to mention that it happened at their place. However as I said yesterday and I said above, the entire series was played with tension. Toronto’s a team that thrives off of controversy, and they “wanted the Orioles” all weekend.

And the good news for them is that they got them. They got the best that the Orioles could give them. And by series’ end, I think everyone in both organizations, and across baseball, were put on notice as to who the better team is. Let there be no mistake.

Baltimore Orioles: Don’t be made into the villains

The Baltimore Orioles won perhaps the biggest game of the season to date yesterday in Toronto. It had everything – high drama, disagreements, etc. And by disagreements, I mean controversy.

Toronto starter Alex Manoah barked at the Orioles’ Adam Frazier following a strikeout S he walked back to the dugout. There was seemingly no basis for the rift, and it left a lot of people wondering what happened. I would say this: don’t even ask the question.

The situation from earlier last week with Toronto and the NY Yankees is well documented. And there are plenty of other cases of Toronto players getting in the faces of opponents. Remember the 2015 postseason – Jose Bautista with the bat flip? They’ve had their share of run-in’s with the Orioles over the years also. If you remember, Toronto seemed intent on throwing at Oriole hitters on the night the Birds were trying to clinch the 2014 AL East title. Determined to insert themselves into the story.

That’s no different than Manoah and Frazier yesterday. Or the entire Toronto team against Aaron Judge last week. For years, that team has basically tried to play the heel. They want you to hate them. And they don’t mind fighting if it comes to that. They’re aggressive, and that’s purposely done.

So this is a word of caution to the Orioles, if anything. You know how the saying goes; never get into a fight with a pig, because he’ll beat you with experience and you’ll get dirty. Make no mistake, these are concerted efforts by the Toronto Blue Jays to get under people’s skin.

At a certain point, you have to defend yourself. However Toronto’s always been a team that tries to get under people’s skin. Chirping on the field and in the media about New York stealing signs is a perfect example. But how many bench-clearing brawls are they involved in?! And if they are, is it not convenient that it comes across as they’re the ones defending themselves?

Jose Bautista flips his bat at the Texas Rangers in the post season. The next year he gets slugged in the face. Believe me, both Bautista and his superiors were THRILLED with that result. The other guy gets the perception of causing the problem, and they got under their skin. That’s their modus operandi.

Make no mistake, Manoah was planting a seed yesterday. Their goal is to chirp and scream so much that eventually someone has to do something. And then they get to go into victim mode.

So the O’s should beware of this. Don’t be shocked if someone tries something or says something in today’s game. Toronto’s the schoolyard bully who levies insults at you and when you retaliate, says you threw the first punch. And the sad thing is they’re good at it. THEY caused the bad blood with the Yankees earlier this week. THEY caused the situation with Adam Frazier yesterday. Their hope is that it boils over, potentially causing suspensions to the other guy.

So the Orioles need to remain focused. Unless Toronto does something outlandish, don’t take the bait. Because it’s all part of a plan on their part.