Baltimore Orioles select Jackson Holliday first in MLB Draft

The pick is in, and the Baltimore Orioles have selected SS Jackson Holliday with the first pick in the MLB draft. Holliday is out of Stillwater High School (in Stillwater, OK). He’s also the son of former big leaguer Matt Holliday, and the nephew of Oklahoma State University baseball coach Josh Holliday.

It’ll be interesting to see how long it takes Holliday to get through the minor league system. Middle infield is a position where the Birds are currently a bit soft. They’ve been using stop gaps for most of the rebuild. So now they’ve seemingly got their guy.

Holliday’s father, Matt, was a 15-year amalgam veteran. He was a career .299 hitter. Jackson Holliday is represented by super agent Scott Boras. The next step of course, is signing him.

Baltimore Orioles fall in first half finale

Today wasn’t Jordan Lyles’ day for the Baltimore Orioles. The Birds’ starter seemed to flail in the wind this afternoon in the first half finale at Tropicana Field. And that happens, incidentally, with the best of starting pitchers. So it’s nothing about which to fret. Lyles’ line: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 5 K.

The O’s trailed from the beginning in this one, as Tampa’s Arozarena smacked a two-run homer in the last of the first right off the bat. Lowe’s RBI-double in the second added to the lead, and Tampa blew it open in the last of the third on a three-run homer by Phillips.

But these are still the Orioles. And they fight until the end. Adley Rutschman’s RBI-single in the fourth cut the lead to 6-1. A moment later it was 6-2 on an RBI-single by Ramon Urias.

Two innings later the O’s made it interesting. Roughned Odor smacked a two-run homer, cutting the lead to 6-4. However Tampa would add an insurance run in the bottom of the inning on a solo homer by Mejia. The O’s got back to within two in the eighth with a solo homer by Austin Hays. And that was your ballgame.

So the O’s head into the all-star break with a .500 record. 46 wins and 46 losses. Anyone would have gladly signed up for that before the season began. They did that primarily by winning 11 of their last 13 games to close the first half. Needless to say, nobody in playoff contention wants to play these Orioles. One way or the other, they’ll have their say in the playoff race in the second half.

Baltimore Orioles: Small wonders win ballgames, Birds back over .500

After having their 10-game winning streak snapped last night, the Baltimore Orioles looked to start a new one this afternoon. Dean Kremer got the start today at Tropicana Field, and while he had a struggle or two, he also set the tone for the Birds. In terms of pitching, that is. Kremer’s line: 4.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 2 K.

Tampa took an early lead in the last of the first, scoring on a wild pitch by Kremer. However the Orioles tied it quickly. Ramon Urias had another big game at the plate today, tying the game at one with an RBI-single in the top of the second.

But Tampa’s a tough team to keep down, especially at the Trop – where the O’s have lost ten straight. Kremer uncorked another wild pitch in the third, giving Tampa the lead back at 2-1. Arozarena would follow with a solo homer, and Tampa led 3-1. Suddenly we wondered if the O’s were about to start a losing streak – but the game was far from over. Not by a long shot.

Tyler Nevin’s RBI-single in the fifth got them Birds back to within one at 3-2. Brandon Hyde sent Adley Rutschman, who previously had the day off, up as a pitch hitter in the eighth. And Rutschman didn’t disappoint, smacking a solo home run and tying the game at three.

The game went to extra innings tied at three, and the O’s almost had it won due to good fundamentals. With Austin Hays at second as the ghost runner in the top of the tenth, Ramon Urias popped out in foul ground. Hays tagged up and went to third base. He would later score on Rutschman’s sac fly.

It appeared that Hyde was pushing all the right buttons – and he was. But the O’s would have to wait one more inning to snap that losing streak at Tropicana Field, as Choi’s RBI-single in the last of the tenth would tie the game back up at four. And we played on.

Rougned Odor was the ghost runner in the eleventh, but he was picked off trying to get to third base. Jorge Mateo followed with a triple (which would have given the Orioles the lead, if not for the pickoff), and Cedric Mullins walked. Mullins would later steal second base, on a play where Tampa appeared to neglect to even throw through. This gave the O’s two runners in scoring position…

…and they didn’t neglect the opportunity. Down to his last strike and with the Birds down to their last out in the inning, Ryan Mountcastle blooped a ball into shallow right field, scoring both Mateo and Mullins. This giving the O’s a 6-4 lead, which was eventually closed out by the bullpen. This snapped the Birds’ aforementioned ten-game losing streak in Tampa, and it guaranteed that they would have a record of at least .500 at the break. They’re currently one game above .500.

Small things win games such as this one. While it didn’t ultimately win the game, Austin Hays tagging up on that foul ball in the tenth and going to third certainly could have been a game-deciding play. It looked like it would be for awhile.

But make no mistake that one of the many plays that did decide the game was Mullins stealing second in the eleventh and getting into scoring position. That enabled a base hit to score two runs, and gave the Orioles the lead AND an insurance run. Those sorts of intangibles in games don’t show up on the stats sheet, but they make a huge difference. They certainly did for the O’s this afternoon.

The series (and the first half of the season) concludes tomorrow at Tropicana Field. Jordan Lyles gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Tampa’s Corey Kluber. Game time is set for just after 1:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles’ winning streak halted at ten

The Baltimore Orioles were reminded this year that all good things must come to an end. With a 5-4 loss to Tampa, the Birds’ winning streak was halted at ten games. Starter Tyler Wells definitely pitched well enough to win the game, but it just wasn’t meant to happen tonight. Wells’ line: 5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 6 K.

The O’s did lead for part of the ballgame. Trey Mancini smacked a solo homer in the top of the third inning. Ramon Urias added a second solo shot one inning later, and the Birds were off to a 2-0 lead.

But Tampa found a way to chip away. In the last of the fourth they smacked three doubles, including an RBI-double by Chang. He would come up again in the sixth, adding a second RBI-double – tying the game at two.

Mejia would add a second RBI-double later in the inning, and Bethancorp’s two-run homer gave Tampa the lead at 5-2. However the O’s did battle back. Urias would hit a second homer in the eighth, this one of the two- run variety.

But this wasn’t the Orioles’ night, and they fell in Tampa, 5-4. It’s important to note that they were going to drop a game and snap the winning streak at some point. That’s why you have to enjoy those highs so much, because they can end at the drop of a dime.

A lot of times when teams have epic win streaks they end in a blaze of glory. This meaning that multiple errors are committed, and the first loss is usually pretty ugly. That didn’t happen to the O’s tonight. They battled tough and just ended up with one less run. As I said, all good things must end.

The series continues tomorrow at Tropicana Field. Dean Kremer gets the start for the O’s, and Tampa’s starter is TBD. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Ten straight, courtesy of the Orange & Black

It’s almost scary how quickly things have turned around for the Baltimore Orioles. Last night at Wrigley Field they won their tenth straight game, and swept Chicago’s “northsiders” in a short two-game series at the “Friendly Confines.” This behind a solid start from Spencer Watkins, who certainly spearheaded the Birds’ tenth straight victory. Watkins’ line: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K.

The O’s led the entire way in this game. Anthony Santander’s two-RBI double in the top of the first gave them a 2-0 lead. Austin Hays’ RBI-single later in the inning ran it to 3-0. Chicago and the crowd had barely settled in, and the Birds already had the lead.

The lone thing that went wrong for the Birds in this game came on what first appeared to be a two-RBI double by Trey Mancini in the second inning. However Chicago challenged the play, claiming that the second runner (Cedric Mullins) was actually out at home plate. And the umpires reversed the call on replay, making it only an RBI-double. But no matter, the O’s still held a 4-0 lead.

Chicago did get on the board in the last of the fifth with a sac fly-RBI by Ortega. But a few innings later the O’s started plating insurance runs. Adley Rutschman and Rougned Odor smacked an RBI-double and single respectively in the eighth. Ramon Urias also scored on a balk, running the final to 7-1.

It absolutely can’t be lost on anyone that the O’s lost 19 straight games at one point last year, and now they’ve won ten straight. If anything, I would argue that the 19 straight losses brought this team closer together. Needless to say, they seem to have great chemistry and they seem to like playing with one another, as evidenced by Brandon Hyde’s comments after the game:

Just really happy with how we’re playing. Spenser was fantastic, set the tone, putting zeros up early. Bullpen once again does a great job, and we scored some runs for these guys early in the game, which was nice, and got some tack-ons late, which we’ve had a tough time doing. We’re playing good baseball right now.

Quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports

He mentioned insurance runs; that’s how you sustain winning streaks. You have to assume that most games are going to be close. So insurance runs late make a huge difference. The Birds now stand one game above .500, and they find themselves having won more games than they’ve lost for the first time since early last season.

Baltimore Orioles: Birds victorious in the Friendly Confines, hit .500

The gravy train ran on for the hottest team in baseball last night, as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Chicago Cubs. The Birds got a dominating outing from starter Jordan Lyles, who made himself at home in the “Friendly Confines” of Wrigley Field. Lyles’ line: 7.0 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K.

the game got off to an inauspicious start however, as Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the last of the first on a solo homer by Happ. Rivas’ RBI-single an inning later ran the tally to 2-0, and for a split second we wondered if the Orioles’ winning streak was in jeopardy. But it wasn’t.

Anthony Santander’s RBI-single in the top of the third got the Orioles on the board and cut Chicago’s lead to 2-1. One inning later they took the lead when Ramon Urias smacked a two-run home run. They extended that lead to 4-2, the eventual final, when Jorge Mateo hit a solo homer in the seventh.

Timely hitting and good pitching – that’s what wins games. Lyles and the Orioles’ pen were all outstanding last night. That’s another quality start for an Oriole starter last night. Those are starting to rack up also.

After the game Brandon Hyde hit the nail on the head in terms of the O’s having won their ninth straight game:

We’re playing baseball all the way around. Some games we’re throwing it lights out, some days we’re mashing, we’re getting extra-base hits one after another. That’s the sign of a good team, when you can win baseball games in different ways and fashion.

Quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports

You find different ways to win games. And the O’s are doing just that. And it’s paying off; they’ve won nine straight games for the first time since September of 1999.

The series concludes this evening at Wrigley Field. Spencer Watkins gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Chicago’s Justin Steele. Game time is set for just after 8 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Jorge Lopez to the All-Star Game

It was announced last night that the Baltimore Orioles’ All-Star representative this year will be closer Jorge Lopez. Save for that weekend in Minnesota, Lopez has been dominant in the first half. He has a 1.74 ERA, with 16 saves.

The disappointment I suppose is that no position players made the roster. The likes of Austin Hays, Anthony Santander, and others certainly should have at least been considered. And obviously as guys opt out over time, they might still trickle their way onto the roster. The All-Star game is next Tuesday evening from Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

The Orioles of course are off today, despite being the hottest team in baseball. Tomorrow night they head to the “friendly confines” of Wrigley Field to open a short two-game set with the Chicago Cubs.

Baltimore Orioles: Hottest team in baseball sweeps LA and the home stand

The Baltimore Orioles were back in the saddle again this afternoon against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The Birds and starter Austin Voth came into today’s game having won seven straight. A win today would also give the O’s a perfect home stand. Voth’s line: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 6 K.

It started off inauspiciously, however. Hamilton’s two-run homer in the third gave LA a 2-0 lead. For a moment it appeared that the winning streak was going to stop at seven. Boy would you have been wrong had you put money on that.

One inning later in the last of the fourth Ryan Mountcastle’s RBI-double cut the LA lead in half at 2-1. But that was only the table-setter. Later in the inning Ramon Urias’ two-RBI single and Roughned Odor’s RBI-single gave the O’s the lead at 4-2. But it didn’t end there – OH NO.

Anthony Santander would extend the lead to 5-2 with an RBI-double in the last of the fifth. If you’re Los Angeles you’d just as soon forget the bottom of the fifth inning today. But the Orioles and the fans at Camden Yards won’t soon forget it.

The Birds would end up loading the bases, Ryan Mountcastle scored on a passed ball. Santander would almost immediately follow, scoring on a wild pitch. And Ramon Urias would follow with a run-scoring single. When the smoke cleared, the O’s led 8-2.

If you’ve read me for awhile, you’ve seen me say that good things happen when you get guys on base. The O’s had the bags juiced, and fluky things plated a couple of runs. And on the aforementioned Urias hit, he was able to reach safely because the pitcher didn’t cover the bag. Again, get people on base and good things can happen.

The Birds would add a ninth run on an RBI-single by Trey Mancini in the sixth. Los Angeles would add three more runs in the later innings, including a two-run homer by Stassi. However Los Angeles reminded me a lot of the Orioles in 2018 – they have some talented players, but appear on the verge of a rip down and rebuild. The O’s of course are in a different point in that process.

The O’s swept LA, and swept the home stand. They’re the hottest team in baseball, having won eight straight. Where the season goes from here remains to be seen. But they’re firing on all cylinders at this moment.

Baltimore Orioles: Baseball’s hottest team churns on

The Baltimore Orioles are baseball’s hottest team. Yes, you read that correctly; I’ll say it again for the people in the back…the Baltimore Orioles are baseball’s hottest team. Try that one on for size! Having won six straight coming in, they sent Dean Kremer to the mound against Anaheim this afternoon in hopes of keeping the party going. Kremer’s line: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K.

Despite being the hottest team in the league, the Birds still sit in last place in the AL East. But that’s a testament to the division as much as anything else. Yet, national pundits continue to overlook the Orioles. And consistently at that. And in fact you watch…as soon as the winning streak ends, you’ll see people saying I told you they were bad.

But savvy fans know that one game a season does not make. It’s the overall body of work that matters. And we’re nowhere near being done; odds are some struggles still await this 2022 Oriole team. But to date, the overall body of work exceeds expectations.

Perhaps the best moment of today’s game came in the last of the third inning, when Tyler Nevin came up to bat for the first time. His Dad, Phil, of course is the interim manager of the Anaheim Angels. He was suspended for the first two games of this series (due to the Anaheim/Seattle brawl a few weeks ago), but returned to the Anaheim dugout this afternoon.

Today was the first time that father and son had been on a big league field together. Father and son exchanged the lineup cards before the game and posed for a photo with the umpiring crew. It was the sort of moment that only baseball can provide. And it didn’t disappoint.

For the record, (Tyler) Nevin reached base on a single in his first at-bat against his old man. Needless to say, (Phil) Nevin had to have mixed feelings on that. One inning later in the last of the fourth, Anthony Santander’s RBI-single have the Orioles a 1-0 lead.

And when your pitching staff doesn’t give up any runs, one run is all you need. The back end of the Oriole bullpen was dominant once again, with Relic Bautista getting a key strikeout to end the eighth, and Jorge Lopez closing the door in the ninth.

The Birds will go for a sweep of the series and the home stand tomorrow afternoon at Camden Yards. Austin Voth gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Anaheim’s Jose Suarez. Game time is set for just after 12 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Trey Mancini plays the hero as the magic returns

Tyler Wells got the start last night against Anaheim for the Baltimore Orioles, with mixed results. For awhile it looked like he was in line to be the losing pitcher. For most of the ballgame, in fact. But anyone who thought that sure had something else coming. Wells’ line: 4.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 3 K.

Wells gave up a three-run homer to Trout in the third inning. And that was it. He departed obviously after four innings, but the bullpen was solid. Luckily, so we’re Oriole bats.

The Birds began their comeback in the seventh with an RBI-single by Ramon Urias. One inning later Ryan Mountcastle smacked an RBI-single, and the comeback was on. But not before Ohtani extended the Anaheim lead back to two runs in the ninth with a solo homer.

That simply made the road slightly tougher for the Birds, who had that look of determination in their eyes. This as the old sentiments of Orioles Magic began to descend once again upon Camden Yards.

With a runner on second in the last of the ninth, Adley Rutschman’s RBI-double cut the lead to 4-3. Rutschman would later score on Cedric Mullins’ RBI-double, and the O’s had officially “come back.” But that only tied the game – the Orioles had in mind to win it.

Mullins would advance to third on a wild pitch, but that wasn’t such a big deal as he was already in scoring position. But the moment everyone was waiting for came in the form of Trey Mancini’s RBI-single to left. That plated Mullins, sent everyone home happy, and reminded the fans of this franchise’s not-so-distant magical past, and perhaps of a similar future.

After the game Mancini tipped his cap at the crowd and his teammates in the clubhouse:

It was so exciting, one of the best wins I’ve been a part of in my time here. I’m guessing it was one of our top crowds of the year. It was a great energy, the fans brought it all night, and we fed off that, especially late. It was just an amazing comeback for us. It was unbelievable to be a part of a great team win for us

Quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports

The series continues this afternoon at Camden Yards. Dean Kremer gets the start for the Birds, and he’ll be opposed by Anaheim’s Patrick Sandoval. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.