Hello, friends.
What a weird series we just witnessed. I’m not sure that I’ve ever witnessed other team fans cheering so much for an Oriole and probably I never will again. The circumstances surrounding Pete Alonso and the Mets, and the fact that he came over to the Orioles afterwards, are not repeated just every year and the O’s aren’t likely to sign most of the players who are so beloved. I can’t imagine a fanbase-wide kind of warmth for a former Oriole. I don’t cheer in any way for a player on another
team who used to play here when they are playing the Orioles. I don’t even clap for the “welcome back” video package.
Alonso homered again last night and the Mets fans were happy about it. I guess it helps that this season is a lost cause for them, so it’s not like it hampered their chances in any way. The Orioles finished off a sweep by taking a 7-1 victory on Wednesday. That’s the other weird thing. Or maybe it’s not so weird. Right after everybody gives up on the O’s, they go ahead and look like a competent baseball team for a few days, or maybe even several days.
It’s probably too late for it to matter, unless they just pretty much run the table, but as long as that possibility is alive, we might as well cling to it. Those slim hopes got a small boost yesterday, as on top of the Orioles winning their own game, Cleveland and Chicago flipped in the AL Central. That’s significant for the O’s because the Orioles have the head-to-head tiebreaker over the White Sox, which they do not against the Guardians. So, if the O’s do somehow run down the current wild card 3 team, they would have the edge in a tie.
There are also the Rangers and Blue Jays still to pass. That’s another reason why it’s so unlikely and why the Orioles probably have to run the table. Maybe they could spare a loss. Their last three series are Brewers, Jays, and Yankees. It’s a tough road. The Rangers are the only one of these teams to play today.
There were two bits of Orioles news yesterday. The team placed infielder Jackson Holliday on the 10-day injured list with left wrist inflammation. Since there’s not much season left, that means he’s probably done for the year, a disappointing end to a disappointing season. Posting a .921 OPS in July got people’s hopes up, but Holliday has sagged since, dropping a .495 OPS in August and .520 in September, tanking his season numbers.
Not much to do except hope this was connected to the wrist issue. That’s not a crazy thing to think, since players poorly play through injuries that should have them on the IL with some frequency. But it’s not guaranteed. The Orioles are really going to have to think hard about what Holliday will have to offer next year, and if that’s a roster space they need to improve. If he was a 2 WAR player, there’s something there, but this year he had a 0.2 bWAR.
Also announced yesterday was a diagnosis for injured pitcher Kyle Bradish. It’s a sports hernia for Bradish. Manager Craig Albernaz said they are exploring the next steps. Bradish’s season wrapped with a 4.12 ERA, or an exactly league average 100 ERA+. You may have had higher hopes. I certainly did. Hopefully next year is better for him as well, with Tommy John surgery farther in the rear view mirror.
Orioles stuff you might have missed
Pete Alonso delivered. Too many Orioles hitters haven’t. (The Baltimore Sun)
This reaction to Tuesday’s big homer from Alonso is not wrong. Some guys just have not been carrying their share of the load.
Concerns for and about Samuel Basallo (Steve on Baseball)
Steve Melewski takes a look at Basallo, another Oriole who’s mightily slumping late in the season.
The very fun group of Orioles prospects going to the Arizona Fall League (Orioles On The Verge)
The prospect enthusiasts of the Orioles On The Verge podcast are enthused about the guys heading out to Arizona this year. It’s a more interesting group than some recent years.
Where should MLB add expansion teams? We asked the Orioles. (The Baltimore Banner)
Nashville? Charlotte? Honolulu? Let’s get weird.
Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries
Today in 1970, the Orioles clinched the American League East title. The O’s actually lost their game on this day, a 2-0 setback to Washington, but since the Yankees were beaten by the Red Sox, the Orioles clinched. They went on, as you know, to win the World Series.
In 1999, the Orioles team plane took off without Cal Ripken Jr. This incident was cited when GM Frank Wren was fired shortly after the season. In the O’s game that night, during the course of an 8-3 Orioles victory over the Twins, Jesse Orosco set a major league record with his 1,072nd appearance as a pitcher. Orosco finished with 1,252 games, still the recordholder. The active leader, Kenley Jansen, is in 19th place on the career list with 980 appearances.
There are a pair of former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2025 reliever Kade Strowd, and 1979-81 infielder Wayne Krenchicki.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: Wild West outlaw Billy the Kid (1859), Marriott founder J. Willard Marriott (1900), author Ken Kesey (1935), baseball Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda (1937), Hall of Fame basketball coach Phil Jackson (1945), Indian prime minister Narendra Modi (1950), Super Mario voice actor Charles Martinet (1955), and actress Danielle Brooks (1990).
On this day in history…
In 1630, the city of Boston was founded in what was then the Massachusetts Bay colony.
In 1787, the Constitution was signed at the end of a nearly four month long Constitutional Convention.
In 1862, the Union Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia clashed in the Battle of Antietam, with the Union driving off the invading army. The battle saw over 22,000 casualties, of which more than 3,500 were killed. This remains the single bloodiest day in the history of the United States military.
In 1908, nearly five years after its first flight, the Wright Flyer, being flown by Orville Wright, crashed. A passenger, Lt. Thomas Selfridge, was killed during the crash, making him the first ever fatality from an airplane.
In 1944, the Allied powers launched Operation Market Garden, a combined air-and-land invasion of the Netherlands meant to secure an invasion route into Germany. The 60-mile advance liberated much of the Netherlands from Nazi occupation; however, the main objective of securing a bridge over the Rhine was not accomplished with great losses suffered by the British paratroopers who were tasked with capturing and holding the bridge as relief never arrived.
In 1983, Vanessa Williams was named Miss America, the first Black winner of the pageant.
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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on September 17. Have a safe Thursday.
