There was a large chunk of today’s game when the Orioles were in it. They came back from a deficit to tie the game at 3-3, they made some noise against lefty ace Max Fried, and Trey Gibson did not implode as so many starting pitchers have for the Orioles lately. When they fell behind by a run late in the game, it felt like it might just be an easily forgettable loss. But then the bullpen really messed things up and when the dust settled, it was another embarrassing blowout loss. You guys? I’m starting to think
maybe the Orioles aren’t good. At baseball.
When you saw today’s pitching matchup, you may not have been surprised if I told you that the Orioles were going to lose by eight runs. Gibson was making his Major League debut against a very tough team, while the Orioles had to face one of the toughest lefties in baseball. But Gibson held his own. And while Fried wasn’t bad, he was not the untouchable pitcher he has been so often this year. When both starting pitchers exited the game, the score was tied 3-3.
Enter the bullpens. Grant Wolfram had finished the fifth inning for Gibson, then returned for the sixth. He was greeted by a double from Jasson Domínguez that put the go-ahead run in scoring position with no outs. Domínguez moved to third on a groundout. The Orioles moved the infield in to try and cut the runner down at home. It almost worked.
Ryan McMahon grounded a ball to the right side that first baseman Coby Mayo made a good diving stop on. But he couldn’t get the ball transferred and thrown home, nor could he get the out at first base. It put the team down, 4-3. It was another frustrating display of Orioles defense that we have seen so many times this year and even earlier in this game.
Yennier Cano replaced Wolfram and got the final outs (thanks in part to a very nice catch by Tyler O’Neill), but the damage was done.
Andrew Kittredge lit the whole game on fire in the eighth inning when he faced eight batters and retired just one of them. The only out he recorded was a sacrifice fly. Dietrich Enns followed Kittredge and was also very bad. So that’s nice. Those two turned a respectable 4-3 deficit into an 11-3 blowout.
It was a shame that it turned out that way, because the Gibson vs Fried portion of the game was much more exciting than we expected.
Gibson allowed a first-inning home run to Ben Rice that put the Orioles in a 1-0 hole. A frustrating way to start the game, but Rice has been unstoppable so far this year. After Weston Wilson made an error at third base to turn a groundout into a runner on second, it felt like things might fall apart early. But Gibson kept his cool and retired Cody Bellinger and Jazz Chisholm to get out of the inning.
In the third inning, Rice hit a high fly ball to left field. Wilson raced out from third and Taylor Ward raced in from left field as the ball plummeted to earth. It looked like Wilson had no shot but Ward may have. But with Wilson running full speed towards him, Ward couldn’t get it done. It would have been a tough play but the Orioles made it look bad.
And, of course, the next batter was Judge. Gibson threw him a curveball that landed dead center in the plate. Judge did not miss. The 413 blast gave the Yankees their second and third runs.
Gibson finished out the third and then had a very nice 1-2-3 inning in the fourth. He looked strong to start the fifth as well. He got two quick outs and then battled with Judge. On a 2-2 count, Gibson threw a pitch that looked to nick the corner of the strike zone, but it was called a ball. Neither Gibson nor Rutschman opted to challenge, and the next pitch was ball four. It kept Gibson from completing five innings as he was removed from the game.
Overall, I am calling it a successful Major League debut for Gibson. There aren’t many tougher assignments than the one he pulled.
And thanks to the Orioles putting some heat on Fried, Gibson left the game in line for a no-decision.
Taylor Ward started the game by working a nine-pitch walk. The Orioles didn’t score in the first, but they did force Fried to throw 24 pitches. In the third inning, Wilson singled and then stole second base. Fried was trying to pick him off but Wilson prevailed. Blaze Alexander dropped a bloop inside the foul line in right field that allowed Wilson to score easily. But Alexander ruined the good feelings almost immediately by going to far around first base and getting tagged out.
Down 3-2 going into the fourth inning, the offense gave Fried a real hard time. Pete Alonso started with a double, then O’Neill walked. Mayo grounded a ball to third base, but McMahon couldn’t make a throw and Mayo was credited with an infield single. An infield single from Leody Tarveras scored one run, and a double play by Jeremiah Jackson brought home one more.
To only score two runs with the bases loaded and no outs is a little disappointing, but we’ve seen worse. The offense blew another scoring chance in the sixth inning when Jackson grounded into yet another double play. Fried had exited the game just before the double play and had a final pitching line of 5.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 6 K. Not bad against a pitcher of his caliber, but frustrating that they couldn’t do more with their chances.
Orioles lose, 11-3. They are now on a four-game losing streak, starting with the disaster that was game two of their doubleheader with the Astros. In three games against the Yankees this weekend, the Orioles have been outscored 27-9. They play the series finale tomorrow with Shane Baz on the mound.
