Good morning Birdland,
Well, we know that at least one of the LCS won’t be a sweep. The Rays evened up the junior circuit matchup at one game apiece with a 3-1 win over the Guardians on Tuesday night. All three of their runs came in a big fourth inning. That proved to be enough for starter Freddy Peralta, who tossed six scoreless innings, followed by the Tampa bullpen, which was punctuated by another Bryan Baker save. Those two teams will have today off as they travel to Cleveland, where the series
will continue on Thursday.
That means the NLCS is a solo act this evening. The Brewers have a commanding 2-0 lead, but will now head on the road for the first time in the best-of-seven set. Another win tonight doesn’t guarantee their first World Series appearance since 1982, but it would put them awfully close. First pitch is set for 8 p.m. on FS1.
Shohei Ohtani’s struggles have become a big storyline of that series. The four-time MVP is 3-for-20 this postseason with zero extra-base hits, three walks, and seven strikeouts. That’s a .411 OPS. He hit the IL near the end of the regular season, then struggled in eight September games, and still doesn’t look right. Dave Roberts moved him down the order in Game 2, and there were some rumblings that he could be removed from the order entirely for Game 3. But the Dodgers announced during the off day that this wouldn’t happen. Ohtani will be starting. If the Dodgers hope to complete a three-peat, they will need some magic from their superstar.
On the Orioles front, it’s quiet, as it is for just about all 26 teams that are no longer playing baseball this year. While front offices are surely making preparations for the offseason ahead, there simply isn’t much public-facing work to be done.
Free agency starts five days after the World Series ends. The GM Meetings start November 9. The owners meetings begin November 17. And the non-tender deadline is November 20. Anything beyond that is in doubt as the current CBA expires on December 1, which could mean that many of the most interesting days of baseball’s offseason are pushed or cancelled altogether.
While some minor moves are likely to happen prior to a new CBA, you would assume that any massive contracts will have to wait until teams, players, and agents fully understand the new deal. Salary caps and salary floors have been discussed. There could be changes to draft pick compensation for teams that lose higher-cost free agents. It’s a lot to unpack, and seems destined to drag well into next year at this point.
Links
Looking at Orioles through eyes of some opposing scouts | Roch Kubatko
Roch discusses a current Orioles players that could be available in a trade this offseason. Apparently, Ryan Mountcastle is one to consider. He played in eight games this year due to a foot injury, and has a $7.5 million club option for 2027. It would seem like with the log jam at first base he would be an easy decline, making him a free agent. But if the Orioles front office thinks they could get anything for him in a trade, maybe it makes more sense to hold onto to him and deal him sometime in the spring.
Three prospects who could be key contributors for O’s in ’27 | Orioles.com
Luis De León, Michael Forret, and Enrique Bradfield Jr. are mentioned, and all make sense. The Orioles, like every team, are going to need pitching, and Bradfield’s speed and defense seem major league ready, even if the bat still needs some work.
Oriole priorities in a likely shorter offseason | Rich Dubroff
The Orioles enter this offseason with a desperate need to get better in a few places, which will be more difficult because of the impending lockout. But they aren’t going to overhaul the roster. The core of the team is already in place. They need to get more out of the guys they have in-house, and then supplement them with a few key external signings. There’s a lot to do, but it feels less about making moves and more about setting the players they already have up for success. Hopefully, a lockout doesn’t impact that too much.
Orioles birthdays
Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!
- Midre Cummings turns 55 today. He played in two games for the Orioles in 2005, which capped off his 11 season in MLB.
- Carl Nichols is 64 years old. From 1986-88, he appeared in 36 games for the Orioles, mostly as a backup catching option.
- Kiko Garcia turns 73. He was a useful utility infielder for the Orioles for five seasons from 1976-80, and was then traded to the Astros prior to the ‘81 campaign.
- Tommy Harper is 85 today. His final major league season was spent with the Orioles in 1976, when he was almost exclusively deployed as a DH and pinch hitter.
This day in O’s history
1969 – The Orioles drop Game 3 of the World Series to the underdog New York Mets 5-0. The Mets now hold a 2-1 advantage in the best-of-seven series.
1971 – The Orioles get shutout 4-0 in Game 5 of the World Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. That gives the Buccos a 3-2 lead in the set.
2014 – The Royals win yet again in the ALCS, extending their lead in the series to 3-0. Their bullpen pitches four perfect innings close things out the win over the Orioles in Game 3.
