Good morning Birdland,
Orioles pitchers have allowed one total run over their last 18 innings. That’s good! Trevor Rogers has allowed one total run over his last 18.1 innings, which included five scoreless in the O’s 3-0 win over the Reds on Friday night.
The lefty’s ERA has dipped from a season-worst 6.96 on May 24 to 4.70 now. That includes his current six-start streak that has seen him allow seven earned runs over 35.2 innings, which translates to a 1.77 ERA in that span. The major key to his return
to 2025 form is keeping the ball in the yard. Neither his strikeout or walk rates are too impressive, but it doesn’t matter too much when you avoid the loudest contact.
Rogers is an important figure for the Orioles this month. If they are going to go on a run, they need a few more impressive starts from him in July. And if they are going to see the bottom fall out, it sure would be nice to trade Rogers for a decent haul at the deadline. That is much easier to do with this version of Rogers than what he was putting forth early in the year.
This team won’t be going anywhere if the offense keeps on sputtering, as it has for the entire season. Gunnar Henderson has seemed rejuvenated in the lead-off spot. He had a pair of walks, a stolen base, and a run scored on Friday. He’s 5-for-14 with four walks in the four games since Craig Albernaz put him atop the order. But the lineup, as a group, has been as lethargic as ever. They had four total hits in last night’s win, and only got bailed out by a stellar showing from Rogers and the bullpen.
And that’s really the root of the team’s issues this year. You can complain about injuries, the inconsistency of the starting staff, etc. But the main problem is that they don’t score enough runs or hit enough home runs to justify how little they put the ball in play. The team was built with the expectation that the offense would be among the game’s elite, and it just isn’t.
That puts pressure of folks like today’s starter, Brandon Young, to be perfect. Credit to him, he has been far better this season than anyone expected. You can’t say he “saved” the season given how disappointing things have been overall, but the difference between him and whoever else they would have bussed in Triple-A Norfolk instead is probably a handful of wins alone. Some more of that magical this evening in Cincinnati would be much appreciated.
Links
Orioles Re-Sign Sam Huff To Minor League Deal | MLB Trade Rumors
The Orioles do this a lot with the fringy guys they like: DFA them and quickly re-sign them to a deal that probably comes with a little more guaranteed money. To be fair to Huff, he does seem to be a fine defensive catcher that is valuable to keep in your organization. If he could hit just a little bit more, he might be considered a number two backstop throughout the league. Instead, he bounces up and down quite a bit.
Orioles ‘going for it’ at trade deadline might be difficult for Elias | The Baltimore Sun
We still have a few weeks here, and it’s not out of the realm of possibility for the Orioles to be a few games under .500 and within a couple of games of the final wild card spot. If that is the case, they are probably going to buy and just pray they squeal into the playoffs. But does this team feel like a legitimate contender? The 2022 version of Mike Elias would be selling off anything not bolted to the floor.
Leftovers for breakfast | Roch Kubatko
Included here is the updated Baseball America list of top Orioles prospects. Ike Irish is number one, which isn’t surprising. Joseph Dzierwa, who has had a tremendous season, is up to number two. The 22-year-old is on track to make a big league impact sometime next season.
Orioles’ Robertson on upcoming draft: ‘There’s a lot of depth’ | Baltimore Baseball
The draft is coming up, and the Orioles have a high draft pick. Usually, they have done well under this circumstances with Elias at the helm.
Helsley lands on IL for second time in ’26 with elbow discomfort | MLB.com
In case you missed this from yesterday, Ryan Helsley is going to miss some more time with an elbow injury, and it doesn’t sound good. As a reminder, Helsley has a player option for 2027 worth $14 million. Right now it looks like a guarantee that he will be picking that up.
Orioles birthdays
Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!
- The late Babe Birrer (b. 1929, d. 2013) was born on this day. He appeared in four games for the 1956 Orioles as part of his brief MLB career.
This day in O’s history
1944 – Baltimore’s Oriole Park burns down. The ballpark had been built in 1914 for use in the Federal League but was home to the International League’s Orioles at the time it was destroyed. The O’s moved to Venable Stadium, which would later be renamed Memorial Stadium.
1964 – A game between the Orioles and Royals ends in 6-6 tie due to a special curfew so that a fireworks display can take place in Baltimore.
1971 – Boog Powell and Elrod Hendricks homer in support of Mike Cuellar’s complete game to beat the Tigers 3-2.
1973 – The Orioles score 10 times in the game’s final three innings to beat the Brewers 10-7, making it their third come-through-behind win over their division rivals.
