Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Is it dramatic to suggest that last night’s Orioles game against the White Sox was a must-win? Probably. But if the O’s had followed up an ugly sweep in Pittsburgh by losing to the two-time reigning worst team in the American League, even the most level-headed fans among us might have thrown their TVs out the window.
Fortunately, it didn’t happen. The O’s escaped the opener in the Windy City with a 2-1 victory to snap their three-game losing streak. Their record is now
4-6, which isn’t good but somehow ties them for third place in the AL East. Brandon Young, fresh up from the minors for his season debut, played the hero with five shutout innings of work, immediately making him the second-best starter on the Orioles. Gunnar Henderson hit a massive dinger. Ryan Helsley overcame control problems in the ninth to strand the tying and winning runs on base. Check out Stacey’s recap for the full breakdown of the action.
Was it the kind of game that will make anyone feel better about the Orioles? No, not really. The O’s offense again was utterly inept aside from the Henderson homer. Their only other run scored on a routine fly ball that fell in for a single when Austin Hays strained his hamstring on the play. The O’s went hitless with runners in scoring position, grounded into two double plays, and struck out seven times (three by Henderson) with just one walk. Tyler O’Neill failed to hustle on the Hays play, settling in at first base when he should have easily been on second. There was plenty of the typical O’s sloppiness, and you get the feeling that the Birds wouldn’t have been so fortunate to win if they’d been playing against a better team.
Still, a win is a win, and the Orioles will gladly take one however they can get it. They’ve got two more games to try to keep taking advantage of the White Sox. A reminder that today’s game has been moved up to a 3:10 ET start time rather than 7:40 in hopes of avoiding the bitter cold that’s sweeping through Chicago. Trevor Rogers will start for the Orioles against 2025 All-Star Shane Smith.
The O’s have yet to win two games in a row this season. Maybe today is the day that changes.
Links
Young’s solid start just what O’s need with rotation in flux – MLB.com
Kudos again to Young, who delivered in the clutch when many Orioles fans (OK, myself included) were expecting nothing.
Based on last night’s game alone, I don’t know who Adley is. He went 0-for-3 and committed a throwing error, but also hustled into a run and threw out two base stealers. The guy is all over the place.
Craig Albernaz described Enns’ foot as “pretty gnarly.” I believe that’s a medical term.
Would a .500 record on May 1st be a bad sign for the Orioles? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com
A bad sign? At this point I’d kill for it.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! You share your day with two former Orioles: right-hander Ricky Bones (57) and the late Baltimore-born righty Tom Phoebus (b. 1942, d. 2019), who threw a no-hitter for his hometown team in 1968. I’ll also give an honorable mention to fellow Maryland native Josh Hader (32), who isn’t technically a former Oriole but started his pro career in the O’s system before being traded as a prospect for Bud Norris.
On this date in 1977, a 20-year-old designated hitter named Eddie Murray made his major league debut for the Orioles, going 1-for-4. His first career hit was a seventh-inning single off the Rangers’ Bert Blyleven. Murray went on to win AL Rookie of the Year that season on his way to an incredible 21-year MLB career that led him to the National Baseball Hall of Fame (where he was later joined by Blyleven). The Orioles’ starting pitcher in Murray’s debut was another Hall of Famer, Jim Palmer. Quite the star-studded affair.
Random Orioles game of the day
Despite popular demand, it’s the return of the Random Orioles Game of the Day feature. I’ll use a random number generator to pick a season from Orioles history and check out how they fared on this date. Today’s random year is: 2023. Ooh, that was a good year.
On April 7, 2023, the Orioles beat the Yankees in a 7-6 barnburner in their home opener at Camden Yards. In front of a sellout crowd of 45,017, the O’s took a 4-0 lead, then fell behind 5-4, then tied the game on an Adley Rutschman RBI single in the sixth and took the lead on a Ramón Urías double in the seventh. Félix Bautista allowed the potential tying run to get to third base in the ninth before nailing down the final out. It was a great start for an Orioles team that ultimately was 17 games above .500 at home that year.
