The Orioles traded seven-year veteran Dean Kremer to the Twins in exchange for 18-year-old outfield prospect Jhomnardo Reyes on July 31. The move subtracted a major league player from the roster, but it did not clearly identify the Orioles as sellers. Kremer missed a significant amount of the season with injury, and he struggled when healthy. Even if the Orioles planned to chase down a playoff spot, it felt like they were willing to proceed without Kremer in the rotation.
The Orioles ultimately sold
at the trade deadline, while the Twins acquired Kremer and a few relievers. Minnesota entered tonight’s game only a half game above the Orioles in the wild card hunt, and they sent Kremer to the mound against his former team.
Kremer delivered his best and longest start of the season. The prized piece from the Manny Machado trade (by default) limited Baltimore to only one hit and one run over seven strong innings. Kremer struck out seven, walked one, and made the Orioles look silly for parting with him two weeks ago. Meanwhile, Baltimore starter Trevor Rogers struggled. The bullpen gave up five runs in the seventh, and the Twins bested the Orioles 9-5.
Trevor Rogers did not have his best stuff tonight. The lefty managed to hold the Twins to only two runs, but he only lasted four innings. Rogers allowed the leadoff batter to reach in all four frames. He allowed four hits, walked two, and plunked two batters. The Twins rarely chased his pitches out of the zone, and Rogers threw only 45 of 79 pitches for strikes.
Rogers allowed the first two batters to reach in the first and second innings but managed to escape the frames without allowing a run. After watching his teammates leaver runners on base, Austin Martin decided to start the third inning with a solo homer. The blast got the Twins on the board, but Baltimore answered in the top of the fourth.
Gunnar Henderson worked a leadoff walk. Henderson advanced to second on a groundout by Pete Alonso, and the struggling shortstop moved to third on an infield single by Jackson Holliday. Cleanup hitter Tyler O’Neill fell behind in the count, and Holliday broke for second on a 1-2 pitch. O’Neill went down swinging for the second out, but Holliday stopped running before he reached second base. Holliday got hung up long enough for Henderson to race home, and the Orioles tied the game before Holliday was tagged out.
Unfortunately, Rogers gave the run right back in the bottom of the inning. The lefty plunked leadoff hitter Luke Keaschall before coughing up a double to Brooks Lee. Kaelen Culpepper drove in the second run with a sacrifice fly, but Rogers managed to strand Lee with a pop up and a fly out to the warning track.
The Orioles recalled Cam Sanders before the game and put the reliever to work right away. Sanders represented the only real bright spot of the evening with a pair of clean innings. Craig Albernaz went to Rico Garcia in the seventh, and things quickly spiraled out of control.
Ryan Kreidler ripped a hard grounder up the middle. Jackson Holliday managed to get the ball but wisely declined to rush a throw to first. Martin followed with a quality bunt, but Carlos Narváez failed to follow Holliday’s lead. Narváez never really had a chance to get Martin, but he sailed a throw into right field anyway. The throwing error put runners at second and third and forced the Orioles to play the infield in.
Garcia generated a ground ball to the left side of the infield, but the ball perfectly passed by Henderson and Coby Mayo. Both runners came into score, and the Twins led 4-1. Garcia walked Royce Lewis, and Albernaz summoned Grant Wolfram to face Josh Bell.
Wolfram fell behind 2-1 before firing a middle-middle fastball to the power hitter. Bell skied the ball 407 feet, and the Twins led 7-1.
The Orioles scored a pair in the seventh behind a Leody Taveras triple, a double by Coby Mayo, and a run-scoring groundout by Christian Encarnacion-Strand.
The Twins added a few more in the bottom of the eighth. The Orioles brought the tying run to the on-deck circle after a two-run single by Coby Mayo in the ninth. You can check out the box score if you want the details. I’ve had enough.
The Orioles are 57-62.
