Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Miracles do occur: the Orioles actually can score some runs every once in a while. Yesterday they released more than a week’s worth of offensive frustration by putting up a 10-spot on the Rangers, clubbing 15 hits, tied for their third most of the season. Pete Alonso erupted for his first multi-homer game as an Oriole, eight O’s batters had at least one hit, and the Birds averted a three-game sweep with a rare stress-free, blowout victory. Check out Mark Brown’s recap
of the decisive win.
That’s the good news. The bad news is that the Orioles’ overall series in Arlington sunk them further out of the playoff picture. They entered the series on Friday just one game back of the Rangers for the third wild card spot, but the Orioles’ no-show offensive efforts in the first two games cost them valuable ground. Because of their flailing, not only are they now two games back of Texas, but they also trail three other teams — the Twins, Guardians, and the Tigers, who leapfrogged the Birds this weekend. Even the Mariners and Blue Jays are closer to catching the Orioles than the Orioles are to catching the Rangers. One team will eventually rise above all the rest in this battle for mediocrity, but it’s increasingly unlikely to be the O’s.
The Orioles are now off to face another one of that crowded field of wild-card candidates, the Twins, in a three-game series in Minnesota starting tonight. Normally this is where I would write, “This is a hugely important series!!!1!1!!” but…honestly, I’m not feeling it anymore. I think we’re at the point where the Orioles’ season is too far gone to save.
Their offensive woes have become the norm rather than the exception. Before yesterday, the O’s had scored only 11 total runs in their seven games in August. A lineup that is missing Samuel Basallo and Blaze Alexander, and that inexplicably continues to employ Gunnar Henderson’s .294 OBP in the top third of the order, is going to continue to struggle to score runs. We can all pretty much agree that a Dean Kremer Revenge Game is coming tonight, right?
Anything less than sweeping the Twins is going to continue to close the door on the Orioles’ 2026 playoff hopes. And even if the O’s do manage to keep their heads above water in Minnesota, their next 10 games are against the two best teams in the American League, the Rays and Yankees. That brutal stretch is almost certain to bury the Orioles if their goose isn’t cooked already.
The postseason math is looking pretty bleak. But I suppose nothing’s over until it’s over. If the O’s can carry the momentum of yesterday’s 10-run outburst into the Land of 10,000 Lakes, maybe they’ve still got a fighting chance. But it’s going to require a stretch of red-hot, winning baseball that we’ve rarely seen from this team.
Links
Something was missing for Grayson Rodriguez when he faced Orioles – BaltimoreBaseball.com
Speaking of Revenge Games, Grayson had a pretty good one at Oriole Park for the Angels last week, though the Birds managed to win. I’m surprised how few of the current Orioles hitters were ever teammates with him.
Pete Alonso continues to be awesome. I wish I could say the same about most of the other guys in this lineup.
Great! Can they hit?
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Three former Orioles were born on Aug. 10: first baseman Dan Johnson (47), catcher Sal Fasano (55), and the late right-hander Bob Chakales (b. 1927, d. 2010) of the inaugural 1954 Orioles.
On this date in 1963, Boog Powell crushed three home runs against the Washington Senators, but the O’s still lost, 6-5. All three blasts were solo shots. The other two Orioles runs were driven in by utility man Bob Johnson, who was starting at third base, snapping Brooks Robinson’s streak of 463 consecutive starts at the hot corner for the Orioles.
On this day in 1981, a newly promoted 20-year-old O’s prospect by the name of Cal Ripken Jr. made his major league debut, pinch-running for Ken Singleton in the bottom of the 12th inning against the Royals. Fittingly enough, the future Hall of Famer scored the game-winning run in his debut, scoring on John Lowenstein’s walkoff single.
In 1996, Eddie Murray hit his 18th career grand slam, which at the time tied him with Willie McCovey for second most in MLB history. (He now ranks fourth, behind Alex Rodriguez, Lou Gehrig, and Manny Ramirez.) Murray’s salami was part of an eight-run ninth inning for the Orioles, turning a slim 5-4 lead into a 13-4 blowout of the White Sox.
In 1999, the Orioles routed the Rays, 17-1, and they did it without hitting any home runs. The O’s racked up an eye-popping 20 hits, and every batter in the lineup had at least one hit and scored at least once. Six different Orioles had multi-hit games, including Mike Bordick, who went 4-for-6 with two doubles and five RBIs. The game got so out of hand that Hall of Fame third baseman Wade Boggs made a pitching appearance for the Rays, the second (and final) of his 18-year career.
But on this date in back-to-back seasons, the Orioles embarrassed themselves. In 2018, they were mathematically eliminated in the AL East with a gruesome 19-12 loss to the Red Sox that dropped them 46.5 games behind with 46 games to play. It marked the earliest date in baseball history that a team had been mathematically eliminated. The Orioles gave up 16 hits and 10 walks in the game. Starter Dylan Bundy was tagged for eight runs, and three relievers — Miguel Castro, Donnie Hart, and Evan Phillips — each surrendered three or more.
And in 2019, the Orioles were obliterated by the Astros, 23-2. Houston set franchise bests for runs scored (23) and extra-base hits (13) in a game. Yordan Alvarez hit three homers and drove in seven on his way to winning AL Rookie of the Year, and five other Astros also had three or more hits. Orioles pitchers Aaron Brooks (nine runs), Branden Kline (five), and Tayler Scott (six) were hit hard, as was utility man Stevie Wilkerson, who gave up three runs in a mop-up pitching appearance. Woof. That 2019 Orioles team was unwatchable.
