As bad as it felt trudging through this week, it's definitely a testament to how good this season has been that 3-4 feels like the end of the world. It could also be how each game played out, with a strange reversal of contributions. Our pitching was pretty strong, while the offense went uncharacteristically quiet. 25 runs over the course of seven games, or 3.6 runs per game, is way down from the 5.3 RPG they boasted coming into the week. New York and Texas are each teams with strong starters, so that surely plays into the regression. But hopefully it's not a concern moving forward.
Regardless, let's look back:
Record since Last Orioles Report: 3-4
Overall Record: 34-20
Three in the Bronx
Game one up in New York was a tough one. Adam Frazier kicked things off with a two RBI double, followed by Cedric Mullins and Gunnar Henderson solo bombs to build an early 4-0 lead. The Bombers clawed back, tying things up in the fifth off of Kyle Bradish. Terrin Vavra helped to put Baltimore back in front an inning later, setting the table for a gut-wrenching, game-tying home run from Aaron Judge...with two strikes and two outs in the ninth off of Felix Bautista. Devastating.
The Yankees finished the job in the bottom of the tenth, thanks to an Anthony Volpe sacrifice fly. Brutal way to kick off the series.
As horrible as game one was...game two on Wednesday was the polar opposite. After trailing for much of the first six innings, the Orioles erased a 5-1 deficit with an immaculate eight run 7th, with contributions from Adam Frazier, Gunnar, Mountcastle, Santander and Austin Hays. Mychal Givens loaded the bases and allowed a run during the bottom of that same inning, which was a mortifying moment to those still riding the high from the comeback. But Danny Coloumbe and Felix came to the rescue though, locking down the rest of the game for a 9-6 notch in the win column.
Things wrapped up Thursday with a dominant, yet slightly less thrilling 3-1 dub. Kyle Gibson was excellent, hurling for seven scoreless en route to his sixth decision win. Nothing over the top about his performance, just a steady, efficient showing. Santander continued his strong series with a 3-3 day and an RBI, while Austin Hays tacked on the other two runs with a double. Taking two of three from the Yankees...gotta love it.
Rangers in Town for a Trio
As nice as Wednesday's eight run explosion was for the Orioles, it didn't quite hit the same when Texas laid the same on us. The Birds were trailing 2-1 entering the fourth, but G-Rod had been fine overall, outside of a hanger that Leody Taveras' ripped onto Eutaw Street. Then it got ugly...eight merciless runs that chased the rookie out of the game with eight earned.
It was all but over from there, even for our comeback kids. Adley went 3-3 with a dinger, Austin Hays stayed sharp with two hits, and we even got to watch Ryan McKenna pitch an inning! A few positives outside of a disastrous start for Rodriguez.
Dean Kremer had a much more stable start on Saturday for the Birds, recording one out in the seventh before getting the hook. He gave up five hits, three earned runs and walked two. The offense couldn't deliver against Andrew Heaney though, getting shutout until an Austin Hays home run in the bottom of the seventh. A late push by Ramon Urias and Mountcastle wasn't enough to bring Baltimore back, falling 5-3 in the middle game of three.
The weekend ended on a high note however! Kyle Bradish was great again, allowing four hits and one walk in 6.2 of work, with just one earned run and four strikeouts. On the offensive side of things...guess who! Austin Hays had an RBI single in the 1st and one for the go ahead run in the 8th to stay hot and prevent a bad sweep at Camden Yards. 3-2 Orioles.
Game One vs. the Guardians
Crappy note to wrap up this report on... Cleveland came to town for an afternoon affair on a beautiful Memorial Day against our Birds and snatched up game one of three without much resistance. Tyler Wells only gave up one through six with 7 K's, but Cionel Perez melted in the seventh, allowing four runs on just a third of an inning. He'd been throwing better, but this was ugly. 5-0 defeat.
Cedric Mullins potential groin injury...could also be ugly. Brandon Hyde didn't seem super optimistic when addressing the ailment to the press after the game. Hoping it's just a few weeks rather than a few months, but regardless, not what this team needed amidst this little skid.
Farm Report
-Dillon Tate allowed two hits and walked one in just two-thirds of an inning for Norfolk. It seems like he's much further from 100% than previously anticipated and that another stint on the IL could be in order
-DL Hall and Drew Rom got uncharacteristically lit up by Memphis, each giving up six earned runs while lasting just 1.2 innings into their starts
-Daz Cameron had seven hits and six RBI to stay productive for the Tides, while Lewin Diaz had six hits and nine RBI of his own during a three home run week
-Connor Norby raised his batting average twenty points while collecting four extra base hits
-Cade Povich struck out seven over five for Bowie, allowing two runs on two hits
-Justin Armbruester continues to establish himself in the Baysox' rotation as well, allowing just three hits in five scoreless Saturday, lowering his ERA to a pristine 1.40
-Donta' Williams had his best week of the season at the plate, going 4/12 with his first two dingers of 2023 and five RBI
-Jackson Holliday's streak of reaching base safely ended on Sunday, May 28th with an 0-4 day. He previously had reached safely in every game since September 2nd of last year
-Hudson Haskin had a productive rehab stint in Aberdeen, batting .333 with five RBI and four walks
-Stop me if you've heard this before...but Jean Pinto was easily the starter of the week. He gave up two hits and a walk in five scoreless innings to go along with eight K's
-Elio Prado hit .400 in four games vs. Lynchburg, scoring six times and hitting his third home run out of Perdue Stadium
-The lefty Deivy Cruz had a nice week for the Shorebirds, allowing five hits and two earned runs in 8.2 innings over two appearances
-Creed Willems and Dougie Hodo got well earned promotions up to Aberdeen Tuesday morning
Concluding Thoughts
Grayson Rodriguez' demotion back to Norfolk, albeit disappointing, is far from a disaster scenario for the rookie. His stuff's been incredible when it's been on, he's just got to clean up some of the control issues. It's clear he's got the best stuff of any starter on the team, but the walks and missed spots were really starting to add up. The kid's a competitor and will undoubtedly use this as motivation, rather than a sign of failure. This won't be the last time we see him on the big league roster this year.
It felt like this offense was going to have more than enough pop to compete, but the last two weeks have led me to believe one more solid, veteran bat might be necessary to really make a push in 2023. Austin Hays has been awesome, Adley seems to be settling in as a .280 guy himself, Cedric was raking. But outside of those three, it's been pretty inconsistent. And now one of them is set to miss some time... Curious if Elias makes a move to bolster the lineup from a fellow big league squad, or with an in-house jolt in the form of a Jordan Westburg/Colton Cowser call up?
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@Choppinglines
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