During this game, I was wondering, “Who are these Orioles?” It’s still very refreshing to me to see a team that never loses momentum, never gives up, and keeps winning. I don’t know how to react!
But after seeing Gunnar Henderson dominating the at-bat, the bullpen keeping a clean sheet in 4.2 innings, Ryan O’Hearn hitting the game-winning home run off the left, and the Orioles winning three of four games against former No. 1 Tampa Bay Rays, I found the answer. They’re the best team in the American League, at least for now.
The Orioles started early against Taj Bradley, scoring one in the first and two in the second. In the first inning, first- and second-hitters Gunnar Henderson and Adley Latchman got to work right away. After Henderson hit an infield hit, Latchman followed with a double to center field to score the game’s first run.
With runners in scoring position and no outs, it would have been nice to have scored another point or two. However, Latchman was unable to get past second base, even though Austin Hayes picked a walk late in the inning.
However, they quickly fought back the second time. Ninth hitter Adam Frazier hit a two-out double to overturn the line-up and give Gunnar the run, the hottest man on the field right now. He did his job and fired a missile into right-midfield. It bounced off the catwalk and harmlessly returned to the field as the runners circled the base.
The Statcast numbers are interesting. 111.2 mph from the plate, an estimated distance of 446 feet, a projected batting average of 1.000, and a home run in all 30 of his parks. This gave Tyler Wells an early 3-0 lead.
Wells had a very strange start today and not in a good way. After last week’s disastrous game against the Dodgers, he needed to get back on track. he didn’t. He pitched just 4.1 innings and gave up three runs. Conceding three goals isn’t a bloodbath, but he seemed lost there, so it made sense to see Brandon Hyde come pick him up then.
What’s odd is that Wells gave up three runs and threw 77 pitches, but didn’t allow a single hit in the fifth inning. In fact, the Rays scored his first run of the game without hitting a hit. But Wells, who hasn’t walked many hitters in the past, seemed completely lost in the strike zone.
He started the first inning with a streak of 3-0 and was lucky enough to be out, but that was just the beginning of a worrying trend. He also hit a batter in that and two innings. The second HBP was a terrifying blow for Isaac Paredes, ricocheting off his helmet at 91 mph. Thankfully, he didn’t have to leave the game.
Poor management escalated further in the 4th inning. Wells walked Harold Ramirez and Randy Arrozarena, and Ramirez advanced to third on an out fly. The next batter, Brandon Law, chopped the ball to the right. Adam Frazier tried to start a double play, but the ball wasn’t hit in the right place. Although he got the first runner, Lowe broke the throw and returned it to first base. The Rays’ first run of the night scored.
In the bottom of the fourth, Mike Bauman started warming up in case Wells needed a quick hook. I was a little surprised to see it, but as his MASN announcer Kevin Brown said at the moment, Brandon Hyde was managing this series like his ALCS. And it makes sense. Even though it’s still July, this is a huge series, and a win today would not only give the Orioles a cushion to the top of the division, but would be a huge help in the event of a tie-break scenario.
Wells made it through the inning, but the cameras caught him in a heated conversation with Brandon Hyde between innings. Whatever was said, Wells returned for a fifth time to see if he could get his act together. he couldn’t He started in the fifth inning, walking Christian Besancourt, but allowed his only hit on that occasion. He’s Tyler Wells, so that hit was a home run. It was a draw match.
Wells took one out on a Wonder Franco flyout in the fifth, and that ended his night. That’s when the Mike Bauman show started. Big Mike came on, took two quick ground outs to end the inning, and pitched another two scoreless innings. It was huge in a game where starting pitchers had to leave early to finally get solid middle relief.
Baumann had two walks in the trip, including the leadoff hitter in six innings. It was pretty nerve-wracking for those of us who watched the Orioles this year and know the relief pitcher’s slump, but neither walk did anything positive. He allowed no hits and allowed two strikeouts.
After Wells hit the tying home run, it didn’t take long for the Orioles to even out the game. The Rays brought in lefty Colin Poche to face Ryan O’Hearn in the top of the sixth. That would normally be the end of O’Hearn’s day, but Poche was the only left-handed pitcher in the Rays’ bullpen, and just the sixth. So O’Hearn stayed and hit a home run. Reverse home run! how about that? The ball kept going and hit the foul pole, giving the Orioles a 4-3 lead.
In the 7th inning, he added another run without an earned run. Colton Cowser sucked two balls early in the game to no avail, but hit a chopper to third base that Paredes couldn’t handle. Henderson advanced to second base on a one-out walk. Lachman worked the count well at bat, but ultimately failed to bring in Cowser.
As a result, Anthony Santander fell into a bit of a slump. Still, this AB didn’t flinch and singled to his right field seat. Cowser scored for the fifth and final run of the game to make it 5-3.
If you thought Hyde would avoid using Yenie Kano and Felix Bautista today, you forgot he was managing this series the same way he did the playoffs. Kano came out in the eighth, and to me he looked tired even before he pitched, but he looked pretty good. He went 1-2-3 through the first inning with ground balls, fly balls, and strikeouts. A wide selection!
In the ninth it was Bautista and although he looked good overall, things weren’t so smooth for him. Jorge Mateo missed a grounder in the middle and went to first base with one out, and Yandi Diaz hit a single to the right after two outs. However, Bautista struck out Brandon Lowe on the final out to end the game.
What a victory! What a series. The Orioles are currently two games behind in Tampa Bay in the AL East and will head to the coast tomorrow for a three-game series in Philadelphia. Let’s hope the offense can score 10 points this game so Kano and Bautista can rest.
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