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First baseman Ryan Mountcastle made a diving stop of Yoán Moncada’s ground ball tonight and outraced him to the bag to record the out and prevent at least one more run from scoring. Elvis Andrus struck out, and Spenser Watkins caught a break only down 2-0 in the first inning.
On many nights in 2022, that play would launch a comeback for the Orioles. Their starter would get on a roll, they’d string together some hits, and the outcome would strengthen the belief that they have the stamina to stay in the wild card chase.
They still feel that way. Their confidence won’t erode. And Watkins didn’t allow another run. But the Orioles couldn’t push past the White Sox, who kept the lead and won 5-3 at Camden Yards.
Austin Hays slugged a two-run homer off Liam Hendriks in the ninth, his 300th career hit, but a fifth attempt to move seven games above .500 failed, dropping the Orioles to 64-59.
Watkins stranded a runner in each of his next four innings and retired the side in order in the sixth on three ground balls. The White Sox hadn’t cashed in much during this series, leaving 27 on base.
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde is breaking out his reverse-splits lineup again tonight with the White Sox starting right-hander Lucas Giolito.
Robinson Chirinos is catching and Adley Rutschman is serving as the designated hitter. Terrin Vavra and Kyle Stowers are on the bench.
Shortstop Jorge Mateo is batting eighth tonight for the 20th time. He’s batted second once, fifth in three games, sixth in four, seventh in 16 and ninth in 65.
Mateo is slashing .294/.342/.538 with nine doubles, four triples, six home runs, 25 RBIs and 27 runs scored in his last 44 games since July 1, and .317/.355/.574 with seven doubles, two triples, five home runs, 20 RBIs and 20 runs scored in 29 games since the All-Star break. His .929 OPS in the second half ranks 11th in the American League.
Hyde could elevate Mateo in certain matchups, but he doesn’t want to mess with a good thing.
The Orioles are adding a new reliever to the bullpen, claiming right-hander Phoenix Sanders from the Rays earlier today.
Sanders won’t report before Thursday. He’s filling the vacant spot on the 40-man roster.
The Rays designated Sanders, 27, for assignment two days ago. He made eight appearances this season as a rookie and allowed five runs and 12 hits with three walks and 12 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings.
Sanders, who was born in Germany, has registered a 3.35 ERA and 1.151 WHIP in five minor league seasons. He’s struck out 313 batters in 258 innings, walked 71 and surrendered only 28 home runs.
The 2022 season didn’t go smoothly at Triple-A Durham. Sanders posted a 5.40 ERA and 1.367 WHIP in 25 appearances, though he walked only two batters and struck out 36 in 30 innings.
While the Orioles chase their playoff dreams in 2022, they know where they’ll begin the 2023 season and which opponent will be their first at Camden Yards.
Opening day for the Orioles is set for Thursday, March 30 against the Red Sox at Fenway Park. A trip to Texas follows before their first home game on April 6 against the Yankees.
The homestand includes three games versus the Athletics before trips to Chicago and D.C.
The last regular season series consists of four games against the Red Sox at Camden Yards, the last on Oct. 1, after the Orioles host the Nationals for two.
The All-Star break runs from July 10-13, after a four-game series in the Bronx and three games in Minnesota. The second half begins with visits from the Marlins and Dodgers.
A new format reduces the number of division opponents, with every team appearing on the schedule.
Other National League visitors include the Pirates on May 12-14, the Reds on June 26-28, the Mets on Aug. 4-6, the Rockies on Aug. 25-27 and the Cardinals on Sept. 11-13.
The Mets series features manager Buck Showalter’s return to Baltimore, his first since the conclusion of the 2018 season.
The Orioles travel to Atlanta on May 5-7, San Francisco on June 2-4, Milwaukee on June 6-8, Chicago’s Wrigley Field on June 16-18, Philadelphia on July 24-26, San Diego on Aug. 14-16, and Arizona on Sept. 1-3.
The longest road trips involve Detroit, Kansas City and Atlanta, an August swing through Seattle, San Diego and Oakland, and a September excursion to Arizona, Anaheim and Boston. Each series consisting of nine games in 10 days.
The Orioles go to Houston and Cleveland back-to-back in September, which repeats their upcoming trip.
All six games against the Tigers will be played in April.
The schedule shows games played on Easter Sunday (April 9 vs. the Yankees), Mother’s Day (May 14 vs. the Pirates), and Memorial Day (May 29 vs. the Guardians).
Times will be finalized at a later date.
Jorge Mateo made his 108th start at shortstop last night, his status as the position’s caretaker long ago established.
But what about 2023?
Gunnar Henderson is baseball’s No. 1 or 2 prospect, depending on the rankings, and his debut is coming. He played second base again last night with Triple-A Norfolk, his fifth consecutive game on the right side of the infield, including two at first base. But he’s a shortstop getting his footing at other spots for roster flexibility with the Orioles – if he is, indeed, promoted in 2022.
Beyond that, he’s always been projected as their shortstop unless Jordan Westburg pushed him to third. Or if Joey Ortiz pushed him to third.
It’s never been about Mateo, but now it must be, because, well, look at him.
Moving away from the American League East doesn’t necessarily feel like a great escape for the Orioles.
They host the White Sox for three games and travel to Houston and Cleveland. Two leaders of their own divisions and a team battling for a wild card spot. Everyone with something to play for during the fourth week of August.
“They’re good,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “No breaks here.”
The Orioles caught one in the first inning tonight when Dylan Cease hung a slider that Ryan Mountcastle turned into a three-run homer to trump Eloy Jiménez’s two-run shot off Austin Voth in the top half. And two more when balls that would have been home runs in past years ricocheted off the top of the left field wall, forcing the White Sox to settle for doubles measured at 405 and 402 feet.
Voth bent a lot without snapping, and the Orioles made the most of a few clutch swings in a 5-3 win at Camden Yards.
Tyler Wells threw his first bullpen session this afternoon since experiencing soreness in his left oblique during a July 27 start.
Wells has been playing catch in the outfield. Today marked another important advancement in his quest to rejoin the Orioles pitching staff next month.
“Went well, felt really good,” Wells said. “Just another step in the process that we’ve kind of decided on was, feeling good enough to get out there. Felt really good, no issues, and just pleased with it.”
Wells called it a “normal” bullpen session, with more than just fastballs thrown.
“Today was a good feel day to just move down the mound and get a good feel for it,” he said.
The Orioles are 2 ½ games out of the last wild card spot, but they moved ahead of the Twins without playing last night and begin another important series against the White Sox at Camden Yards.
Chicago is four back in the wild card race.
No moves were made today to alter the Orioles’ active roster. All they did was reinstate infielder Jonathan Araúz from the 10-day injured list and option him to Triple-A Norfolk.
If shortstop Gunnar Henderson is making his major league debut this week, it won’t happen tonight.
Terrin Vavra is batting fifth and playing second base. Rougned Odor is at third base.
The Orioles begin a crucial non-division series tonight with the White Sox in town for three games.
Crucial no longer seems like a necessary designation. It's redundant. They're all big.
Every tie-breaking scenario comes into play with a packed wild card race, and the Orioles won three of four in Chicago back in June. Head-to-head results are important.
They missed out on a sweep after Dylan Cease, who starts tonight, held them to one run and struck out 13 batters in seven innings. They scored two unearned runs in the ninth off Kendall Graveman after consecutive errors by first baseman José Abreu in a 4-3 loss.
So long ago that Jonathan Arauz homered and had a run-scoring single.
Grayson Rodriguez is confident that he’ll pitch again in September.
The progress he’s making from a strained lat suggests that he’s right.
The Orioles say Rodriguez is scheduled for another bullpen session, followed by live batting practice and a simulated game. All of it happening this week down in Sarasota, Fla.
A prolonged shutdown period led to flat-ground throwing with increased distances, a half-mound session and then regular bullpen sessions.
Throwing live batting practice and in a sim game finally allow Rodriguez to face hitters as he nears a return.
Left-hander DL Hall didn’t make it out of the bullpen yesterday at Triple-A Norfolk, if that’s where he sits when he isn’t scheduled to pitch.
He wasn’t on the lineup card. And he didn’t pitch.
The Orioles want Hall back in the majors as a power arm coming out of the bullpen. They’re shortening his outings and intend to do the same with his rest periods.
But not yet, apparently.
The minors shut down on Mondays except for the Florida Complex League, which went dark yesterday. Hall could get a few innings Tuesday night in Jacksonville.
The Orioles are in Williamsport, Pa. tonight for the Little League Classic and their first appearance in ESPN’s primetime game in four years.
Outfielder Yusniel Diaz has joined the team as its 27th man, an unexpected perk considering this isn’t a doubleheader.
Diaz struck out in his major league debut on Aug. 2 after a temporary promotion at the trade deadline.
The Orioles are 2 ½ games back for the last wild card spot. The Twins are one game ahead of the Orioles, and the White Sox are a half-game behind.
There’s a traffic jam in this race.
If you’re inclined to read a little or a lot into a player’s position change, Gunnar Henderson starting at second base last night at Triple-A Norfolk is a real page turner.
Henderson made his first career starts at first base in the past two games and moved to second last night, where his only experience was one game with high Single-A Aberdeen in 2021. He played five innings but didn’t start.
What’s going on with Henderson?
The same thing that put him at first base.
The Orioles want Henderson to get comfortable on the right side of the infield and increase their options if his contract is selected, which seems like a lock. They can use his left-handed bat in multiple ways, and the roster gains more flexibility.
The Orioles will try to clinch their series against the Red Sox today after moving within 1 ½ games of the last wild card spot.
They improved last night to 6-4 against the Red Sox after going 6-13 in 2021.
Michael Wacha’s reverse splits have produced a right-handed heavy lineup for the Orioles.
Austin Hays is leading off and playing left field, and Ryan McKenna is in center. Cedric Mullins is on the bench.
Also missing from the lineup are Rougned Odor and rookie Kyle Stowers. Tyler Nevin is playing third base, with Ramón Urías moving to second.
With Ryan Ripken no longer playing baseball and venturing into the sports media world, he’s finding platforms to pass along his knowledge of the game and opinions on prospects who were teammates or simply caught his eye from the sidelines.
Ripken created a Twitter account this year and used it to announce his retirement, though he hasn’t ruled out a return to the field if the right opportunity becomes available. Cal’s son will always be an Orioles fan, and he’s enjoying their resurgence this year and presence in the wild card race.
“Let’s be honest, no one expected it this year,” he said. “It’s been cool. Happy for a lot of the guys, especially that I know.”
Shortstop Gunnar Henderson could debut this summer. He turned 21 on June 29 and is battering older Triple-A pitching.
“He was one of the guys that, when you met him, you knew he was special,” Ripken said. “Obviously, his success has been tremendous. He’s so young and he’s adjusting so quickly is what I think has been so impressive.”
Jorge Mateo leaped in the air tonight as his fly ball cleared the left field wall, pumped his fist above his head and stuck the landing. The two runners ahead of him kept circling the bases. Mateo walked back to touch first with hands still clenched.
Every at-bat seems to matter more in a pennant race, and especially for an offense that’s sputtered in the early innings. Mateo can be forgiven for hurdling the bag after wiping out a two-run deficit.
Those same hands must have tightened in frustration before opening again for high-fives in the victory line.
The Orioles built a six-run lead and almost lost it the fifth, but they tied a season high with five homers and outlasted the Red Sox 15-10 before an announced crowd of 33,136 at Camden Yards.
The Red Sox responded to Mateo’s homer by scoring twice in their next at-bat to reclaim the lead, the Orioles got it right back on Anthony Santander’s two-run shot, and then the game veered into crazy.
Kyle Stowers is starting in right field tonight and batting fifth for the Orioles, and he’s going to play regularly against right-handed pitching. This isn’t presented as another brief look at one of their prospects.
The Orioles selected Stowers' contract today from Triple-A Norfolk, his real debut on the 40-man roster after serving as a substitute player in Toronto.
“Stowers is going to see quite a bit of action in the outfield,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “Every day we’ll look at matchups. It’s good to get guys off their feet, also. We’re in late August and just try to rotate those guys around as much as possible.”
Asked about the timing of Stowers’ arrival, Hyde said, “Just feel like he’s ready to contribute for us. He’s had a nice year in Triple-A and we’re excited about his future, and looking forward to watching him play up here.”
The Orioles have wanted more hitting from the left side, and the upcoming slate of games magnifies the importance.
The Orioles made a series of roster moves this afternoon, selecting outfielder Kyle Stowers’ contract from Triple-A Norfolk and recalling infielder Richie Martin and left-hander Nick Vespi.
Outfielder Brett Phillips was designated for assignment, infielder/outfielder Terrin Vavra went on the paternity list, and reliever Logan Gillaspie was optioned to Norfolk.
Stowers made his major league debut in June while the Orioles were in Toronto, serving as a substitute player due to Anthony Santander’s previous vaccination status, and he went 1-for-7 with a double, RBI and four strikeouts. He’s batting .264/.357/.527 with 29 doubles, three triples, 19 home runs, 78 RBIs, 45 walks and 104 strikeouts in 407 plate appearances with Norfolk.
MLBPipeline.com ranks Stowers as the No. 9 prospect in the system, and Baseball America has him 11th. He leads the organization in home runs and RBIs, and is tied with infielder Jordan Westburg for first in doubles.
Phillips, acquired from the Rays at the trade deadline for cash considerations, was 2-for-17 with two doubles and nine strikeouts.
Terrin Vavra didn’t work out at first base yesterday, his early reps coming in right field before playing his first major league game on that side. Infield instructor Tony Mansolino might get his pupil back on Friday. Other lessons waiting for the rookie.
The Orioles came to Vavra last week with the idea of shifting some of his work to first base. The initial set of ground balls were hit Sunday morning at Tropicana Field, and the club has integrated cutoffs, relays, double plays, bunt plays, pickoffs and short hops.
“Just trying to familiarize me with it in the event that there’s an opportunity and be ready for it,” Vavra said.
“The game’s the game. It’s just where you’re standing out there. There’s little things that come with time and experience playing each position, but I like to think that I can handle the situation pretty good and give my best effort and do a pretty good job anywhere.”
Trey Mancini’s trade to the Astros has caused the Orioles to sort through their options, and creating new ones, in case of injury.
The Orioles are in a pennant race and the offense has a disturbing tendency to slow to a crawl.
No baserunners for eight innings Sunday in St. Petersburg, Fla., none for six innings yesterday in Toronto. Two runs total in the losses.
Cedric Mullins had the first Orioles hit this afternoon with a two-out triple in the third inning, and Cubs starter Adrian Sampson didn’t allow another until Austin Hays doubled with one out in the fifth and was thrown out at the plate.
The pressure on the starters and bullpen intensifies. Austin Voth tossed six scoreless innings yesterday, and Spenser Watkins blanked the Cubs today for 5 1/3 before Willson Contreras homered.
Contreras homered again off Joey Krehbiel in the eighth inning, and the Orioles were on the verge of being shut out for the eighth time this season. They took advantage of two walks in the bottom half to score twice, but the Cubs held on for a 3-2 win before an announced crowd of 19,454 at Camden Yards.
