Steve Melewski

O's game blog: Out to avoid a five-game sweep

September 20, 2020, 8:36am

Orioles

O's game blog: Out to avoid a five-game sweep

The Orioles (22-31) will play their final home game of the 2020 season this afternoon when they host the Tampa Bay Rays (35-18) to wrap up a five-game series. The Orioles need a win to avoid a five-game sweep after Saturday night's 3-1 loss. The Birds are 11-9 against National League teams, but 11-22 against the American League, facing only East Division teams this season. They swept Tampa Bay very early in the year, but have since lost six in a row to the Rays. Five of the nine games between...

Tags:

As offense struggles, the starting pitching continues to impress

September 19, 2020, 8:32pm

Orioles

As offense struggles, the starting pitching continues to impress

The Orioles rotation has gotten younger, but the best news is that it has gotten better in recent weeks. Three rookies have made their debuts in Keegan Akin, Dean Kremer and Bruce Zimmermann. Akin and Kremer have combined to go 2-1 with an ERA of 2.01 in their seven starts. And even at a time when the Orioles are not scoring much, they are 4-3 in those games. Zimmermann gave up five runs in his major league debut. But even adding in that start, the rookies have an ERA of 3.15 over eight starts...

Tags:

alexander wells bruce zimmerman dean kremer don long evan phillips frontstory_orioles2 jorge lopez keegan akin kevin smith michael baumann orioles steve melewski zac lowther

O's game blog: Trying to break through in series with Tampa Bay

September 19, 2020, 12:56pm

Orioles

O's game blog: Trying to break through in series with Tampa Bay

The Orioles' last homestand of the 2020 season got off to a promising start. They took two of three games from Atlanta and held the very strong Braves offense to seven runs. But the Orioles have lost the last three games by 3-1, 10-6 and 2-1 to the Tampa Bay Rays. Tonight the clubs play the fourth game of a five-game series that ends Sunday. The Orioles were held to one run or none for the seventh time in the last 10 games in Friday's loss. They are 22-30 with eight games remaining. Baltimore...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski

Find a way: Farm pitchers get their work in even without games

September 18, 2020, 8:33pm

Orioles

Find a way: Farm pitchers get their work in even without games

Simply put, they are making the best of a rough situation. In a year without minor league baseball games, two Orioles top 30 prospect pitchers are still getting some innings in and trying to advance their careers. They have to work on their own but the Orioles are keeping tabs on them closely. This week I spoke with 20-year-old lefty Drew Rom and 22-year-old right-hander Brenan Hanifee. The Orioles took both out of high school in the fourth round of their respective drafts. Hanifee was drafted...

Tags:

brenan hanifee drew rom orioles steve melewski orioles farm report frontstory_orioles2

O's game blog: Alex Cobb faces his former team

September 18, 2020, 11:46am

Orioles

O's game blog: Alex Cobb faces his former team

The Orioles (22-29) have nine games remaining in the 2020 regular season. Their last home series of the year continues tonight as they host the Tampa Bay Rays (33-18) in the third game of a five-game series. The Rays swept Thursday's doubleheader by 3-1 and 10-6 scores. The Orioles fell to 3-4 on the season against the Rays. The clubs are 6-6 in the last 12 meetings. The O's lost the season series 7-12 to the Rays in 2019. The Orioles are 11-20 versus American League East teams this season...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski alex cobb isaac de leon

Remembering 1970: Powell and Buford on World Series win

September 18, 2020, 10:38am

Orioles

Remembering 1970: Powell and Buford on World Series win

When the Orioles and Cincinnati Reds met in the 1970 World Series, we didn't know it then but we were seeing something rare: a World Series between two clubs that won 100 or more games. It would not happen again until 2017. The Orioles have three World Series wins and this was their second one. The 108-win Birds beat the 102-win Big Red Machine, four games to one, winning Game 5 in Baltimore 9-3. For the second time in five seasons, the Orioles were champions. The Orioles are celebrating the...

Tags:

boog powell don buford orioles steve melewski 1970 world series brooks robinson featured_sidebar jim palmer frontstory_orioles2

Hunter Harvey sizes up his 2020 season, plus other notes

September 17, 2020, 8:45pm

Orioles

Hunter Harvey sizes up his 2020 season, plus other notes

No doubt the Orioles view right-hander Hunter Harvey as a valuable pitcher late in games in their bullpen both this year and beyond. But they also know they have to try to keep him healthy. He was out with a right forearm strain for more than half of this shortened season and was not activated until Aug. 30. The Orioles had already played 32 games. Harvey was called up in mid-August last year. If you look at his stats in 2019 and now for this season, he threw 6 1/3 innings then and now. But...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski bruce zimmermann featured_sidebar hunter harvey john means jorge lopez frontstory_orioles3

The rookies took the mound, but O's got swept in doubleheader

September 17, 2020, 6:17pm

Orioles

The rookies took the mound, but O's got swept in doubleheader

Who could blame left-hander Bruce Zimmermann if there were some nerves when he took the mound in the first inning tonight. He was not only making his big league debut, but doing it for his hometown team. Doing it on the same mound where he once pitched in the Brooks Robinson High School All-Star Game in 2013. And Zimmermann fell behind 3-0 after his first major league inning. He overthrew a slider and hit the second batter he faced, then walked the third, not getting some close pitches. Then he...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski bruce zimmermann cesar valdez dean kremer featured_sidebar john means jorge lopez keegan akin frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: Kremer and Zimmermann start in doubleheader

September 17, 2020, 12:24pm

Orioles

O's game blog: Kremer and Zimmermann start in doubleheader

The Orioles will send two rookie pitchers to the mound today as they host the Tampa Bay Rays in a doubleheader. This begins the last home series of the year for the Orioles, as the clubs will play five games in the next four days. Right-hander Dean Kremer (1-0, 1.64 ERA) will start Game 1 and Baltimorean Bruce Zimmermann will make his major league debut as the lefty starts Game 2. Zimmermann will become the fifth Oriole to make his major league debut in 2020 when he takes the mound. Since this...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski bruce zimmermann dean kremer frontstory_orioles1

As Bruce Zimmermann arrives, add another young arm to rotation

September 17, 2020, 10:18am

Orioles

As Bruce Zimmermann arrives, add another young arm to rotation

The Orioles' improving rotation will see another young starter get his chance tonight. Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann, an Ellicott City product who grew up rooting for the Orioles, will get the start in Game 2 of the doubleheader with Tampa Bay. That is after another young pitcher, right-hander Dean Kremer, starts Game 1. And after another young pitcher, homegrown lefty Keegan Akin, threw five scoreless last night against a very strong lineup and first-place team in the Atlanta Braves. Akin is...

Tags:

bruce zimmermann steve melewski brandon hyde featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

What would expanded playoffs in 2021 mean for O's, plus other notes

September 16, 2020, 7:58pm

Orioles

What would expanded playoffs in 2021 mean for O's, plus other notes

It was not a big surprise when we learned this week that Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred has designs on making this year's expanded 16-team playoffs permanent. The reasons for this would start with a big one: money. Extra dollars are clearly generated and that benefits both players and owners. This also will allow for pennant races to include more teams. In 2019 we saw five playoff teams, and now there would be eight in each league. That is more than half of each league that...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski dean kremer featured_sidebar keegan akin mlb frontstory_orioles3

Keegan Akin delivers latest strong start for the Orioles

September 16, 2020, 6:11pm

Orioles

So much for a first-inning knockout. Orioles lefty Keegan Akin bounced back tonight in a big way from his early exit Friday night at Yankee Stadium. He set a career high with nine strikeouts in five scoreless innings and picked up his first career win as the Orioles beat Atlanta 5-1 to win the three-game series. It was the latest strong outing by Akin and the latest for an O's rotation that is making a nice late-season kick. Akin allowed three singles and walked one. He pitched out of jams...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar hanser alberto keegan akin renato nunez frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: The series finale with Atlanta

September 16, 2020, 12:41pm

Orioles

O's game blog: The series finale with Atlanta

The Orioles wrap up their series with the first-place Atlanta Braves tonight at Oriole Park. They crushed the Braves 14-1 on Monday but had just four hits in last night's 5-1 loss. So the series will be decided in the rubber game matchup tonight. The Orioles (21-27) have lost six of their last seven games. In five of their past six games they have scored one run or none. They are 0-17 this season when scoring three or fewer runs. The Orioles are playing .438 ball and they are six games better...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski frontstory_orioles1

How the O's teach English as a second language to young Latin players

September 15, 2020, 8:30pm

Orioles

How the O's teach English as a second language to young Latin players

When the Orioles sign a young international prospect at 16 from the Dominican Republic or Venezuela, they surely dream of a day when that player will be on their major league team. Maybe even become a star player on a team that can win the World Series. But these Latin American players must travel a long road before any of that can happen, and that entails more than developing their baseball skills. Most speak little or no English. And while there are plenty of Spanish-speaking coaches when...

Tags:

anaima garcia orioles steve melewski orioles farm report frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: O's host Braves as series continues

September 15, 2020, 2:31pm

Orioles

O's game blog: O's host Braves as series continues

After being swept in New York, the Orioles began their last homestand of the 2020 season in impressive fashion last night. They produced a season-high 14 runs and their biggest win margin of this year, beating Atlanta, 14-1. In the first five innings the top four in the O's order - Cedric Mullins, JosÃ© Iglesias, DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle - went a combined 11-for-15 with three homers and 13 RBIs as the O's built a 13-0 lead. The win snapped a run of five straight losses. According to...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski

O's used season-high five homegrown players in lineup last night

September 15, 2020, 12:32pm

Orioles

O's used season-high five homegrown players in lineup last night

The Orioles' 14-1 romp over the first-place Atlanta Braves last night had a distinct homegrown flavor. In Cedric Mullins, DJ Stewart, Ryan Mountcastle, Chance Sisco and Austin Hays, the Orioles had five homegrown players in their starting lineup. That was the most of any game this season. The five helped the club produce a season high in runs as they combined for nine hits, including two home runs and nine RBIs. Hays just rejoined the club Monday, coming off the injured list. He had been out...

Tags:

austin hays orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

Another look at the most lopsided win of the 2020 season

September 14, 2020, 8:44pm

Orioles

Another look at the most lopsided win of the 2020 season

It was stunning, surprising, unexpected. All of that and maybe more. The Orioles scored three runs over four games at Yankee Stadium and then they scored nine in the last of the third last night. And it was against the first-place Atlanta Braves. The Orioles won via a 14-1 blowout, producing more runs than they have in any game this year, and their biggest margin of victory. They had 16 hits in four games over the weekend and 15 last night. They hit two home runs in the entire series in New...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski austin hays cedric mullins chance sisco dj stewart featured_sidebar jorge lopez jose iglesias ryan mountcastle

A few notes on a huge night of O's offense

September 14, 2020, 6:09pm

Orioles

A few notes on a huge night of O's offense

After a weekend where the Orioles scored three runs in four losses at Yankee Stadium, we didn't have to wait long to see if the club would break out tonight. The Orioles led 10-0 by the third inning and the top four in their order were putting up crazy numbers. They piled it on to beat the first-place Atlanta Braves 14-1 in a blowout win to start a three-game series and eight-game homestand against first-place teams. In the four games at New York, the Orioles batted .138 (16-for-116) and went...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski cedric mullins dj stewart featured_sidebar jorge lopez jose iglesias pat valaika ryan mountcastle frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: The final homestand begins

September 14, 2020, 2:17pm

Orioles

O's game blog: The final homestand begins

Things move fast in a shortened 60-game season and the final homestand will begin tonight. The Orioles (20-26) will host the Atlanta Braves (28-19) to start a three-game series and an eight-game homestand versus first-place teams. Tampa Bay is in town beginning Thursday. The Braves lead the National League East by 3 1/2 games over Miami and by four over Philadelphia. Atlanta just won three out of four at Washington, a series that began a day after Wednesday's 29-9 win over Miami. The Braves...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski frontstory_orioles1 jorge lopez

Tanner Scott looks to bounce back, get strong year rolling again

September 14, 2020, 1:06pm

Orioles

Tanner Scott looks to bounce back, get strong year rolling again

If a relief pitcher gets to the mound enough, even one that is having a good season, eventually something will go wrong. For 26-year-old Orioles bullpen lefty Tanner Scott, yesterday was that day. He entered with two on and two outs in a 1-1 tie in the last of the eighth to face Brett Gardner. But Gleyber Torres had not started for New York and was sent up as a pinch-hitter. Torres took a 97 mph Scott fastball for ball one. Then Scott threw another 97 mph heater. It was down in the zone, but...