Steve Melewski

O's come back from four runs down, but rally falls short

August 16, 2020, 12:46pm

Orioles

O's come back from four runs down, but rally falls short

It wasn't the first time. Or the second. But the third time the Orioles faced three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, they finally got to him. They sure did. His former catcher, Pedro Severino, unloaded a three-run homer to left that pulled the Orioles from 5-1 behind to within 5-4. On an afternoon that had the look for a while of a not today day, the Orioles' relentless offense kept plugging away. An inning later, Anthony Santander's second homer of the afternoon tied the game at 5-5...

Tags:

O's game blog: Shooting for another series win

August 16, 2020, 8:50am

Orioles

O's game blog: Shooting for another series win

The Orioles will try to continue their weekend success today when they wrap up a three-game series with the Washington Nationals. The Orioles are 9-2 on weekends and 3-0 in weekend series. It started when they went 2-1 at Boston and then later swept Tampa Bay three straight at home. They swept three at Washington last weekend. The completion of the suspended game happened Friday, but that game counts officially as an Aug. 9 contest. This weekend, the Orioles lost 15-3 Friday night and rebounded...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski anthony santander frontstory_orioles2 hanser alberto john means pedro severino rio ruiz

Notes on O's 20-game start, the bullpen and more

August 15, 2020, 9:13pm

Orioles

Notes on O's 20-game start, the bullpen and more

At 20 games into the 2020 season, the Orioles are in second place in the American League East at 12-8, with the fourth-best record in the league. Since they got swept in four in a row by the Miami Marlins, they have gone 7-1. They continue to hit well against accomplished pitchers and are beating good teams. No one can say they haven't earned 12-8. The Orioles have faced this group of eight pitchers nine times this season: Gerrit Cole, J.A Happ, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Stephen Strasburg...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles2 tanner scott

O's game blog: O's offense faces Nats' lefty Patrick Corbin

August 15, 2020, 2:32pm

Orioles

O's game blog: O's offense faces Nats' lefty Patrick Corbin

After another "flush it" game for the Orioles, it's "bounceback" time again. Their two most lopsided losses of the 2020 season have come in their first game and their last game. They lost 13-2 on opening night at Boston and 15-3 last night at home versus the Washington Nationals. Tonight they host the Nats in the second game of a three-game series. The Orioles' (11-8) previous three losses before last night were by one run each, and their previous four losses were by seven total runs. But...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski

New O's RHP LÃ³pez looks for fresh start with Orioles

August 15, 2020, 12:48pm

Orioles

Right-hander Jorge LÃ³pez, the newest Orioles pitcher, might look at the club's roster and realize that several players once claimed on waivers by the team are currently playing very well. He'd like to be next. Designated for assignment recently by the Kansas City Royals, he was a waiver claim of the Orioles during last Sunday's game at Washington. He's not had consistent major league success yet and hopes a fresh start in Baltimore can boost that possibility. His resume shows he was a...

Tags:

jorge lopez orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles2

Alex Cobb's take on the O's bats and other notes

August 14, 2020, 10:11pm

Orioles

Alex Cobb's take on the O's bats and other notes

We've talked often here this season about how individual Orioles have improved from last year and how that has made the team better overall. Players worked hard during the winter and continued that during baseball's shutdown that began in mid-March. They used coaching tips and guidance along with data and analytics and a lot of hard work to make themselves better. The product is seen both in their stats and the team's won-loss record. On Friday, O's pitcher Alex Cobb was a guest on the...

Tags:

alex cobb orioles steve melewski anthony santander bruce zimmermann featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: Suspended game resumes in the sixth

August 14, 2020, 11:11am

Orioles

O's game blog: Suspended game resumes in the sixth

If you want to confuse yourself consider this: The Orioles will have a six-game winning streak if they hold on to win the completion of Sunday's suspended game against Washington. If the Nats come from behind to win the Orioles will have a three-game winning streak. How can they have a winning streak if they lose? Well, this game will officially count on the day it started - Aug. 9. So an O's win and they will complete a three-game sweep a week after that series started. Coupled with what...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski anthony santander frontstory_orioles1 hanser alberto pedro severino tommy milone

After COVID-19 bout, Bruce Zimmermann is back chasing MLB dream

August 14, 2020, 9:24am

Orioles

After COVID-19 bout, Bruce Zimmermann is back chasing MLB dream

It did seem a bit strange when the Orioles released their initial 60-man player pool that Baltimorean Bruce Zimmermann was not on the list. The 25-year-old lefty, acquired in a trade on July 31, 2018, had been with the club and was still on the roster when the first spring training was shut down. He had pitched well in Florida and was set to start on March 12 in Fort Myers against the Twins, but that was the day of the Major League Baseball shutdown. Zimmermann recently revealed via his Twitter...

Tags:

bruce zimmermann orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

A look at how the O's offense has fared against some top pitchers

August 13, 2020, 7:48pm

Orioles

A look at how the O's offense has fared against some top pitchers

Some of the offensive stats the Orioles are putting up so far in the 2020 season are quite impressive. Some are not expected to hold up over 60 games, of course. Players and teams can get off to fast starts and level off. It is expected. But one potentially quite encouraging aspect to the start of this season that could bode well for the offense is that they've have hit well versus some very good pitchers. I took a look back at their performance against a select strong group of hurlers. Here...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

A look at the latest comeback win on this road trip

August 13, 2020, 4:44pm

Orioles

A look at the latest comeback win on this road trip

The Orioles have been the comeback kids on this road trip to Washington and Philadelphia. They won this afternoon and are 5-0 on this trip. Four of the wins have been come-from-behind victories. Today the offense erupted for four runs in the fifth, two runs two innings later, three more in the eighth and two in the ninth to produce an 11-4 win over the Phillies. They improved to 10-7 and completed their second three-game sweep of the year. The Orioles have won five in a row and are 7-1 on the...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski anthony santander featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles2 jose iglesias pat valaika pedro severino rio ruiz thomas eshelman

O's game blog: Looking for a second series sweep

August 13, 2020, 10:55am

Orioles

O's game blog: Looking for a second series sweep

In today's series finale at Citizens Bank Park, the Orioles will be pitching a former Phillies farmhand and Philadelphia will be pitching a former Orioles player. Right-hander Thomas Eshelman (0-0, 3.68 ERA) starts for the O's and right-hander Jake Arrieta (1-1, 2.45 ERA) starts for the Phillies. The Orioles, who lost three one-run games in the Marlins series, have beaten the Phillies 10-9 in 10 innings and 5-4 over the past two nights. Anthony Santander, Rio Ruiz and Chance Sisco hit solo...

Tags:

frontstory_orioles2 hanser alberto orioles steve melewski thomas eshelman

Ruiz drew gains from minors trip, Sisco with something to prove

August 12, 2020, 8:38pm

Orioles

Ruiz drew gains from minors trip, Sisco with something to prove

With as well as he is playing right now for the Orioles, on offense and defense, it can be easy to forget that third baseman Rio Ruiz spent some time in the minor leagues last year. It was just five games in late July and early August at Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. And to hear O's manager Brandon Hyde tell it now, this was more about mind than body or any swing tweaks for Ruiz. On his postgame Zoom interview after last night's 5-4 win over Philadelphia, Hyde recalled the conversation...

Tags:

chance sisco orioles rio ruiz steve melewski featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles2

O's overcome deficit, 15 strikeouts to beat Phillies (quotes added)

August 12, 2020, 6:04pm

Orioles

O's overcome deficit, 15 strikeouts to beat Phillies (quotes added)

On a night the Orioles got a short outing from their starter, struck out 15 times and fell behind 3-1 in the third, they still managed to win. The strong start of the 2020 Orioles continued tonight at Philadelphia. Chance Sisco produced a clutch two-out, two-run single in the fourth and Rio Ruiz hit a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth as the Orioles beat Philadelphia 5-4. The 9-7 Orioles have won four in a row and taken the first two games in this series. They improved to 6-1 on the road and...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski anthony santander austin hays chance sisco chris davis cole sulser dwight smith jr featured_sidebar hanser alberto miguel castro renato nunez rio ruiz thomas eshelman wade leblanc frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: Looking for two in a row in Philly

August 12, 2020, 1:54pm

Orioles

O's game blog: Looking for two in a row in Philly

The Orioles look for their fourth straight win tonight when they play the second game of their three-game set at Philadephia. The Orioles (8-7) won 10-9 in 10 innings last night in a wild, four-hour game. Their offense produced very little through five innings, and then scored 10 runs in the last five innings. They broke an 8-8 tie when Austin Hays hit a two-run inside-the-park home run in the top of the tenth. Hays hit the first inside-the-park homer in extra innings in Orioles' history. It...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski

Orioles have sure packed a lot into 15 games

August 11, 2020, 9:33pm

Orioles

On a night when both teams had a lot go wrong and the bullpens combined to allow 13 runs, the Orioles bullpen at least steadied at the very end. Paul Fry got the second out of the last of the 10th and Travis Lakins Sr. got the third as they outlasted Philadelphia 10-9. The Orioles have had two extra-inning games, both rather eventful, and have won them both. They improved to 8-7 with that wild win and now they are 25 percent into a 60-game season. If the season ended after Tuesday's games, the...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski alex cobb andrew velazquez austin hays brandon hyde featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles3

O's game blog: Orioles begin three-game series in Philly

August 11, 2020, 2:46pm

Orioles

The Philadelphia Phillies (5-6) have hit well but not pitched very well thus far in the 2020 season. They will host the Orioles for the next three nights at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies beat Atlanta 13-8 last night at home to split a four-game series. They scored 18 runs in the two games they won and just two runs in the two they lost. But the Phillies offense is averaging 5.0 runs per game and they rank first in the National League in team OPS at .790. The Philly pitching staff ranks next...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski alex cobb

Players helping players and more about the Bowie camp

August 10, 2020, 4:28pm

Orioles

Players helping players and more about the Bowie camp

While the Orioles have gotten off to a solid start to their season, the players not currently on their roster but on the 60-man player pool get their work in at the alternate site at Double-A Bowie. And while they wait for a call that might never come, the players there go beyond just getting themselves ready. According to Gary Kendall, one of the managers from the O's farm at the Bowie site along with Buck Britton, veteran players are sharing information with young players. They are trying to...

Tags:

gary kendall orioles steve melewski orioles farm report ryan mountcastle frontstory_orioles2

Fourteen games into season, O's have plenty to feel good about

August 09, 2020, 2:30pm

Orioles

Fourteen games into season, O's have plenty to feel good about

Tarp follies or not, the Orioles have plenty to feel good about after a weekend of solid baseball in Washington, D.C. They outscored the Nationals 21-5 and were a few innings away from an 8-7 start to the 60-game season. During a year when 16 teams will get in the playoffs, a final regular season record of 32-28 will likely be good enough. Now we have to see if the final 77 percent of the season can go as well. The team has gotten decent pitching from a rotation that had produced eight starts...

Tags:

anthony santander asher wojciechowski brandon hyde cole sulser featured_sidebar frontstory_orioles2 hanser alberto jose iglesias miguel castro orioles pedro severino renato nunez steve melewski tanner scott tommy milone wade leblanc

O's game blog: Trying for a sweep at Nats Park

August 09, 2020, 7:38am

Orioles

O's game blog: Trying for a sweep at Nats Park

The Orioles, who had no series sweeps in 162 games last year, can record their second of 2020 in the season's first 15 games today. After beating Washington 11-0 and 5-3 this weekend, the O's can complete the sweep this afternoon at Nats Park. The Orioles' last series sweep of the Nationals came on May 8-9, 2017, when the O's swept a two-game series at Oriole Park. Their last three-game series sweep of Washington came on Sept. 22-24, 2015 at Nationals Park. The Orioles' last three-game...

Tags:

orioles steve melewski

Notes on the comeback win and more on Keegan Akin

August 08, 2020, 7:42pm

Orioles

Notes on the comeback win and more on Keegan Akin

It is not a rule that every series the Orioles play this year has to end in a sweep. But if they beat the Nationals this afternoon in Washington, they will have played in four consecutive sweeps. The Yankees swept two straight in Baltimore, then the O's took three straight from Tampa Bay and Miami took four in a row from Baltimore. Today we could see a three-game sweep. If the Orioles get it, the 2020 club will have produced two more series sweeps that the 2019 squad did in 52 series. Which...