The increase in wins has again transformed the Orioles’ home clubhouse into more of a nightclub setting after games. The music is blaring, the strobe lights flashing. The only difference is that IDs aren’t checked at the door.
The smoke machines are creating a dense fog that makes it hard to see across the room. Players had three of them cranked up Saturday. It’s like being inside a van at a Grateful Dead concert.
This is a team that’s riding the high of being competitive again and keeping hopes alive that it can make a run at the postseason. Only six games separate it from the last Wild Card.
The Orioles didn’t quit on former manager Brandon Hyde. They played hard and were racked with guilt over his dismissal. But the fun returns when games aren’t lost in bundles.
The vibe improved along with the level of play. It’s a natural reaction.
"There’s a lot more energy in the dugout, there’s a lot more energy on the field," said infielder Jordan Westburg.
This may be the most noticeable change around the organization, but there are a few others that I’ll mention this morning.
* The Orioles used Keegan Akin as an opener Thursday against the Tigers, making Dean Kremer the bulk reliever. Akin tossed a scoreless first inning and Kremer allowed four runs in seven innings – all of them in the fourth.
Left-hander Cade Povich was supposed to start yesterday, but the Angels’ lineup featured seven right-handed bats and a switch-hitter. Right-hander Scott Blewett was inserted as the opener, followed by Povich, and he was charged with two runs in 2 2/3 innings. Povich tossed 3 2/3 scoreless.
The bullpen also factored into the strategy. A few relievers were down and interim manager Tony Mansolino was hoping to get multiple innings out of Blewett before turning to Povich. Cover most of the game with those two. And it worked.
Zach Eflin is starting tonight against the Rays in Tampa. A normal turn would have Dean Kremer going Tuesday, Charlie Morton Wednesday and Tomoyuki Sugano Thursday. However, Morton is pushed back to Thursday and Wednesday’s starter is TBA, which could indicate a promotion for left-hander Trevor Rogers, who would go on five days’ rest. Sugano apparently would get bumped to Friday night’s opener at Yankee Stadium.
Hyde used Akin as the opener for Game 2 of the April 26 doubleheader. Akin also got a start in 2022 and in 2023. This isn’t new territory under Mansolino. It’s just happening a little more frequently – twice in four days.
* Coby Mayo is a first baseman more than a third baseman who also can play first.
There’s a necessity, of course. Ryan Mountcastle is on the injured list with a Grade 2 right hamstring strain and could be sidelined for at least two months. If Mayo is going to get his shot, this is it. And third base is in good hands with Westburg and Ramón Urías.
Mayo made his seventh start at first base yesterday, compared to two at third. He started at third in 10 games last year and at first in two.
More repetitions should lead to a more comfortable situation for Mayo, who chased Jo Adell’s foul popup to the screen yesterday and made the catch before slamming into the rolled tarp. He smiled and shrugged his shoulders as he walked back to his position.
Mansolino praised Mayo for the ground ball fielded late Saturday and noted how “that’s probably the first time I guess in a one-run game he’s been on defense in the big leagues, so don’t underestimate that.”
“We’re real excited about the direction Coby’s headed right now,” Mansolino said.
Mayo had his first career two-hit game Saturday and finished yesterday with a double and walk. He also nailed the sprinkler gesture. The lack of a left-handed starter for the Rays, and Ryan O’Hearn’s return from a sore left ankle, could prevent Mayo from making four starts in a row, but the Orioles should keep him busy. It’s good for him and doesn’t seem to be doing any harm to them.
* Bryan Baker has pitched in the eighth inning or later in 10 consecutive games.
The bullpen order on nights with full availability seems to be putting Baker ahead of Yennier Cano. Cano pitched in the eighth inning eight times in a row and nine of 10 until May 27. Since then, he’s entered in the seventh four times and in the sixth three times. He was handed the ninth yesterday with some other relievers down and the Orioles ahead 11-2.
That was janitorial mop-up, but circumstances dictated it.
* Félix Bautista isn’t as coddled these days.
Hyde had no choice. The smart approach was to ease Bautista into a heavier workload. But Hyde would have loved to signal for Bautista this much from the beginning.
Bautista has gone back-to-back four times, including Friday and Saturday against the Angels at Camden Yards – the twice-delayed game that finished close to midnight, followed by an afternoon matchup. And Bautista hit 100 mph for the first time. The Orioles knew that it was coming. It just took this long.
* Westburg and Colton Cowser make a huge, huge difference in the lineup and they're back.
Cowser was lost in the fourth game to the fractured left thumb and didn’t return until June 3. Westburg injured his hamstring April 26 after already being “banged up,” as the team described it, and didn’t return until June 10. They are two of the most important players on the team, right up there with Gunnar Henderson.
Westburg had two more hits yesterday to give him six in 19 at-bats. He’s smacked three homers and driven in eight runs. Not shocking that the Orioles are a more dangerous team when he’s healthy.
* John Mabry speaks in the dugout with a voice of experience.
The Orioles hired Mabry as a senior advisor on May 30 and he joined the club two days later. Asked to described his role, he said he’d be “a helping hand” and “an available resource for coaches and players.” He’d “just be available.”
Mansolino is effusive in his praise of Mabry.
“I think the special advisor or senior advisor, whatever we titled him, is absolutely dead-on as I’ve seen this thing grow,” Mansolino said. “I go to him, game management, ‘what have you got on this?’ Player management, big league management. Just dealing with the things that pop up on a daily basis. The hitting coaches are talking to him non-stop. He’s out there helping with the infield stuff, helping out Coby a lot right now. Our pitching coaches are going and asking him questions about different things.
“This guy sees the game really good. We are very lucky this guy was just kind of sitting on the streets a little bit and he was available, and probably more importantly, he was willing to come into this situation and be of assistance. Very thankful for him. And again, very delicate to bring a coach into an environment mid-season after kind of the trauma that happened here and everything that went on. A very unique person and personality to walk in and handle it the way that he has, and we’re thankful for it.”
The Orioles are 9-4 with Mabry in the organization, but they had won their previous two games before he stepped inside the dugout. Then again, those two games were played after the Orioles announced his hiring.
Don’t read that much into it.
But also, don’t underestimate his impact.