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SAN DIEGO – The Orioles made the anticipated outfield switch today, reinstating Aaron Hicks from the 10-day injured list and optioning rookie Colton Cowser to Triple-A Norfolk.
Hicks strained his left hamstring July 24 while diving for a fly ball in Philadelphia – incorrectly ruled a catch – and returns after two rehab games with Norfolk.
Cowser is 7-for-61 with two doubles, four RBIs, 13 walks, 22 strikeouts and 15 runs scored in 26 games.
Cedric Mullins returned over the weekend in Seattle and won yesterday’s game by robbing Ty France of a home run in the bottom of the ninth inning and delivering a two-run shot in the top of the 10th. His return cost Ryan McKenna a spot on the roster.
Mullins became the first player to rob a home run and hit one in the ninth inning or later of the same game over the last 10 seasons, per ESPN Stats & Info.
SAN DIEGO – Be truthful and admit if a sense of panic or doubt began to creep in after the Orioles lost two of three games to the Astros at home and the opener in Seattle. And when the teams were scoreless Saturday heading to the top of the 10th inning at T-Mobile Park.
The retractable sky was falling.
The Mariners won eight in a row and 13 of 15. No one was hotter. But the Orioles prevailed 1-0 in 10 innings and followed yesterday by breaking a 2-2 tie in the top of the ninth, surrendering the tying run with two outs in the bottom half on Dominic Canzone’s homer off Mike Baumann, and responding with a two-run shot from Cedric Mullins in the 10th to claim their 23rd series.
Mullins took a home run away from Ty France with a remarkable catch right before Canzone’s blast, then pulled a fastball into right field seats for his first homer since July 14, due to a second trip to the injured list.
Félix Bautista wasn’t available after working two innings Saturday. Baumann couldn’t secure his first major league save, but Shintaro Fujinami did. He didn’t have one in Japan, either.
SEATTLE – He entered the game in the last of the sixth today. The Orioles were thrilled Cedric Mullins was there - especially in the ninth and 10th this afternoon at Seattle.
Mullins made a remarkable catch to rob a homer in the ninth and then hit the go-ahead two-run homer in the 10th as the Orioles beat Seattle 5-3 in 10 innings front of 44,818 at T-Mobile Park.
The O's (73-45) won a series from a club that had an eight-game win streak after Friday's series-opening win. They found a way against the top ERA club in the American League and they expanded their American League East lead to three games over Tampa Bay.
Adley Rutschman’s grounder to the first base side of the side of the mound scored speedy pinch-runner Jorge Mateo from third base as the O’s broke a 2-2 tie in the ninth and led 3-2.
Immediately after Mullins made what at the time appeared to be a game-saving robbery of a Ty France drive to deep center in the ninth inning for the second out, Dominic Canzone homered to right off Mike Baumann to tie the contest 3-3.
SEATTLE – The Orioles today reinstated reliever Mychal Givens from the 60-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation and then designated him for assignment.
Signed as a free agent on Dec. 21, Givens pitched in just four games this year for Orioles. He gave up five earned runs over four innings for an ERA of 11.25. He has not pitched for the Orioles since May 31.
“Well, it’s this time of year," manager Brandon Hyde said of Givens' designation. "We’re trying to win every game we can and we are coming down the stretch and we need guys that are durable, and able to win some games down the stretch. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for Mike, but we have some other guys here that have thrown the ball extremely well and just want to finish the season strong."
Givens had a 6.60 ERA in 15 minor league games, and just last night allowed three runs while getting just one out for Triple-A Norfolk.
More on the six-man rotation: The Orioles have embarked, at least for now, on a six-man rotation, with Cole Irvin entering the mix last night. Kyle Gibson and Irvin pitched in this series, and Kyle Bradish goes today.
Last night’s 1-0, 10-inning win in Seattle guaranteed that the Orioles wouldn’t be swept in 77 consecutive series.
The Orioles ended the Mariners’ winning streak at eight games. A victory today would seal their 23rd series.
Cedric Mullins is on the bench today, with Austin Hays playing center field and Ryan O’Hearn in left.
Jordan Westburg is the third baseman and Gunnar Henderson is at shortstop. Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter.
Ryan Mountcastle had a go-ahead RBI single last night in the 10th and has reached base in a career-high 19 games in a row. He’s batting fifth and playing first base.
Recaps of the 2023 season should include mention of two Orioles who fell off the major league landscape.
Outfielder Kyle Stowers and infielder Terrin Vavra broke camp with the team. Made the Opening Day roster. Figured to be key contributors as extras coming off the bench.
Stowers was assumed to be lined up for extensive at-bats based on his prospect status and a designated hitter spot that unclogged. Put him in the outfield, use him at DH to keep his bat in the lineup.
Well, Stowers had two stints with the club, went 2-for-30 with 12 strikeouts and hasn’t played for them since May 14. He was batting .243/.370/.493 in 46 games with Triple-A Norfolk before last night, with six doubles, a triple, 10 home runs, 33 RBIs, 29 walks and 46 strikeouts in 189 plate appearances.
Right shoulder inflammation forced Stowers on the injured list May 23 and he didn’t begin an injury rehab assignment until June 29 in the Florida Complex League. He played four games with High-A Aberdeen and returned to Norfolk July 14.
SEATTLE – Locked in a remarkable pitcher's duel for nine innings and held to just three hits in nine innings by Seattle starter George Kirby, the Orioles still pulled out a win tonight to end the Mariners' eight-game win streak.
Ryan Mountcastle's single to center broke the 0-0 tie in the top of the 10th and O's closer Félix Bautista pitched two innings and struck out the side in the last of the 10th to get the win.
The Orioles (72-45) improved to 7-5 in extra innings and remained two games ahead of Tampa Bay atop the American League East.
Placed runner Cedric Mullins stole third base in the 10th and scored on Mountcastle's single to center that produced the lead along with an exit velocity of 109.5 mph.
Bautista got the game to extras with a scoreless last of the ninth.
SEATTLE – The Orioles will be on hand tonight for a big night in Seattle as former Mariners pitcher Félix Hernández goes into the team’s Hall of Fame. He was a six-time All-Star and the 2010 American League Cy Young Award winner. He pitched a perfect game for Seattle against Tampa Bay on Aug. 15, 2012.
He tried to make it back to the bigs with the Orioles in the spring of 2021, but arm issues kept that from happening. He eventually opted out of his O's minor league deal and was officially released by the club in late March.
“We came here in 2011 and they were down the stretch, and he pitched a game that was sold out and we saw the King’s Court (fans section in the stands) when he was in his prime,” O’s manager Brandon Hyde recalled today. “He punched out, like, 15 and he was great in his prime. This place was absolutely going bananas. We saw at that time what he meant to the city and how big a deal he was.
“Being able to meet him (in spring of 2021) and spend some time with him, really enjoyed that. I’m excited to watch the (pregame) ceremony tonight.”
The Orioles have transitioned into a six-man rotation, at least temporarily, as left-hander Cole Irvin (1-3, 5.44 ERA) re-enters the rotation tonight. Hyde said that Irvin would likely be expected to go just four or five innings after his last five appearances were two innings or less.
SEATTLE – After being held to one run on two hits over six innings by right-hander Luis Castillo last night, the O’s face another tough righty tonight. George Kirby (10-8, 3.32 ERA) will make his 23rd start for Seattle.
The Mariners hit three homers off Kyle Gibson in last night’s 9-2 win. Seattle (63-52) is now just half a game out of the final wild card spot in the American League.
Adley Rutschman, batting .314 in 13 games atop the batting order, is batting leadoff again tonight. Cedric Mullins, who hit fifth last night, bats second tonight. Jorge Mateo is starting at shortstop and Gunnar Henderson is not starting.
Kirby ranks ninth in the American League in ERA and first in walks per nine innings (0.9) and first in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 8.86. On June 25 he gave up three runs (two earned) in 6 1/3 versus the Orioles.
Seattle has won eight in a row and 10 of 11 games and is 16-4 in the last 20. The M’s pitching has given up just seven runs the last five games, and 20 in the past eight.
The Orioles will attempt to rebound from last night’s 9-2 loss, their third in the last four games, by sending left-hander Cole Irvin to the mound for his first start since July 7 in Minnesota.
Irvin has made six relief appearances in a row. He’s inserted into a rotation now designed to provide more rest for the younger starters.
Irvin is 0-6 with an 8.42 ERA and 2.065 WHIP in six career games against the Mariners. He’s allowed 24 earned runs and 25 total with 41 hits in 25 2/3 innings.
Cedric Mullins is batting second tonight behind catcher Adley Rutschman. Gunnar Henderson is on the bench.
Ryan Mountcastle is the cleanup hitter, bumping first baseman Ryan O’Hearn to fifth. Mountcastle’s hitting streak ended last night at 12 games, but he’s reached base in 18 straight to set a career high.
SEATTLE – The story of the first game of an important O’s road trip was not hard to put a finger on. Right-hander Kyle Gibson, who had been on a six-start roll, hit a brick wall and that roll was stopped.
As the Seattle Mariners hit three homers off him and extended their winning streak to eight, Gibson and the Orioles got beat 9-2 in Seattle. Their AL East lead is now down to two games over Tampa Bay.
“First game of a long road trip, an important road trip for us. And I just didn’t give the team a chance to win,” said Gibson, who had an ERA of 3.86 in his previous six games with five quality starts.
He pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed 12 hits to tie his career high. Gibson gave up nine runs to set a career high. He had only given up five runs or more four times this year out of 24 games. And for his career, he had never given up more than eight runs in any of his previous 285 career starts.
But a five-run fourth gave Seattle a 7-1 lead and they were on their way to a comfortable win. Gibson allowed a two-run homer in the first to Cal Raleigh, a three-run shot in the fourth to Julio Rodríguez and a solo blast in the fifth by Ty France. Each homer was hit 100 mph+ with Raleigh’s shot having a 112.6 mph exit velocity.
As the Orioles monitor innings and workloads, they also formulate plans for pitchers on injury rehab assignments or resets in the minors.
Tyler Wells falls into the latter category, after the Orioles optioned him to Double-A Bowie on July 30. He isn’t hurt but easily can be mistaken for a rehab guy because he’s off the major league roster and his appearances are spread out to provide more rest.
Wells tossed 3 1/3 innings with Double-A Bowie last Saturday and allowed one run and two hits. He’s starting again tonight in Richmond, and his pitch count will be extended at least slightly “to keep him ready,” said manager Brandon Hyde.
Hyde exchanged text messages with Wells Thursday morning.
“He feels really good,” Hyde said. “I think this break was huge for him. … He’s doing a lot of mechanical work, backing off this throwing, things like that. Hopefully, he’s a big part of our team down the stretch.”
SEATTLE – When O’s right-hander Kyle Gibson faced the Seattle Mariners on June 23 in Baltimore, he had one of his toughest nights of the year. He had another tough one against the same team on Friday night.
Seattle scored twice in the first and five times in the fourth and hit three homers off Gibson as they beat the Orioles 9-2 to start the three-game series and to start the O’s nine-game West Coast road trip.
Catcher Cal Raleigh hit a two-run shot in the first, 2022 American League Rookie of the Year Julio Rodríguez hit a three-run shot in the fourth and Ty France hit a solo blast in the fifth.
Gibson had another tough night facing Seattle. Over 5 1/3 innings he gave up 12 hits to tie his career-high and allowed a career-high nine runs. His previous most in a start was eight done five times. He had not allowed more than six runs in any start this year.
Seattle was hitting hard from the star tonight. Through five innings, the Mariners had hit seven balls in play over 100 mph and 10 balls at 99 mph or more.
SEATTLE – The Orioles got their center fielder back today. Limited to 69 games this year with two stints on the injured list, now they want to keep Cedric Mullins back on the field and in the lineup.
Mullins first went on the IL in late May with a right groin strain and returned June 24. But on July 19 he was back on the 10-day IL with a right adductor groin strain. He played four rehab games this week for Double-A Bowie, going 3-for-20 and tonight rejoins the O’s batting fifth in center.
"We're excited to have him back," manager Brandon Hyde said. "He feels good and joined us on the trip last night. He's had a couple of stints on the IL and we are hoping to he can stay healthy for us the rest of the year. He's a big part of our club and makes a huge impact for us offensively and defensively."
“I’m very ready,” Mullins said this afternoon in the visitor’s clubhouse. “During the rehab assignment was watching the guys do their thing out there. Just seeing a lot of guys have some fun and I’m ready to get back in it.
“Injuries are never fun to deal with, but this time around my confidence when it came to running when I started back up was a lot smoother than the first time. So I felt like in terms of the recovery, what we did this time has definitely been beneficial to keep me around.”
The Orioles are in Seattle tonight to begin their three-city West Coast road trip, and they’re trying to cool off a Mariners team that’s won seven games in a row and 12 of 14.
Cedric Mullins came off the injured list today and is playing center field, but manager Brandon Hyde is batting him fifth behind right fielder Ryan O’Hearn. Mullins is slotted fifth for the fifth time this season.
Adley Rutschman holds onto the leadoff spot, with shortstop Gunnar Henderson batting second.
Colton Cowser is in left field. Adam Frazier returns to Seattle and is starting at second base.
Ryan Mountcastle will attempt to extend his hitting streak to 13 games and his on-base streak to a career-high 18. He’s batting sixth and playing first base.
The Orioles gained a starting outfielder today and created a little more balance in their bullpen.
Cedric Mullins was reinstated from the 10-day injured list, and the Orioles recalled reliever Nick Vespi from Triple-A Norfolk.
Outfielder Ryan McKenna and reliever Joey Krehbiel were optioned. The move with McKenna came after yesterday’s game.
Mullins is expected to lead off and play center field tonight in Seattle, where the Orioles begin a three-city West Coast swing. He hasn’t played since sustaining another groin injury while running the bases July 15 against the Marlins at Camden Yards.
Four rehab games with Double-A Bowie were deemed sufficient to activate Mullins, who went 3-for-20 with a couple of leaping catches.
The third at-bat ended much like the first two, except the last strike was called.
Austin Hays fell behind 0-2 yesterday in the seventh inning, worked the count full and watched an 89 mph fastball from Astros reliever Phil Maton catch the outside half of the plate. Hays threw back his head in frustration, compounded by Adam Frazier running on the pitch and being thrown out at second base.
The opposite-field two-run homer Wednesday night didn’t unlock Hays, but it offered some relief and encouragement.
Hays is 16-for-90 (.178) in the second half. The home run off Crístian Javier was his first since July 9 in Minnesota, before starting in left field in the All-Star Game.
“Felt good,” he said. “He’s got a good heater, so just trying to get on top of that thing. It was a heater up in the zone, so I was able to center it up and drive it to the right side of the field.”
The Orioles didn’t fall behind to the Astros this afternoon. They were tied once and grabbed another lead right away. The margin got tight and they found more padding.
They pitched, played defense and hit in the clutch.
Getting swept in a series just isn’t in their DNA.
Dean Kremer worked seven innings for his 11th quality start, Adley Rutschman and Ryan Mountcastle drove in two runs, and the Orioles held on to defeat the Astros 5-4 before an announced crowd of 22,981 at Camden Yards.
Mountcastle extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a two-run shot off rookie Hunter Brown in the seventh, and the Orioles improved to 71-44. They’re 2 ½ games ahead of the second-place Rays, who play tonight.
Orioles reliever Danny Coulombe was placed on the 15-day injured list this morning with left biceps tendinitis. The move is retroactive to yesterday.
Reliever Joey Krehbiel, optioned on Monday, is recalled because he’s replacing an injured player. Krehbiel has a new locker set up at Camden Yards.
Coulombe is 3-1 with a 2.77 ERA and 1.103 WHIP in 47 games. He’s an important high-leverage reliever for a bullpen that’s slipped to seventh in ERA in the majors at 3.71 after allowing 10 runs the past two nights.
Coulombe, who’s averaging 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings, hasn’t allowed a run in his last five appearances. He pitched Saturday and surrendered two hits in the eighth.
Krehbiel has retired all five batters faced with the Orioles, striking out two.
The Orioles haven’t been swept in their last 75 multi-game series. The streak could end this afternoon.
If the rain does.
They will try to play and win, board their flight to Seattle and resume the countdown until their final road trip of the regular season.
They’re down to only three – Seattle, San Diego and Oakland; Arizona, Anaheim and Boston from Sept. 1-10; Houston and Cleveland from Sept. 18-24.
The questions about this team never run out. I’ve got a few more.
