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

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The Orioles host the Texas Rangers tonight in the second of a three-game series and seven-game homestand that will also include a series with the Los Angeles Angels.

The Orioles took an early 2-0 lead on the Fourth of July and then fell behind 5-2 in the fifth. They tied the game 5-5, fell behind 6-5 on Marcus Semien's homer in the ninth but tied it 6-6 on Adley Rutschman's RBI double with two outs in the ninth. And they won it 7-6 when Jorge Mateo was hit by a pitch with no outs and the bases loaded in the last of the 10th.

The Orioles (37-44) reached the midpoint of the 162-game season with Monday's win. They have won two in a row and eight of the last 14 games. They are 10-7 over the past 17 games, 13-9 in 22 and 23-20 since they were 10 games under .500 on May 19. They are 30-30 since May 1 and are 19-17 at home.

Most walk-off wins in MLB:

10 - New York Yankees
6 - Orioles, San Diego Padres
5 - Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays
4 - 7 teams tied 

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Hays and Mountcastle missing from Orioles' lineup

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Austin Hays has his right wrist wrapped and is out of tonight’s lineup against the Rangers.

Hays was hit by a pitch yesterday, but X-rays were negative. He tried to swing a bat in the cage today and said it just didn’t seem like “a good idea to try to push it and make it even worse,” so he’s sitting as a precaution.

At least he avoided the injured list.

“It’s not feeling too bad,” said Hays, who’s celebrating his 27th birthday today. “The swelling seems like it’s stayed down, so it’s really just certain movements are what’s bothering it. It’s just like a day-to-day thing right now. X-rays were clean, no bad news from that front.

“I’ll be available off the bench tonight if I need to. … Let the trainers do their thing and treat it, and it should be good to go either tomorrow or the next day.”

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Orioles remain targets for opposing pitchers in 7-6, 10-inning win

Mateo hays hit by pitch

Dane Dunning’s 89 mph sinker dug into Austin Hays’ right wrist today in the second inning. Hays slammed down the bat, spiked his elbow guard and voiced his displeasure as he walked to first base.

Nothing aimed at the Rangers’ starter. Just some general venting.

Getting hit has become a major issue for the Orioles.  

The pitch wasn’t intentional. They usually aren’t. But the pain is real.

Hays has a well-documented injury history and doesn’t appreciate being hit under any circumstances.

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A walk-off hit by pitch: O's win crazy game in the 10th at the Yard

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What a crazy way to win a crazy game.

A walk-off hit by pitch in the last of the 10th. That is how the Orioles beat the Texas Rangers 7-6 today to start a series and week-long homestand. This after they fell behind in the top of the ninth and had to score in the home half to tie it up.

Lefty Matt Moore came on for Texas in the 10th with placed runner Austin Hays on second base. He then muffed a bunt attempt by Rougned Odor that was scored a hit to put runners on the corners, and then walked Ramón Urías intentionally to load the bases with no outs. Moore’s next pitch hit shortstop Jorge Mateo near the left knee and he limped toward first base as the game ended in bizarre fashion.

A walk-off hit by pitch giving the Orioles a record of 37-44 at the midpoint of their year with their sixth walk-off win of 2022. They were 27-54 at this point in the 2021 season.

An inning earlier we saw what was likely Adley Rutschman's biggest hit as an Oriole and it forced extra innings. Down to their last out in the ninth down by one, Rutschman lined a double off the right field wall to tie Texas 6-6 and force a 10th inning. Rutschman lined a 96 mph fastball from closer Joe Barlow for the tie. He began today 0-for-15 his previous four games.

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O's game blog: The homestand begins at the Yard

Kremer pitching gray

After ending a four-game losing streak and hanging on for a 3-1 win Sunday at Minnesota, the Orioles make a quick turnaround today for a day game on the Fourth of July against the Texas Rangers. It is the opener of a three-game series and seven-game homestand that also includes four games with the Los Angeles Angels.

Right-hander Tyler Wells produced his latest strong start in the Twins series finale, allowing three hits and one run over six innings with one walk and a career-high seven strikeouts. He improved to 7-4 with a 3.09 ERA for an O’s team that allowed just eight runs in the weekend series.

Wells has allowed one run or less in each of his last four starts and has been the winning pitcher for the last five, going 5-0 with an ERA of 1.93 in that span. The Orioles have won his past seven games and his ERA is 1.89 during that 7-0 run.

O’s starting pitchers have been on a tremendous roll, allowing one earned run or less in 13 of the past 16 games, with a rotation ERA of 2.03 in that span.

Today's game with Texas marks the first time the Orioles have played at home on the Fourth of July since 2008, also against Texas. The O's won that game, 10-4. The Orioles have played in Baltimore on Independence Day 19 times in club history, going 14-4-1 with a 6-6 tie against Kansas City in 1964 at Memorial Stadium. The O's have hosted six Fourth of July matchups at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, going 4-2.

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With rotation shored up, Rangers on the rise

With rotation shored up, Rangers on the rise
Anthony Rendon, are you paying attention? Do you think that you made a bad career decision? The Angels have third baseman Rendon, but the team that might have the best chance of beating the Astros in the American League West in 2020 is the Texas Rangers. Why? Because the Rangers are building a rotation this offseason, and their latest addition is Corey Kluber, the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner the Rangers got from Cleveland in a trade on Sunday. So, I wonder if Rendon, after...
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Opposite dugout: Rebuilding Rangers host O's as trade deadline has passed

Opposite dugout: Rebuilding Rangers host O's as trade deadline has passed
Manager: Jeff Banister (4th season) Record: 46-63 Last 10 games: 5-5 Who to watch: 1B Joey Gallo (26 HR, 59 RBI), DH Shin-soo Choo (20 HR, 51 RBI), CF Delino DeShields (18 SB), C Robinson Chirinos (14 HR, 45 RBI), 3B Adrián Beltré (.287), LHP Mike Minor (7-6, 4.73 ERA) Season series vs. Orioles: 1-2 Pitching probables: August 2: RHP Andrew Cashner (3-9) vs. RHP Yovani Gallardo (5-1); 8:05 p.m., MASN2August 3: RHP David Hess (2-5) vs. RHP Ariel Jurado (1-1); 8:05 p.m., MASN2August 4: RHP...
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Opposite dugout: Rangers out of contention, pondering a selloff

Opposite dugout: Rangers out of contention, pondering a selloff
Manager: Jeff Banister (4th season) Record: 40-54 Last 10 games: 2-8 Who to watch: DH Shin-soo Choo (.290 with 17 HR, 42 RBIs), RF Nomar Mazara (15 HR, 57 RBIs), 3B Adrían Beltré (.270), 1B Joey Gallo (21 HR, 50 RBIs), LHP Cole Hamels (4-8, 4.28 ERA), RHP Keone Kela (3.38 ERA, 22 saves) Season series vs. Orioles: First meeting (1-6 in 2017) Pitching probables: July 13: LHP Cole Hamels (4-8) vs. RHP Alex Cobb (2-11), 7:05 p.m., MASN2 July 14: LHP Martín Perez (2-3) vs. RHP Yefry...
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Defending World Series champion Astros remain favorites in AL West

Defending World Series champion Astros remain favorites in AL West
Who says rebuilding lasts forever? It only seems to be the case. The Astros, who had 100-loss seasons each year from 2011 to 2013, won their first World Series last season. This season, they are the favorite to win the American League West. And they could be the first team since the 1999-2000 New York Yankees to win consecutive World Series. In the rest of the AL West, the stories are the same. The Mariners, Angels, Athletics and Rangers have potent lineups, but rotation questions. The...
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Taking a look at the bizarre AL wild card race

Taking a look at the bizarre AL wild card race
The American League wild card race is bizarre, flawed or mediocre - whatever you choose to call it. In most seasons, teams struggling to stay above .500 would be long gone out of the race. Not this year. Here is what makes the AL wild card race so wild: * The Twins, who lost 103 games in 2016, are contenders even with a rotation that includes Bartolo Colon, Aaron Slegers, Dillion Gee and Tim Melville. Colon is 44 and looks like a sportswriter. Slegers has made one big league start, Gee 23 in...
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Kevin Gausman with a gem as the O's blank Texas (quotes added)

Kevin Gausman with a gem as the O's blank Texas (quotes added)
ARLINGTON, Texas - Orioles right-hander Kevin Gausman produced a third straight strong outing tonight. The Orioles backed him with early offense and they beat Texas 4-0 at Globe Life Park. Gausman came within one out of the Orioles' first complete-game shutout since Miguel Gonzalez against Cincinnati on Sept. 3, 2014. After Manny Machado turned a nifty double play to deny Adrian Beltre his 3,000th hit in the ninth, Gausman issued a walk and gave up a bloop single. With his pitch count at 118,...
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Chris Davis on Adrian Beltre (O's blank Rangers 4-0)

Chris Davis on Adrian Beltre (O's blank Rangers 4-0)
ARLINGTON, Texas - It has become very apparent in two days during this series at Globe Life Park that Texas third baseman Adrian Beltre has a room full of admirers in the visiting clubhouse. Beltre enters tonight's game two hits shy of becoming the 31st player in the Major League history to reach 3,000 hits. He had two hits last night and is at 2998 to start this game. Beltre has gone 9-for-14 with a homers, two doubles, 5 RBIs and 2 walks during this Rangers homestand to raise his season...
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O's game blog: Kevin Gausman faces Texas in Game 2

O's game blog: Kevin Gausman faces Texas in Game 2
ARLINGTON, Texas - This Orioles road trip began well. Right-hander Kevin Gausman pitched six scoreless innings on Monday in a 5-0 shutout of Tampa Bay, but the Orioles have lost three straight since then by a combined score of 18-7. They lost the series opener at Texas 8-2 last night and are 48-54 heading into tonight's second game of the series. A loss would drop them to a season-high tying seven games under .500, a mark they hit when they were 42-49. Right-hander Chris Tillman gave up nine...
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Adam Jones on three wins: "Shuts up all the trade rumors"

Adam Jones on three wins: "Shuts up all the trade rumors"
Orioles outfielder Adam Jones went 3-for-5 with two RBIs tonight as the Orioles won their third in a row, beating Texas 10-2. Despite these wins, the Orioles (45-49) would need four more consecutive wins just to get back to .500. But Jones made his feelings clear when asked tonight what three straight wins does for the Orioles. "Shuts up all the trade rumors, I know that," Jones said. "We feel that we're still in this race. Long way to go. We're not just going to give up. No, I don't take...
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Gausman bounces back, offense blows it open in rout of Texas

Gausman bounces back, offense blows it open in rout of Texas
So this series has been very different. The Orioles pitching staff got bounced around over the weekend by the Chicago Cubs, but they have turned the tables against Texas. For the second night in a row, the offense joined in the act. Right-hander Kevin Gausman produced the third straight quality start for the Orioles tonight as they beat Texas 10-2 at Oriole Park. They have taken the first three in this four-game series and broke this game open late with a seven-run seventh inning. Gausman's...
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O's game blog: Kevin Gausman faces the Rangers

O's game blog: Kevin Gausman faces the Rangers
The Orioles have taken the first two games of their four-game series against Texas by scores of 3-1 and 12-1. They host the Rangers the next two nights to conclude this series. In three weekend games versus the Cubs, the O's pitching staff allowed 27 runs on 41 hits. In the last two games against Texas, they have allowed two runs on nine hits. With Chris Tillman and Dylan Bundy, they recorded two straight quality starts for the first time since June 1-2. Right-hander Kevin Gausman (5-7, 6.39...
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Opposite dugout: Rangers no longer winning one-run games

Opposite dugout: Rangers no longer winning one-run games
Manager: Jeff Banister (3rd season) Record: 45-46 Last 10 games: 5-5 Who to watch: SS Elvis Andrus (.295/.339/.462 with 11 HR, 50 RBIs), 3B/DH Adrian Beltre (.275/.374/.522 with 8 HR, 30 RBIs), 3B Joey Gallo (21 HR, 41 RBIs), LHP Cole Hamels (7-4, 3.05 ERA), LHP Alex Claudio (2.59 ERA, 1.05 WHIP) Season series vs. Orioles: First meeting (4-3 in 2016) Pitching probables: July 17: RHP Andrew Cashner vs. RHP Chris Tillman, 7:05 p.m., MASNJuly 18: RHP Tyson Ross vs. RHP Dylan Bundy, 7:05 p.m.,...
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Scherzer's 2,000th strikeout spoiled by late Rangers rally

Scherzer's 2,000th strikeout spoiled by late Rangers rally
Right-hander Max Scherzer did his job again, pitching into the eighth inning and keeping the Nationals in their series finale against the Rangers. But a sloppy eighth inning, in which the Rangers scored four runs on just one hit, blew open a tie game and led Texas to a 5-1 win and series sweep over the Nationals. It was the first series sweep of the Nationals at home this season. In the game-changing eighth, Texas benefited from a fielding error by Anthony Rendon and a Matt Wieters passed ball,...
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Goodwin's big blast gives Nats early lead (Rangers win 5-1)

Goodwin's big blast gives Nats early lead (Rangers win 5-1)
The Nationals gave Max Scherzer an early lead, thanks to the power stroke of Brian Goodwin. Leading off the bottom of the first, Goodwin crushed an 0-1 pitch from right-hander Austin Bibens-Dirkx over the right field wall to give the Nationals a 1-0 lead. Goodwin's second homer of the season was also the first leadoff homer of his career. Scherzer allowed a leadoff single by Shin-Soo Choo, but then became very Scherzer-like with a pair of strikeouts sandwiched around a flyout to left field by...
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Glover back to disabled list, Blanton reinstated

Glover back to disabled list, Blanton reinstated
The Nationals have reinstated right-hander Joe Blanton from the 10-day disabled list and placed right-hander Koda Glover on the 10-day disabled list with lower back stiffness. Blanton has been on the disabled list since May 17 with right shoulder inflammation. Blanton started for Double-A Harrisburg against Altoona on June 8 and threw one scoreless, hitless inning with no walks and two strikeouts. Glover allowed two runs on three hits and recorded two outs in the ninth inning Saturday as the...
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