What a week for the Orioles. The vibes were terrible after the Pirates series, but the balance was restored with the return of the Dong Bong and the call-up of Jackson Holliday. This led to a series sweep of the Red Sox in Fenway and some of the best moments we have seen from this team in a long time. Clutch hitting all over the place, and there were amazing performances from young players starting to carve out a role. This team felt like it got its mojo back…and then the Brewers came to town.
The first two games were complete gut punches, with the pitching falling apart and the offense mostly sleepwalking. Milwaukee was hot coming into this series, having scored eight runs per game in taking two of three from the Reds, and they carried that momentum to Baltimore. These Brewers were unbelievably tough on the Orioles and played like the 1927 Yankees.
While it’s disappointing to lose a series like this, let’s not forget the positives. The O’s secured a 4-2 record this week, and that’ll always keep things going in the right direction.
So, what exactly is leading to these good vibes? Let’s find out.
Cowser Ascends
Let’s address the elephant in the room. The week that Colton Cowser has had was simply unbelievable. It wasn’t just his bat; he played solid defense as well. Brandon Hyde even got a little spicy with his usage Cowser, putting him in right field on Friday night, center on Saturday, and left on Sunday.
He can play all three outfield spots at a high level, which is a cheat code for this team. He’s a secret weapon right now and is the main reason why the vibes for this team are so very back. No, he won’t hit over .400 forever, but his at-bats have been amazing, and he is showing that he needs to be an everyday player.
Thankfully, it seems like the Orioles recognize this, and he got the start even with lefty DL Hall on the mound on Saturday, homering off another lefty in Millner on Sunday.
Cowser is here for the long-term and has firmly shoved Austin Hays to the bench until further notice.
Holliday’s Tough Start, Explained
This is not the time to criticize Jackson Holliday’s slow start or make any proclamations about his career. You know how this works if you have been watching the Orioles for the last three years: struggle for the first 100 or so bats, then lock in. This is more so to show that Holliday hasn’t been nearly as bad as his stats say he has. Every time Holliday has been up, the pitcher seems to turn into Greg Maddux. We are talking about dotting up the corners consistently, which has caused Holliday to fall behind 0-2 in most of his at-bats. These 0-2 counts are leading to strikeouts, so while Holliday’s numbers are ugly, he’s run into some tough luck.
Here is a thread from our Twitter account. Look at these at-bats.
Kid is getting PITCHED tohttps://t.co/MlB6it92Gw
— Eutaw Street Report (@EutawStReport) April 13, 2024
I guess it doesn’t matter because he ended up breaking out of it and getting his first hit anyway, but the way these pitchers have been attacking Holliday so successfully is infuriating.
What Happened to the Pitching?
This was my biggest issue this week, but it wasn’t everyone. Pitching was good in Boston, Corbin Burnes was awesome, Cole Irvin got unlucky with the defense and bad umping (a trend from this week), and Grayson Rodriguez pitched well. This is mainly focused on Tyler Wells and Dean Kremer because they completely let their team down.
Wells was awful on Friday night. Meatball after meatball to a hot offense is not a good formula. Then Kremer, coming off a masterful performance in Pittsburgh, one-upped him in the worst way, squandering an early lead in no time. While Dean had a bad second inning, the third inning was by far the worst inning of O’s baseball that I can remember.
That third inning yesterday was so incredibly stupid man.
Ridiculous error by Mateo.
Missed strike 3 call.
2 duck farts.
Bobble by Hays to let a run score.Clean it up!
— Eutaw Street Report (@EutawStReport) April 14, 2024
Then the awful fourth inning came, when Dean was annihilated by those hot Brewers bats. The Crew were hot coming in, but Wells and Kremer doing absolutely nothing to cool them off was unacceptable.
Maybe it’s James McCann, as he did catch two days in a row, and the pitching noticeably drops off with him back there. Or maybe it was just a coincidence. Whatever the reason, the starters must be better than this. With Kyle Bradish, John Means, and perhaps even Cade Povich inching their way toward the rotation, they aren’t close enough for Wells, Kremer, or Irvin to keep struggling. At least two of those guys need to pick it up.
Akin and Coulombe Step Up Big
Here’s a sentence I thought I would never write: Danny Coulombe and Keegan Akin have been lighting it up. It is funny how that works, right? We have a bullpen of former and future All-Stars, yet the two soft-tossing lefties have gotten the best results.
Coulombe has these two wicked breaking pitches that are straight filth and can get both lefties and righties out. Akin is benefiting from some positive BABIP regression, after he was extremely unlucky last year (.434 vs. .176 so far).
With the bullpen a big concern coming into the season, those two stepping up has had a lot to do with this 9-6 record.
A Shoutout to the Fans
This one is going to be short and sweet: thank you, fans. Thank you for packing Camden Yards this weekend. The Orioles had over 20,000 fans in the stands all weekend and broke 30,000 on Friday and Sunday. The games are so much better when the Yard is full of fans, and all of Birdland appreciates everyone who gets out there.
The O’s tour of central division teams continues as they move from the NL to the AL. Next up are the Twins, dealing with a lot of injuries, before a trip to KC and those pesky Royals again.
