What a week from the Orioles. They swept the Twins, and then they had to go to KC to take on the pesky Royals. It was a hard-fought, frustrating series, yet they still took two of three, and they ended up going 5-1 this past week.
We have a lot of positives and one big negative to talk about this week.
Have We Found Our Offense?
You’ve heard the saying about the weather around here: “Don’t like it? Wait five minutes.” The Orioles offense can be a lot like that. Sometimes, it is bright and sunny, then the next hour you’ll get torrential downpours, and then it’s beautiful again the next hour.
They can score runs and wear down the scoreboard, but then they have these games that are just frustrating. Usually, it is against lefties, which we know they struggle against, but this week, Pablo Lopez (a great pitcher) and Alec Marsh (NOT a great pitcher) shut them down. Why Marsh turns into Cy Young every time he faces the Orioles is beyond me.
Still, it was an excellent week overall for the bats, with home runs galore. The high point, though, didn’t involve any dingers. Saturday they took Cole Ragans out of the game in the second inning after dropping seven runs on him with a hit parade.
Cowser and Westburg Should Move Up the Batting Order
They should, but…how in the world do you do this?
It beats me, but Brandon Hyde might need to figure out a way to bat Colton Cowser & Jordan Westburg higher in the lineup. At first, we were happy just to see them in it at all, but with them producing the way they are, it is time for them to move up in the order.
Get a little creative with it. Maybe bat Westburg leadoff against lefties? Maybe put Cowser as your fifth hitter all the time? Sure, that would shake up the lineup and move other guys who are hitting well down the lineup, but these two have been hotter.
Colton Cowser just demolished his fifth home run of the season. He is now hitting .388/.415/.816. Jordan Westburg followed with his fifth homer. He is hitting .329/.382/.614.
They are the seventh and eighth batters in Baltimore's lineup.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 21, 2024
They are producing like middle-of-the-order bats. Might need to find a way to get them there.
What Happened to this Bullpen?
Here it is: The one big, giant negative from this week has to be the utter disaster of the Orioles’ bullpen.
Going into the weekend, the Orioles were among the league leaders in bullpen ERAs and FIPs. That optimism was not only lost but also chewed up and spat out in our faces in this Royals series. Friday Night, Keegan Akin and Dillon Tate completely imploded, giving up nine earned runs in only two innings. They technically only gave up six, while the other three were charged to Dean Kremer, but Akin gave up the hits that allowed those runs to be scored.
Then Saturday night, oh my goodness, this game. It was easily the most frustrating win of this season as the Orioles came close to blowing a 7-0 lead. Now, Corbin Burnes did give up the three-run shot, but his backups imploded again, headlined by Yohan Ramirez, who might have thrown the worst inning by an Oriole in recent memory. Two wild pitches, walks, and it could have been worse had Cowser not nabbed Jason Isbel in an ill-advised attempt to take third base.
Then Yennier Cano came in to extinguish the fire and ended up pouring gasoline all over it. This led to a four-run seventh inning that almost tied the game up. Luckily for us, the offense did just enough to provide some wiggle room late, and the defense, namely Anthony Santander, stepped up for Craig Kimbrel in the ninth, but it was awful to watch.
I can’t explain what happened, but these guys like Danny Coulombe and Akin who had been awesome, just blew up for some reason. Now, things like Ramirez even being on the team, to begin with, are another issue. He shouldn’t pitch another inning with this team.
Let’s flush that series, DFA Ramirez, and hope the ship rights itself in Anaheim. These pitchers need a better week so we can just forget this happened.
Much Better from the Starting Pitching
Back to the positives…
This was a great week for the starting pitching. Yes, they faced the terrible Twins lineup, but the starters did well against the Royals as well. Burnes is the ace, but how about Grayson Rodriguez, man? He has matched Burnes’s great starts, and we haven’t lost a game where Burnes or Grayson took the mound. We even have a fun storyline to watch in Albert Suarez. He pitches again tonight after a lights out start against the Twins, so let’s see if this is sustainable at all.
Cole Irvin turned in his finest start with the Orioles on Sunday, and yes, he should have been given the chance to finish the seventh inning (shout out to Brandon Hyde game management). The best thing a rotation can do with this offense is keep them in games and just give the team a chance to win, and they have done that most of the time this year.
We Don’t Respect O’Hearn Enough
One of the things constantly discussed is how we get some of the young, talented hitters who are stuck in AAA up to the Orioles. When a lot of fans talk about it, they have these prospects taking the spots of players who don’t even play every day. When this is pointed out, you get attacks on Ryan O’Hearn, which needs to stop. O’Hearn is one of the best hitters in the lineup, and thinking that the team would just throw him out of here or trade him for a reliever is nonsense. Yes, they need a reliever, but you don’t use a reliable bat like O’Hearn to get that piece. You don’t rob Peter to pay Paul. O’Hearn isn’t going anywhere, and yes, I want Heston Kjerstad up here as much as the next guy, but not to replace one of the best hitters on the team.
We need to appreciate Ryan O’Hearn because he doesn’t get enough credit.
