The Orioles have used some exemplary relief – and the exact opposite of that by the Detroit Tigers – and some big late innings to build a commanding 2-0 lead in the best of five American League Divisional Series.
On Thursday night in Game 1, it was an eight-run eighth inning that turned a 4-3 nailbiter into a 12-3 laugher. The Birds had struck for two runs in the first off of 2013 American League Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer thanks to a Nelson Cruz home run, and added another in the second to retake the lead following back-to-back solo home runs from Victor and J.D. Martinez off O’s starter Chris Tillman had tied the contest in the top of the frame.
J.J. Hardy’s solo dinger in the bottom of the seventh gave the O’s a 4-2 cushion, but the Tigers fought back thanks to a solo home run from Miguel Cabrera off Darren O’Day in the top of the eighth. With the score 4-3, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus sent Scherzer out for the bottom of the eighth, but a one-out double by Alejandro De Aza chased him. Joba Chamberlain entered the game, and then things got really fun. Let’s just let the video speak for itself:
The Tigers’ pen (Chamberlain, Joakim Soria, and Phil Coke) combined to throw 0.2 of an inning, allowing 4 H, 5 ER, and 2 BB).
The O’s pen? They logged 4.0 innings of relief, allowing 4 H and just the one run. Andrew Miller was dominant, striking out three in 1.1 innings, while O’Day, Zach Britton, and Tommy Hunter also contributed.
There’s your narrative living up to the hype.
After a ridiculously quick turnaround that gave O’s fans very little time to bask in the glory of an epic playoff beatdown, the two teams teed it up again at 12:07 PM on Friday, in a game that turned out to be every bit as awesome as its predecessor, just for a very different reason.
Nick Markakis put the O’s on the board first, knocking his first career playoff homer in the top of the third to stake the Birds to a 2-0 lead.
Unfortunately, for the second straight day an O’s starter couldn’t record an out before coughing up a two-run cushion. Wei-Yin Chen, who had been on his game through three innings, completely imploded in the third, allowing five runs including four on another pair of back-to-back home runs, this time by J.D. Martinez and Nick Castellanos. After Chen had recorded two outs in the frame, a long drive to the wall by Rajai Davis got Buck Showalter up out of the dugout and into his bullpen in just the fourth inning.
That didn’t seem to bode well for the Birds, as they now trailed 5-2, but Kevin Gausman, making his first playoff appearance, was more than up to the task. The young fireballer turned in 3.2 innings of work, allowing just three hits while striking out five to give his team a chance to fight back. Gausman finally allowed a run on the final batter he faced in the top of the eighth, a long drive off the wall by Victor Martinez. However, Miguel Cabrera ill-advisedly decided to try to score from first on the play despite there being no outs in the inning, and was gunned down at home thanks to great throws from both Adam Jones and Jonathan Schoop. Brad Brach recorded the final two outs, and the O’s went into the bottom of the eighth trailing by a score of 6-3.
Chamberlain again come on for the Tigers, and in one of the stranger scenes you’ll ever see, was greeted with a standing ovation by the Oriole Park at Camden Yards crowd, who sensed blood in the water. Joba retired Alejandro De Aza to lead off the inning, but followed it up by plunking Adam Jones and allowing back-to-back singles to Cruz and Steve Pearce, the second of which scored Jones to make it 6-4.
Ausmus again called on Soria, and the O’s were again far from content with their eighth inning production thus far.
Soria walked J.J. Hardy to load the bases, and Showalter went to his bench. Calling on Delmon Young, who had been a clutch pinch-hitter for the Birds all season, seemed like a no-brainer, and Young rewarded his manager with a hit that will go down in Baltimore Orioles history.
Zach Britton locked down the save with an 11-pitch ninth inning, and the O’s are now headed off to The Motor City with a 2-0 lead. They’ll send Bud Norris to the hill Sunday against David Price. First pitch is set for 3:45 PM.
We won’t stop.
