Reality: This is a special season for the Orioles.
Perception: It’s everyone contributing something. I mean think about it – over the weekend, Buck Showalter gave many of the big names a day off, and everyone on twitter gave up on that game Sunday before it even started. I tweeted that the Orioles would win that game, because that’s exactly what they have done all year. They went on to do just that, and they just continue to win. Without Matt Wieters and Manny Machado, the Orioles players have each stepped up to help the club.
In six games with the Orioles, Alejandro De Aza is hitting .375 with two home runs, four RBIs, and two stolen bases. In the same amount of games, Jimmy Paredes is hitting .350 with a home run and four RBIs.
In the 40 games since the All Star break, David Lough is hitting .325 with two stolen bases. Caleb Joseph is hitting .284 with six home runs since the break.
Everyone on this team has contributed in some way and that it what has made the Orioles so good this year. Everyone is stepping up and doing the job they are being asked to do. This will be crucial in October.
Reality: Dan Duquette and Buck Showalter deserve a ton of credit.
Perception: Just stop for a moment and look at what they have done. They have taken a ballclub who lost, arguably, their best two players in Wieters and Machado, to first place and the franchise’s best record in nearly 20 years! The way Duquette has acquired talent throughout the year, and the way Showalter has massaged each and every move has worked like a charm. If they don’t win Executive and Manager of the Year, something is wrong.
Reality: The Orioles have second best record in baseball.
Perception: In all of baseball, the O’s only trail the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in wins. Since they are both in the American League, the Orioles trail in the race for home field advantage throughout the playoffs by four games, with 17 games left.
The Orioles’ magic number over the Yankees and Blue Jays is eight. So any combination of Orioles wins and Yankees and/or Blue Jays losses (depending on which of them has the fewest losses at the time) equaling eight means the Orioles are the American League East division champions, for the first time since 1997.
The Orioles have 86 wins right now, one more than in all of 2013. They need seven more wins to match their 2012 win total. The last time the Orioles won this many games was in 1997, when they won the AL East and won 98 games. To match that record, the Orioles will need to go 12-5 in their last 17 games. With their next win, will match the win total of the 1989 “Why Not” season. In 1979, the Orioles had 102 wins, which they can only match if they go 16-1 the rest of the way.
Reality: The Orioles could win the AL East at home in the next week.
Perception: The Birds play their next 10 games at home, starting with four against the Yankees, then three against the Blue Jays, and three against the Red Sox. With a magic number of eight, and all divisional games left, it’s likely the Orioles clinch the AL East title while at home before next Sunday. If they don’t, they will clinch it on the road in New York or Toronto. But as long as they keep playing as well as they have, we should be celebrating at home with the Orioles very soon.
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