Despite getting washed out yet again on Monday, the red-hot Orioles didn’t skip a beat against their hosts and took both games of the rain-shortened series in Minneapolis.
The Orioles resumed play on Tuesday and found themselves down 1-0 in the fourth inning before Matt Wieters equalized with an RBI single, followed by Manny Machado and Adam Jones going back-to-back in the fifth to take a 3-1 advantage. Twins Third Baseman Trevor Plouffe would level the score with a two-run shot in the sixth. The game remained deadlocked at 3-3 going into the ninth, and looked to be heading into extra’s after Jonathan Schoop struck out and Ryan Flaherty popped up to leave the O’s with two outs and none on base – but then the O’s turned the game on its head with a vintage display of ‘’ Orioles Magic.” Joey ‘’ROY’’ Rickard doubled and a free pass to Manny Machado followed by a wild pitch from Kevin Jepsen set the stage for Adam Jones, who owned the big moment. The All-Star centerfielder lined the game-winning two-run single into left while Zach Britton silenced the Twins directly after to wrap up the 5-3 victory.
The O’s didn’t slow down in Wednesday’s matinee, either. Mark Trumbo put the O’s up 2-0 with a two-run blast in the second inning before Twins phenom Miguel Sano launched a solo shot to cut the lead in half…but that was the closest the woeful Twins would get to catching the scorching-hot Orioles in this one. Chris Davis and Trumbo resumed the O’s home run party by going back-to-back in the fourth inning to take a 5-1 lead before the Twins Danny Santana picked up an RBI single in the fifth, but the Davis/Jones show went live after that. Davis would pick up his third and fourth RBI on the day with a double in the sixth and a fielder’s choice in the seventh before Jones would put the game to bed with a two-run blast in the ninth to give the O’s a 9-2 lead. Three outs later, and your first place Orioles are heading home on a four-game winning streak. Also, after taking six of their last eight games, the O’s head back to Camden to kick off a seven-game home stand at a season-best eight games above .500 with a 20-12 clip on the year.
Now, let’s take a look at the several highlights from the O’s trip to the Twin Cities:
– After doing it in both games against the Twins, the O’s have now hit back-to-back home runs in three straight games for the first time in the club’s history and are just the 15th team to do so in MLB history. The 1964 Minnesota Twins hold the record with four straight games going back-to-back.
– With Davis and Trumbo’s back-to-back display on Wednesday, the O’s have now gone back-to-back six times already on the young season.
– With four homers in Wednesday’s 9-2 triumph, the O’s now have hit 4+ homers in four games this season and have hit an astonishing 12 jacks over the past three games. They lead the AL with 49 bombs on the year and are projected to hit a ridiculous 248 homers.
– The O’s powerful line-up went a robust 30-for-79 (.379 avg) with six homers and 14 runs over the two contests against the Twins, and have now racked up 34 runs over the past five games after scoring just 13 during the five games prior to the series against the A’s.
– The Birds got excellent pitching performances from Kevin Gausman (6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 9 K) and Tyler Wilson (7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K), as the duo posted a solid 3.46 ERA and an impressive 1.07 WHIP against the Twins. The O’s rotation has been phenomenal as of late, recording 11 quality starts over their last 14 outings with an admirable 3.40 ERA.
– After recording five shutout innings against Minnesota, the Orioles’ incredible bullpen now boasts an AL-Best 2.33 ERA with a .225 BAA and a 1.22 WHIP.
Now, it’s time to talk specifically about the heart of the O’s lineup. Why? Because they were just that freaking awesome against the Twins, that’s why.
Going into Minnesota, Adam Jones was just 3-for-24 over his previous six games, and Chris Davis was only 1-for-21. Both players were at the Mendoza line on the year.
And just two games later, you can consider those slumps to be a part of the past. Jones (6-for-10, 4 R, 2 HR, 5 RBI) and Davis (7-for-10, 2 R, 3 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI) combined to go 13-for-20 with six runs, three doubles, three home runs and nine RBI versus the Twins. I’m sure the Twins pitchers will be having nightmares about these guys for the next few days.
Davis, 30, is now hitting .242 with five doubles, nine homers, 23 RBI and a .350 OBP on the campaign, while Jones, 30, is hitting .238 with four doubles, three home runs and 14 RBI on the year.
Manny Machado excelled again against the Twins, going 4-for-9 with three runs, one homer and one RBI over the two-game mini-series. The 23-year-old superstar leads the team in hits (47), batting average (.359), doubles (15), runs (27) and OBP (.417) while ranking second on the team in HR (10) and tied for second in RBI (23).
After going 3-for-10 with three runs, one double, two home runs and three RBI versus Minnesota, Mark Trumbo now leads the team in HR (11) and RBI (27) along with ranking second in batting average (.323) and OBP (.372). The 30-year-old now has five homers in his last eight games and is projected to hit a staggering 56 bombs with 137 RBI on the year. (Hey, 56 might not happen, but 45 would be pretty sweet!) Tick-Tock, Mr.Duquette. Sign this guy to an extension already. I don’t care that it’s only May. Do it now!
To recap, the O’s ‘’ Core Four’’ of Machado, Trumbo, Davis and Jones combined to go 20-for-39 (.512 avg) with 12 runs, four doubles, six homers and 13 RBI versus the Twins. Yes, that’s right. Twenty hits amongst four players over just two ballgames. That’s just outstanding, and that’s probably an understatement. These guys are too legit, and for the O’s sake, hopefully they never quit.
That’s it for today, O’s Nation! There are zero negatives in this series notebook, either. You already know why.
Because it’s still all good vibes in Birdland!
Until next time, ladies and gentleman. Go O’s!
