Wow…what a way to end a road trip! After Sunday’s dramatic and epic come-from-behind win against the Giants, the O’s are heading home on a high note. If that doesn’t get your adrenaline flowing…consult your doctor.
And since they have an off day today, party it up tonight boys! You’ve earned it. In fact, Jonathan Schoop shouldn’t have to pay for a meal (or a drink) in Baltimore for the rest of the season.
The Orioles kicked off the series with an impressive 5-2 win in Friday’s series opener on the back of a yet again impressive Dylan Bundy.
Mark Trumbo’s two-run shot in the third and Chris Davis’s solo shot in the fifth gave the Orioles a commanding 5-1 advantage which they would not relinquish, and Zach Britton earned his 36th save of the season in the 5-2 win.
The Giants responded in emphatic fashion on Saturday. Kevin Gausman channeled his inner Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn, and Vance Worley and Ubaldo Jimenez couldn’t stop the bleeding en route to facing a 6-0 deficit in the ninth.
Oh, and did I mention Madison Bumgarner was on the mound? That’ll explain it…what I wouldn’t give for a pitcher like the Giants superstar ace to be wearing Black and Orange in Birdland.
At least the O’s avoided the shut out after Ryan Flaherty came up big with a pinch-hit two-RBI single in the ninth, but that was all she wrote in the Giants 6-2 victory.
Wade Miley certainly didn’t win over any fans on Sunday after allowing seven runs (six earned) over four and 1/3 innings, but despite sinking fast and facing a 7-1 deficit in the seventh inning, the O’s put on their rally caps.
Adam Jones’s sacrifice fly followed by Hyun Soo Kim’s RBI double in the top of the frame cut San Fran’s lead to 7-3.
Mark Trumbo’s league-leading 34th home run of the season cut the deficit to 7-4. J.J. Hardy came through in the clutch with an RBI single to cut the SF lead to just two going into the bottom of the eighth.
We all saw it coming. Why? Three words…
Orioles Magic, baby!
With Manny Machado and Nolan Reimold (pinch ran after a walk to Trumbo) on base and two outs, Jonathan Schoop launched a three-run shot off of Santiago Casilla to cap off the Orioles’ furious seven-run rally in just three innings, and (of course) Zach Britton locked up the O’s 8-7 comeback win in the ninth to record his 37th consecutive save of the campaign.
Down to their last out, the Orioles turned a series loss and a disappointing end to the road trip into an enthralling win to not only take the series, but to also fly home with some much needed momentum after losing their grip on first place in Oakland.
Let’s take a look at the highlights from AT&T Park:
– Other than Bundy’s admirable performance on Friday, the Orioles starters struggled versus San Francisco and finished the series with a 5.79 ERA over 14 total innings. The main factor of the jump in ERA was Miley’s rough outing on Sunday. In three starts with the Orioles, Miley has recorded a 0-2 record with a woeful 7.05 ERA after allowing 12 runs over just 15.1 innings.
– On the flip side, Dylan Bundy has registered a 4-1 record and a remarkable 1.86 ERA over his last five starts.
– While the Orioles bullpen slammed the door shut and kept the O’s in the game on Sunday, their most recent performance was one of their best collective efforts in recent memory. The O’s bullpen is the third-best in the league and boasts an impressive 3.15 ERA, but the bullpen owns an average-at-best 4.17 ERA over the past 17 games.
– The Britton Watch: After locking up two more saves in San Francisco, The O’s star closer now stands at 37-for-37 in save situations on the year and has recorded an MLB record 41 consecutive games without allowing an earned run. Mr. Britton, we salute you!
– The offense was stifled on Saturday, but we all know of the Bumgarner effect by now. The O’s scored 13 runs over the other two games and finished the series with a .277 team batting average and 15 runs on four homers while also hitting .291 with runners in scoring position. More of the same please!
– Adam Jones has been the Orioles biggest offensive catalyst as of late, collecting hits in nine of his last ten games while recording a stellar .363 average with five runs, two home runs and four RBI during that stretch.
– Or is it Manny Machado? The O’s star third baseman has recorded a base hit in eight of his last nine games and owns a superb .333 average with eight runs, four homers and nine RBI over his last ten contests.
– After clubbing two home runs versus the Giants, Mark Trumbo still stands as the MLB’s 2016 home run king with 34 long balls this season, but Toronto’s Edwin Encarnacion is right on his heels with 33 of his own. Nonetheless, the O’s 30-year Californian slugger is on pace for an outstanding 43 homers and 111 RBI. Now that we’re past the deadline, can we please talk to this guy about an extension?!?!
– Matt Wieters was just 7-for-44 (.159) at the dish with one home run and five RBI over his previous 14 ballgames coming into Sunday’s contest, and by the end of the day, Wieters finish the game by going a career-best 5-for-5. Here’s to the O’s backstop finding his rhythm after his prolific performance in the O’s comeback win.
– Jonathan Schoop was also going through a rough patch in form going into Sunday’s game, and had recorded just a .240 average with zero homers and just one RBI over his previous 14 games. It just means he was due. The O’s talented second baseman picked up three RBI off of one game-winning swing of the bat in the ninth. Here’s to hoping that Schoop hits top form after his confidence-boosting homer.
As you can tell, there were a ton of positives to take away from the O’s trip to San Fran.
And after taking two of three against the first place Giants, here’s to letting the good times roll at Camden Yards versus the BoSox!
