One thing that gets on my nerves is the refusal of some fans to ever give the other team credit.
The Orioles lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 last night. After the game I received this type of comment from multiple fans: “the Orioles got the pitching tonight but the bats were asleep.”
Maybe the Rays got the pitching as well and Chris Archer was just better than Jason Hammel. That’s a possibility isn’t it?
There will be games during a season where the other guy is better and you’re going to lose. Just like there are going to be games where the other guy is better but you still find a way to win. Jason Hammel was good last night giving the Birds a quality start, but elevating an 0-2 pitch to James Loney, allowing him to get a base hit, is probably something he regrets. Desmond Jennings followed by crushing a home run and that’s all they needed.
The two teams will get back at it today.
Not a concern but an observation going into game two: the last two games Chris Davis has swung through pitches that he has been crushing all year. He did get two hits Thursday afternoon (singles) but I’m wondering if he’s not seeing the ball as well. Again, not worried – I’m sure he’ll make an adjustment.
Today is also Kevin Gausman’s fourth major league start. I am looking forward to his continued maturation. I still think he’s going to be a major part of the Orioles’ success moving forward.
This team has been very good at getting losses out of their systems fast. I’m betting that trend continues with Gausman on the mound this afternoon.
2 Responses
The Orioles really hepled this guy out last night by swingning at a lot of balls out of the strike zone. To be 2 hit by a guy that had a 7+ERA, and swinging at “balls” shows a little bit of a lack of discipline, which at times the Os are prone to. Jones especially gets in these modes where he swings at bouncers that require a backhoe to dig up in order to hit them. Sometimes just going up there hacking is not always the beat approach.
Your last 2 sentences, you`re wrong!