Well well well, what do we have here?
The clock may be ticking, but the Orioles have been doing a ton of knocking lately…
And it looks like this Orioles squad that just about everyone deemed dead in the water without even a fighter’s chance of making the postseason is out to shock the world once again.
And after an incredible sweep over the red-hot Bo’Sox at Fenway over the weekend, there is no doubt the Orioles are revving up the engine at the perfect moment in time.
The starters were almost flawless, the line-up did major damage and the bullpen was perfect. You couldn’t have asked for a better team performance than the one that we enjoyed over the weekend.
The current four-game winning streak has pulled the Orioles to an even .500 at 65-65, and as a result of their strongest showing on the road of the season, the AL’s second and final wild card spot is now just two games out of reach.
To add the cherry on top, this surging Orioles squad will now dig in their cleats and set their sights on taking down the Twins in the wild card standings over a lengthy ten-game stand at OPACY. If there was ever a time to pull off a major string of W’s, the time is now.
In the meantime, here’s to staying focused and hammering down versus fellow wild card contenders Seattle tomorrow.
That hammer’s getting pretty hot, by the way. Watch out, American League.
Let’s take a look at a few quick highlights from the past week of Orioles baseball.
– As we mentioned earlier, the Orioles starters were simply superb in Boston over the weekend and finished the three-game set with a sparkling 1.37 ERA over 19 2/3 innings. More of the same, please! Kevin Gausman, Dylan Bundy and Wade Miley have been doing a great job of carrying the load lately and have all been major catalysts in the Orioles resurgence.
– Once again, the Orioles bullpen was immaculate over 7 1/3 innings over the weekend, and as a result, relievers have posted a stellar 2.56 ERA over the last nineteen games and a 2.83 ERA over the last 29 contests.
– While it’s hard to top a twenty-hit, sixteen-run explosion like the Orioles pulled off on Friday, I like our chances of carrying the swagger over down the stretch. Mainly due to their fireworks display at Fenway, the Orioles are hitting .293 while scoring over seven runs a game (7.3 per game) on top of thirteen homers and an amazing .407 average with runners in scoring position over their last six ballgames.
– Over the last sixteen games, the Orioles are hitting a stellar .300 with 102 runs (6.4 per game) on 31 homers.
– Over the last 29 games, they’re hitting .289 with 166 runs (5.7 per game) on 51 homers as a unit.
Let’s go to the three stars of the week!
Third Star
Trey Mancini. Talk about perfect timing. Right off the heels of a long-term slump, O’s star rookie Mancini broke on through to the other side by going 4-for-10 with a homer and three RBI versus Oakland. He then followed up by tagging the Sox over the weekend by going 7-for-13 with five RBI. His excellent showing in Boston included a four-RBI night on Friday and the game-winning RBI double on Sunday.
”Boom Boom” is on fire at the moment.
Second Star
Wade Miley (Yes, THAT Wade Miley) gets the nod here over a red-hot Adam Jones and Tim Beckham. Miley pitched a great game versus the A’s during the former part of the week and allowed just two runs over six innings in the Orioles 7-3 win, and then battled relentlessly over five innings of one-run ball at Fenway over the weekend en route to a 2-1 sweep-clinching victory.
Miley has been in excellent form as of late, and as a result of his two well-earned wins this week, he’s now sparkled to the tune of a 4-1 record and a 2.76 ERA over his last six outings.
First Star
Jonathan Schoop. The Orioles star second baseman has caught fire again lately, too. After posting his 27th home run of the season and five RBI versus Oakland, Schoop followed up by being a major catalyst in the dismantling of the Sox over the weekend by going 6-for-13 at the plate with four runs, one homer and two RBI. His stellar display in Boston included a 4-for-5 night with three runs and an RBI on Friday and his 28th homer of the season on Saturday to tie Manny Machado for the club lead.
Over his last thirteen ballgames, Schoop is hitting an amazing .333 with three homers and ten RBI. In his last 38 games, Schoop is hammering down to the tune of a .331 batting average with ten homers and forty RBI.
Without a doubt, Schoop has been the O’s team MVP this season, and should garner some AL MVP votes.
