Konner Wade grateful for second chance in Orioles system

Konner Wade grateful for second chance in Orioles system
No matter how much the surroundings and routine changed in spring training with baseball still working under COVID-related protocols, Konner Wade was overcome by a familiar feeling at Twin Lakes Park. Wade had walked those hallways before, dressed inside that clubhouse. And been told that the organization had no room for him. Four months after trading for him. There are aspects of his current situation that he hopes won't air as a rerun. Wade has been one of Triple-A Norfolk's best pitchers...

O's woes grow with 7-4 loss in Game 1 (updated)

O's woes grow with 7-4 loss in Game 1 (updated)
Games shortened to seven innings aren't capable right now of preventing losing streaks from growing. The Orioles must hope that they don't run out of ideas. Another early lead for the Orioles was erased in rapid fashion today after Freddy Galvis hit the first of his two home runs off White Sox left-hander Dallas Keuchel in the first inning. A single by José Abreu tied the game in the first. A pair of Matt Harvey walks and a wild pitch to open the third were followed by Abreu's two-run...

Orioles and White Sox Game 1 lineups

Orioles and White Sox Game 1 lineups
Ryan Mountcastle hit on the field today and is in the Game 1 lineup against the White Sox. Mountcastle, who bruised his left hand Tuesday on a hit by pitch, is the designated hitter. "He feels good enough to give it a try," manager Brandon Hyde said on his Zoom call. "Really encouraged by that, give him a lot of credit for understanding our situation and playing banged up. Shows me a lot about him and his character of trying to be a pro. He's still sore, but he's going to try." First...

Leftovers for breakfast

Leftovers for breakfast
The return of Anthony Santander from the injured list gives manager Brandon Hyde more outfield choices. It also gives him a cleanup hitter, the early numbers dismissed with a wave of the bat. Santander was slashing .196/.230/.321 with a double, two home runs, two walks and 17 strikeouts in 62 plate appearances before spraining his left ankle in Miami. But he's a presence in the lineup, someone that the opposition must account for, a threat to produce runs from both sides of the plate. Too bad...

Orioles recall Waddell (updated)

Orioles recall Waddell (updated)
The Orioles made one bullpen swap today, recalling left-hander Brandon Waddell from Triple-A Norfolk and optioning Travis Lakins Sr. to the Tides. Waddell, a waiver claim from the Twins, made his Norfolk debut Friday night and tossed a scoreless inning. He's wearing No. 49. The bullpen is loaded with lefties now, including Paul Fry, Tanner Scott and Keegan Akin. Waddell has pitched in six major league games over parts of the last two seasons and allowed six earned runs (seven total) and 12...

Orioles' home woes worsen in 10-1 loss (McKenna optioned)

Orioles' home woes worsen in 10-1 loss (McKenna optioned)
The fascination with the Orioles' poor home record builds with each defeat. The demands for a simple explanation grow along with the loss total. Here's a simple truth that played out again this afternoon: Location of the game doesn't matter if pitch location isn't precise. Rookie Dean Kremer surrendered a pair of home runs in the second inning, the Rays flexing their muscle throughout the series, the bullpen labored again and the Orioles were beaten 10-1 to complete the sweep. The Orioles...

Rough stretch vs. AL East ends as O's are swept by Rays

Rough stretch vs. AL East ends as O's are swept by Rays
After getting swept by the Tampa Bay Rays - and allowing 11 homers and 32 runs in the three games - the Orioles will find out how the other half lives for a short while. After playing 10 of their last 12 games within the rugged American League East, they will now play their next six series outside of the division. It starts tomorrow with the beginning of a 10-game road trip to Washington, Minnesota and the Chicago White Sox. Home series with Minnesota, Cleveland and the New York Mets...

Orioles pitching surrenders five homers in 13-6 loss (updated)

Orioles pitching surrenders five homers in 13-6 loss (updated)
Matt Harvey stood with his back turned to home plate and his right hand on his hip tonight as Austin Meadows' ball sailed over the center field fence for the second three-run homer of the second inning. The second-shortest start of his major league career was happening before his eyes. He had to look. Though perhaps in disbelief. A bloop single by Brandon Lowe with two outs brought manager Brandon Hyde out of the dugout. The Rays were dinking Harvey to death, too, but it didn't hurt as much...

Yankees power past Orioles 5-4 (updated)

Yankees power past Orioles 5-4 (updated)
Dean Kremer knows the Yankees almost as well as his own family. He must feel as though he's been in quarantine with them. Kremer made his 11th career start tonight and his fifth versus the Yankees, but the lineup wasn't a duplicate. Gleyber Torres is on the COVID injured list. Giancarlo Stanton was a late scratch with a quadriceps injury. Aaron Judge was batting third. Gio Urshela was available off the bench. The Yankees are still dangerous at the plate, the intimidation factor lowered just a...

Kremer makes progress against Yankees, but pinch homer sinks O's

Kremer makes progress against Yankees, but pinch homer sinks O's
For Orioles right-hander Dean Kremer, it was the same team, but a different night and a much different result. For the Orioles, the final result was not at all what they wanted. A pinch-hit three-run homer in the seventh by Gio Urshela off Travis Lakins Sr., lifted the New York Yankees to a come-from-behind 5-4 win in the series opener. The O's led 4-2 until that home run, and they fall to 16-22 and have lost six of seven games. Their major league-worst home record drops to 5-14. They are...

López, Mountcastle, Mancini and 'pen team for 4-1 win (updated)

López, Mountcastle, Mancini and 'pen team for 4-1 win (updated)
Jorge López still doesn't have a smudge on his first-inning work this season, stranding a runner tonight and pumping his sinker at 96-98 mph. Opponents have four hits in 25 at-bats. How far would he venture into his latest start? That's always the curiosity with López. Ryan Mountcastle attacked the first pitch thrown to him leading off the second inning and drove it deep into the left field seats. How far it traveled wasn't as important as the way he's climbed back into the cleanup...

This time, Mariners have a big eighth to beat O's (quotes added)

This time, Mariners have a big eighth to beat O's (quotes added)
On a night when the Orioles continued to not capitalize on bases-loaded situations, the Seattle Mariners did in a big way with one of their own. And that led Seattle to a 5-2 win over the Orioles on Tuesday night in the second game of the series. Right-hander Travis Lakins Sr. started the last of the eighth in a 1-1 tie and gave up a flared single to right by Sam Haggerty. Then he walked the next two hitters before manager Brandon Hyde called for Tanner Scott to try and pull off a miracle with...

Orioles done in by Athletics defense in 7-5 loss (updated)

Orioles done in by Athletics defense in 7-5 loss (updated)
A 25-pitch first inning for Bruce Zimmermann and the two errors on one play and resulting runs didn't fit a team that sought to sweep a series and extend its winning streak to four games. More appropriate were the two rallies in the first five innings that erased deficits and kept alive the quest to reach .500. And a third RBI for Trey Mancini in the seventh that gave the Orioles their first lead. It didn't last long. And .500 was put on hold in jarring fashion. Ramón Laureano made a...

Mullins' sacrifice fly in 10th bails out Valdez in 4-3 win (updated)

Mullins' sacrifice fly in 10th bails out Valdez in 4-3 win (updated)
Starting pitcher Jorge López came out of the dugout this afternoon and hopped across the first base line before teammates followed him onto the field. Manager Brandon Hyde was more interested in whether they could get on base. It wasn't the only time they trailed, but it's where you finish that counts. César Valdez was a strike away from stranding two runners after walks and notching his sixth save - though plate umpire Rob Drake was squeezing him - but Gleyber Torres lined an automatic...

Pitching changes can be expected throughout the summer

Pitching changes can be expected throughout the summer
The type of transaction that sent Zac Lowther back to the alternate camp site yesterday would become a signature move for the Orioles except that a lot of other teams are going to claim ownership. Roster churn is providing as much background noise as batting practice music. The Orioles aren't a full month into their season and they've been cranking out transactions like disc jockey tunes. There's the necessity created by injuries, but also some deep-tissue massaging of the roster. They could...

Matt Harvey pitches O's past Yankees

Matt Harvey pitches O's past Yankees
With one strong outing tonight, Orioles right-hander Matt Harvey both pitched past his previous five-inning ceiling and pitched the O's to a win over the Yankees in the opener of a four-game series. After beginning Sunday with just one home win, now the Orioles have three after beating New York 4-2 in front of 6,367 at Oriole Park. The top of the eighth got dicey for the Orioles and ended with a controversial play that went against New York. Harvey picked up his second O's win and produced...

Harvey and Mullins lead Orioles to 4-2 win (updated)

Harvey and Mullins lead Orioles to 4-2 win (updated)
Freddy Galvis hit an opposite-field, run-scoring double tonight in the bottom of the second inning, stayed for the last out and was gone. Plated a run and retreated to the clubhouse. A lineup that lost outfielder Anthony Santander to a sprained ankle could have a vacancy at shortstop. Galvis was removed with left adductor soreness, basically an injury to the hip/thigh, but there wasn't much hurting Matt Harvey. He wasn't coming out of the game until shattering the five-inning barrier. Until...

López labors early as Orioles lose 3-1 (updated)

López labors early as Orioles lose 3-1 (updated)
The first time through the order became treacherous territory for Orioles starter Jorge López. As if he decided to go off script for the "Moneyball" sequel. Lopez hadn't allowed a run in three starts until turning over the lineup, but five of nine Oakland batters reached tonight and created an early deficit that the Orioles never made up in a 3-1 loss before an announced crowd of 7,574. Ramón Laureano led off the fifth by homering into the visiting bullpen, the final batter for...

Zimmermann falters in fifth and Orioles fall 3-0 (updated)

Zimmermann falters in fifth and Orioles fall 3-0 (updated)
Orioles catcher Pedro Severino and manager Brandon Hyde gave rookie pitcher Bruce Zimmermann the same encouraging, and perhaps consoling, pat on the backside today - in rapid succession as if rehearsed - after he handed over the baseball and turned toward the dugout. Zimmermann sat on the bench expressionless in the fifth inning, staring straight ahead, as captured by the MASN cameras. He could have been thinking about the elevated fastball that Jesús Aguilar lined into left-center field for...

Means shines again on road in Orioles' 1-0 10-inning loss (updated)

Means shines again on road in Orioles' 1-0 10-inning loss (updated)
There's nothing wrong with the mound at Camden Yards, the home clubhouse or the ballpark atmosphere. The routine at home isn't disruptive. John Means just happens to pitch better on the road this month, for reasons that can't be explained beyond the ridiculously small sample size. In Means' lone outing in Baltimore, he faced the Mariners in the first game of a doubleheader and allowed three runs in five innings with two home runs attached to his line. In starts made on three trips, he's...