The Orioles gave up 15 hits, four homers and 12 runs. They went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position. Their bullpen allowed eight runs. They left eight men on base and that was just in the first four innings.

Monday was a mess.

Tuesday was a step in the right direction.

If ever there was a night the Orioles needed to win, this was it.

Not so much for the pennant-race math with games dwindling and being 1.5 games out of first, but they needed to clean it up. They had lost three in a row and fans were wondering if the AL East was slipping away. They were losing confidence in their team. Some confidence in the clubhouse maybe even was eroding a bit.

When the Orioles scored 13 runs Monday and nine runs Tuesday night in beating the Chicago White Sox, we had no idea the next few games would prove to be so futile for the Baltimore offense. 

Through Tuesday the Orioles had scored 38 runs over a five-game stretch. Was the offense finally coming around?

As it turned out, no.

In the last four games the Orioles scored one, two, one and zero runs. They actually won one of those games. But in the four contests, the Orioles produced four runs and 22 hits, going 1-for-20 with runners in scoring position. 

Here is something pretty remarkable: The Orioles did not hit a double or triple in the four games. Their last extra-base hit that was not a homer came on Tuesday. 

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde was asked before tonight’s game whether rookie Cade Povich could stay in the rotation or perhaps move to the bullpen.

“I think we’ve got 40 games to go, and it’s 40 of day-to-day right now,” Hyde said. “Just kind of never know. And we’ve got rosters expanding. A lot of things can happen.”

A quick return to Triple-A Norfolk also was possible, or more like probable with no plans for a six-man setup. How much of the decision was really in the rookie’s hands?

The left one gave the Orioles lots to ponder.

Recalled earlier today to make his ninth major league start, Povich retired 15 of the first 17 batters and carried a shutout into the sixth inning before allowing a run. He lasted a career-high 6 1/3 in the Orioles’ 5-1 loss to the Red Sox before an announced crowd of 38,921 at Camden Yards.

The Orioles who have lost only two American League East series this year - one to the Yankees, one to the Blue Jays - get back into division play tonight when they host Boston to start a four-game series at Oriole Park.

The Orioles (71-50) and the third-place Red Sox (63-56) are the only two clubs in the division that have winning records in 2024 in AL East games.

.667 - Orioles (26-13)
.519 - Boston (14-13)
.489 - New York (22-23)
.425 - Tampa Bay (17-23)
.415 - Toronto (17-24)

The Orioles are 8-2-2 this season in 12 AL East series. They are 18-2-6 their past 26 division series dating to early last April.

The Birds are 5-1 this season versus Boston, sweeping three in Boston from April 9-11 and going 2-1 at home May 27-29. The O's in this series have a chance to win each of their first three series against Boston in a season for the first time since 1976.

It might have been a tired team that took the field at Oriole Park Monday to face the Boston Red Sox after a challenging road trip filled with rain delays.

But they looked well rested when hitting.

The O’s posted an 11-3 win in the series-opener with Boston. They are now 4-0 versus the Red Sox on the season, scoring 34 runs and they have won nine of their past 12 against Boston.

The Orioles have won each of their first four versus Boston for the first time in any season since 1967. The best-ever start was an 8-0 in 1960.

Since the O’s got swept in St. Louis they have won a season-high five in a row scoring 34 runs to average 6.8 per game in this streak with 23 extra-base hits and an .838 OPS.

The Boston Red Sox began this series with the Orioles riding high at 7-3 after a season-opening West Coast road trip. Their team ERA was 1.49 at first pitch Tuesday night, the club’s lowest mark through 10 games since the Live Ball era which began in 1920.

But in this series, in which the Orioles swept them three in a row, Baltimore produced 23 runs on 31 hits, hit five homers – four last night – and went 15-for-37 (.405) batting with runners in scoring position.

Last night was their sixth comeback win of the 2024 season and they outscored Boston in the series 19-2 from the sixth inning on.

The Orioles have put up big numbers later in games this year. In fact, through the fifth innings of their games so far, they have been outscored 28-23. But from the sixth inning on, they have outscored their opponents 47-14. So they are -5 in runs in the first five innings and +33 from the sixth inning on.

That is a remarkable stat.

During my postgame show on WBAL Radio last night, a caller said the Orioles win showed they are resilient and can overcome adversity. Well, they indeed did do that in a 7-5 win over the Boston Red Sox.

They are now 7-4 overall, 3-2 on this road trip and won another series, and can sweep it tonight behind Grayson Rodriguez (2-0, 2.19 ERA) at Fenway Park.

Jordan Westburg has hit two homers this year - one was a walk-off at Camden Yards and last night it was a go-ahead homer in the top of the seventh. With his club down 5-4 and two men on, he blasted a two-out shot out to the left of center. It was a ball he hit 111.2 mph and drove it 432 feet. It turned a one-run deficit into a 7-5 lead which the Orioles would hold.

Westburg said he was just trying to keep the line moving when he got into one. 

“I just viewed all those situations as ways of our guys passing the bat back to the next guy, trying to string together innings, string together some runs, get back in the game,” he said. “It got up to me and I was kind of doing the same thing. I wasn’t trying to do too much. I was just trying to get the bat to the next guy in the lineup. And it just so happened that it went out."

BOSTON – Cole Irvin isn’t afraid to pitch at Fenway Park.

He’s actually a lover of old ballparks.

Irvin appreciates the history. He wants to plant his feet in the middle of it. And he gets another opportunity tonight.

Unlike Corbin Burnes, who made his first career start in Boston yesterday, Irvin is prepping for his second start and third appearance. He’s got a little more feel for it – along with a deep appreciation.

“I think it’s awesome anytime you get to pitch in an original ballfield,” he said. “Being a fan of the game of baseball as a kid and remembering how many meaningful games have been played in this stadium just kind of gives you goosebumps in a good way. It’s pretty cool to think about the amount of players who have been in this stadium. Granted, things have probably changed over those years, but the ground here are just so amazing.

The Orioles (5-4) road trip continues this afternoon as they play the first of a three-game series against the Red Sox (7-3) at Fenway Park. The Orioles return home Friday night. 

Baltimore lost via walk-off losses in their last two games at Pittsburgh and they lost their first series of the year. They begin play today in third in the American League East and are three games back of division-leading New York and 1.5 games back of second-place Boston. 

Boston is playing its home opener after beginning the year with a West Coast road trip. The Red Sox went 2-2 at Seattle, 3-0 at Oakland and 2-1 in Anaheim versus the Los Angeles Angels. Boston begins a nine-game homestand today.

Boston began the year 1-2 and is 6-1 since then. And they are 2-0-1 in series. The last time they won or split each of their first three series was in 2018, when they started 3-0-0. The last times the Red Sox won as many as seven of their first 10 games were 2021 (7-3), 2018 (9-1), 2015 (7-3), and 2006 (7-3).

The Red Sox have gotten off to an incredible pitching start, leading the majors with a 1.49 ERA. The Orioles are fifth at 2.85. Boston and Baltimore rank 1-2 in MLB in WHIP with Boston at 0.96 and the Orioles at 1.02. Boston’s .186 batting average against leads the majors while the Orioles are fifth at .214.

BOSTON – The Orioles have an odd attachment to Opening Day – their own and their opponent’s.

They get to hop in the middle of more festivities this afternoon against the Red Sox, who began their season with a West Coast swing through Seattle, Oakland and Anaheim.

No other team or fan base is allowed to complain about the schedule. The Red Sox own the rights.

They also won seven of 10 games to move 1 ½ ahead of the Orioles.

Eyes shouldn’t be strained from reading too much into either team’s start. However, the off-day allowed for some reflection on the Orioles.

The Orioles can use today’s off day to regroup a bit after two straight walk-off losses at Pittsburgh. They lose their first series of the year but were so close to a sweep and a 7-2 record. 

As they wake up today, they are 5-4 and looking up in the standings at the New York Yankees (8-2) and Boston Red Sox (7-3).

That makes the series that starts Tuesday at Fenway Park even more important. The O’s want to show they can get past the disappointment in Pittsburgh and that they are still Boston’s superior.

They went 7-6 versus the Red Sox in winning the AL East in 2023 and went 3-3 at Fenway Park. They were 23 games better in the final standings.

Right now, this club is also looking for consistent offense. The Orioles scored 24 runs on 24 hits their first two games, reminding some in Birdland of last year’s club that scored 807 runs. But now they have scored 23 runs in the last seven games.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Ryan Mountcastle is out of the lineup for a fourth consecutive game. Manager Brandon Hyde said Mountcastle has some neck stiffness.

“Just giving him a little bit of rest,” Hyde said.

Austin Hays also is out of the lineup, missing back-to-back games because he’s under the weather.

John Means threw his second live batting practice session yesterday, again working one inning. The next step is a two-inning session.

Means wants to get into a game before the Orioles break camp but probably will run out of time. Hyde said earlier in camp that Means wouldn’t pitch this spring.

There was a time, and Orioles fans don’t have to go far back to remember it, when the Boston Red Sox response to 78 wins and a last-place finish, would have been to spend money. And then spend more.

Throw dollars at their problems. And sometimes that worked.

But recent moves by that team make this look like very different times in Beantown. Rather than sign a top free-agent pitcher like Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery (and they still could of course), the Sox recently agreed to a two-year deal with right-hander Lucas Giolito for $38.5 million. A nearly $20 million dollar salary for a pitcher who had a terrible ending to his 2023 season and allowed 41 homers over the season.

That was followed a day or two later by a trade of lefty Chris Sale for young infielder Vaughn Grissom. A deal where Boston sends $17 million to Atlanta to complete the trade.

Now Sale is no longer anywhere near the pitcher he once was. He’s dealt with numerous injuries for a while now. But while Giolito ended the ’23 season pitching terribly, Sale posted an ERA of 3.92 his last nine starts of the season with 54 strikeouts over 43 2/3. In addition, he gave up just a .203 batting average against and .667 OPS against in that time. It had to give Atlanta hope he still has something left in the tank for next season.

Kyle Bradish struck out five batters in a row today, walked off the mound and went straight into workouts this week and a likely Game 1 start in the Division Series.

A planned short outing kept Bradish in his routine and on his roll. A last regular season reminder that he’s matured into an ace.

Bradish tossed two scoreless innings, the only baserunner on Rafael Devers’ walk. Four of the five strikeouts were produced with his sinker, the other his curveball. A nice side session in front of everyone at Camden Yards.

The rest of the game played out as a parade of relievers, seven of them in the Orioles’ sloppy 6-1 loss to the Red Sox before an announced crowd of 36,640. The total attendance for the season is 1,936,798, their highest since 2017.

The win total locks in at 101, tied for fourth-highest in franchise history. The Orioles went 49-32 at home, the third-best record in the ballpark's history.

The Orioles end the 2023 regular season today against the same team they started with back on March 30 - the Boston Red Sox. They won that game 10-9, their first win on their way to 101 and an AL East championship.

This year this will not be the last game. The Orioles, the No. 1 seed with home-field advantage throughout the American League playoffs, will host Game 1 of the AL Division Series at Oriole Park on Saturday, Oct. 7.

At 101-60, Baltimore will head into the final game with a three-game lead over Tampa Bay (98-63). Even though those clubs have the two best records in the league, they could meet in the ALDS next week.

The Rays will be the fourth seed for the AL playoffs and the Orioles, as the top seed, will play the winner of the No. 4 versus No. 5 wild-card round. The Blue Jays could very well be that No. 5 team, but going into the final day today, it could still also be the Astros or Rangers.

The Orioles' 5-2 win last night ensured they will finish this season with a winning record over every other AL East team for the first time since 2014.

Cole Irvin watched his Triple-A Norfolk teammates celebrate their Triple-A national championship from afar last night, as he’s done with two other clinching games.

Irvin wasn’t with the Orioles after they officially made the playoffs and won their division. His only chance to pop some corks happened after the Tides won the International League crown.

“It’s part of the game,” he said. “The game moves on without you, whether you’re there or not, and I’m rooting for this team to do good things. And I was a part of it for a lot of the season. So, it sucks in the moment but at the same time, you want that team to celebrate and you want to win the division.

“The job’s not done, so there’s plenty of opportunity to maybe share in those festivities down the road, but at the same time, however, we can get those days off, give ourselves a little bit of a break and stay ready and be ready to go for the divisional series, that’s part of it.”

The Orioles recalled Irvin today, after instructing him to stay off the flight to Las Vegas, and optioned Bruce Zimmermann. He could pitch today in the regular season finale and stick around for the Division Series, whether on the active roster or taxi squad.

The Orioles will take the field tonight at Camden Yards to open a four-game series against the Boston Red Sox. They need one win to clinch their 10th American League East division championship and first since the 2014 season.

The Orioles (99-59) can also become the sixth team in club history and first since 1980 to win 100 games.

Last night the club improved to 40 games over the .500 mark for the first time since the end of the 1997 season when they were 102-57.

Baltimore's 5-1 win over Washington Wednesday night was its fourth win in a row. The O's have gone through a stretch where they lost four straight, then won four straight, lost three in a row and have now won four in a row.

During the four-game win streak, Baltimore pitchers have allowed just 15 hits and three runs with four walks and 23 strikeouts. The team ERA is 0.75 in this span.

The Orioles' latest win on their road trip allowed them to maintain a four-game lead atop the American League East with 22 to play. At 89-51 they are now closing in on a 90-win season and need to go 11-11 or better the rest of the way to record 100 wins or more for the first time since 1980.

Right-hander Kyle Bradish improved to 11-6 with a 3.03 ERA last night, giving up two runs over six innings. Bradish has an ERA of 2.08 in his past six starts and 2.33 in his last 15. The Orioles are now 18-8 in his outings this year.

The Orioles improved to 53-15 (.779) when scoring first this year, the best record in MLB and the 53 such wins are tied for fifth-most. Baltimore has recorded 10+ hits in six consecutive games, its longest such streak since Sept. 19 (G2)-24, 2011 (also six). The last time the Orioles did so in seven straight games was May 14-21, 2011.

Bradish is the third Orioles' pitcher with at least 11 wins this season along with Kyle Gibson (14) and Dean Kremer (12) and this marks the first time the Birds have had three pitchers with 11+ wins since Wei-Yin Chen (11), Ubaldo Jiménez (12), and Chris Tillman (11) in 2015. 

The Orioles are 6-1 on their road trip with six straight wins by a 47-20 score. In the six games, the team is batting .319 with an OPS of .883 and is 27-for-76 (.355) when hitting with runners in scoring position.

BOSTON – Aaron Hicks is in center field this afternoon against the Red Sox and James McCann is catching. Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter.

Austin Hays is the cleanup hitter. Jordan Westburg is at second base and Gunnar Henderson is at third.

Jack Flaherty has posted a 6.66 ERA and 1.521 WHIP in five starts with the Orioles. He struck out seven batters in 4 2/3 innings in Arizona but gave up four runs and six hits.

Flaherty has never faced the Red Sox.

The Orioles have won six games in a row and 12 of 15 and are 89-51 overall, 47-25 on the road. They’ve scored 34 runs this season in four games at Fenway Park.

Tyler Wells had the stuff today when a situation called for it. Not at his fingertips throughout his start. Just enough to hold down his opponent.

He just needed the support, both from his offense and the bullpen.

It eventually comes. Wait for it.

Wells matched his career high with seven strikeouts, and the Orioles broke a tie in the fourth by scoring three runs off Tanner Houck to defeat the Red Sox 6-2 and win their sixth series in 2023.

Anthony Santander had two sacrifice flies, Ramón Urías set a career high with four hits, the ‘pen went full beast mode again, and the Orioles improved to 16-8 with their 10^th win in 12 games and 12^th in 15.