It has been an absolutely brutal stretch for the Baltimore Orioles. They went just 2-4 this week, avoiding a sweep in the last game of each series this week against the Miami Marlins and the San Diego Padres. Dating back to June 21, the Orioles are just 13-18, yet have somehow managed to maintain their lead in the AL East thanks to the Yankees’ poor run.
The Orioles have looked absolutely awful from top to bottom. The bats have completely disappeared, not even the bats of Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman have been able to get going. On top of that, starting pitching, and even more so, the bullpen have been unable to prevent runs from scoring. Let’s not forget to mention that the team’s defense, which has always been a constant, has looked atrocious. This team is in dire need of a spark, and they need one quick. The Yankees are right on the Orioles’ tail, and the Red Sox are now not far behind. The O’s have blown a tremendous opportunity to extend their lead in the division but have failed miserably to do so.
Despite the extremely frustrating run as of late, there have been some bright spots in the Orioles’ lineup. Let’s take a look at this week’s who’s hot and who’s not:
Batting
Who’s Hot: Colton Cowser
As a fan, it may be tough to see the good in such a tough stretch for a team with such high expectations. However, there certainly have been some bright spots such as Anthony Santander, Cedric Mullins, and Jordan Westburg. However, the biggest burst of life into this Orioles team trying to find themselves again has been Colton Cowser. The Milk Man, who has had his own struggles the past couple of months, has found the juice that he had early in the season. Cowser batted .364 this week, with a home run and 7 RBI on his way to a total of 12 bases.
Cowser provided a major spark in two of the Marlins games with his bases-clearing double, and his 3-run home run. This resurgence has been huge for the team and for Cowser himself. In fact, Cowser found himself batting leadoff for the first time this season in the series finale against the Padres. With the trade of Austin Hays to the Philadelphia Phillies, there is no doubt that Colton Cowser is an everyday starter for this team. His defense and ability to get the bat going is going to play a huge role in this team’s success. The strikeout rate is still an issue for Cowser, but with a batting average of .364 in a week that the rest of the team struggled, the team will take the big hits and huge defensive plays. Cowser will look to keep his hot run going as the O’s get set to host the Toronto Blue Jays.
Weekly Stats: .364 Avg / 1 HR / 7 RBI / 2 BB / 8 K / 1 2B / 0 3B / 12 Total Bases / 0 SB
Who’s Not: Adley Rutschman
There are a number of batters who have struggled since the All-Star break, including superstar Gunnar Henderson. However, the biggest disappointment this week, and dating back to over a month ago at this point, has been star catcher Adley Rutschman. Rutschman batted just .133 this week, as he only collected 2 total bases. He did manage 3 walks over the span of the week but had 0 home runs and 0 RBI.
Over the past month, Adley has batted just .122 with 2 home runs and 6 RBI. He is simply not seeing the ball as well as we have become accustomed to. It has been a frustrating stretch for, not only Adley but the entire team. As one of the core leaders of this young group, Adley will look to bounce back next week, as this team feeds off of him and undoubtedly relies on his bat to spark the offense. He did have a huge pinch-hit walk in the series finale against the Padres that ultimately resulted in a big insurance run. Perhaps, that is a step in the right direction for Adley. The team and fans will look for Adley to get back to his old ways against the Blue Jays.
Weekly Stats: .133 Avg / 0 HR / 0 RBI / 3 BB / 3 K / 0 2B / 0 3B / 2 Total Bases / 0 SB
Pitching
Who’s Hot: Dean Kremer
In his 5th start back from the injured list, starting pitcher Dean Kremer started to look like his old self again in his lone start of the week against the Padres. Despite being tagged with the loss, Kremer was able to go 6 innings, while throwing 105 pitches. He allowed 4 runs, but only 1 was earned, as several horrendous defensive sequences by the Orioles allowed the other 3 runs to score. In his 6 innings of work, he only walked one while punching out 7.
All O’s fans are hoping that this version of Dean Kremer is here to stay. This does not excuse the team from making some further moves at the trade deadline for another starting pitcher. The team recently traded for former Tampa Bay Rays starter, Zach Eflin, but will look to add another piece to this rotation. However, if Kremer can provide this type of work as the 4th or 5th man in this rotation, the Orioles will certainly be in a better spot than they have been.
Weekly Stats: 6.0 IP / 7 H / 1 BB / 1.50 ERA / 7 K / 0-1 / 0 HR
Who’s Not: Craig Kimbrel
It has been a rollercoaster year for future Hall of Famer closer Craig Kimbrel. Coming off an All-Star break that saw Orioles’ fans pleading their case for Kimbrel to be an All-Star, Kimbrel had quite a tough week, as he blew a save against the Miami Marlins before losing the series opener against the San Diego Padres on Friday night.
Kimbrel totaled 1.2 innings this week, allowing 5 runs, 3 of them earned, while walking 2 and striking out just 1. The Orioles undoubtedly need Craig Kimbrel to clean up his pitching if they are going to make a run down the stretch. After Felix Bautista produced a Cy Young caliber season as the closer last year before getting injured, the O’s have been used to games being closed out on a nightly basis. That reality has taken a turn with Kimbrel’s inconsistency this season. I don’t expect the team to move away from Kimbrel, but perhaps more of a closer-by-committee could be a possibility. In fact, manager Brandon Hyde trusted Yenier Cano to close out the series finale against the Padres on Sunday, which resulted in a save for Cano. Kimbrel’s performance is certainly a concern, and it will be worth watching what the team does by Tuesday’s trade deadline to beef up the back end of the bullpen.
Weekly Stats: 1.2 IP / 4 H / 2 BB / 22.50 ERA / 1 K / 0-1 / 0 Saves / 1 Blown
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