The Orioles’ bats that lead them to five wins in their first eight games went silent last night, as the Marlins blanked the O’s 4-0. The Orioles get a chance to get that game back, plus one, with a twi-night doubleheader begining at 5:05 p.m.
Game one’s pitching match up pits Alex Cobb (1-0, 2.89 ERA) for the Orioles against Elieser Hernandez (0-0, -.– ERA) for the Marlins.
Cobb has had an impressive start to the 2020 season, going 9.1 innings over two games with a 1-0 record and 2.89 ERA, along with nine strikeouts. Current (healthy) Marlins are batting .133 against Cobb in 31 at-bats with no home runs and only two runs scored.
Hernandez is making his first start of the 2020 season. The 25-year-old right-hander is coming off of a 2019 that saw him post a 5.03 ERA with 85 strikeouts in 82.1 innings.
Last year, Hernandez struggled with the long ball, giving up 2.19 home runs per nine innings pitched. This is a weakness that the Orioles can exploit, particularly the left-handed batters in the lineup. Leftys posted a .912 OPS vs. Hernandez last year, as opposed to the .742 that rightys put up. Of all current Orioles, only Pedro Severino has had at-bats against Hernandez, going 2-for-4 with a home run.
At bat today, the Orioles see the return of their best offensive weapon thus far, José Iglesias. Iglesias is batting a ridiculous .526 this season, with an even more ridiculous 1.315 OPS. The lineup features five batters that bat either left-handed full time or switch hit.
Here is the lineup for game one of the doubleheader:
- Hanser Alberto 2B
- Anthony Santander RF
- José Iglesias DH
- Renato Núñez 3B
- Dwight Smith, Jr. LF
- Austin Hays CF
- Chris Davis 1B
- Chance Sisco C
- Andrew Velazquez SS
Both games of today’s doubleheader are available to watch via MASN and are available to listen on Orioles Radio Network. Game one is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. EST.
