Onto Texas, we go. It was a long first series in Boston, and it will be a good thing to put it behind all of us.
Heading into this first action against the Rangers this season, Oriole pitching may be seeing the hottest offense in baseball across the league’s first few games. The Rangers put up 30 runs in their three games against the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend.
In the Orioles’ first series, the pitching was flat out not good, as the staff allowed a total of 27 runs, nine in each game. To see any success here in Texas, the pitching will have to improve. Maybe playing in an indoor stadium will help, as well as playing against a team that doesn’t employ Adam Duvall.
On the flip side, the Oriole’s offense may have been as good as the pitching was bad. Keeping up that explosive offense will be necessary in this series, as the O’s head into this series with league-leading numbers in slugging (.607) and OPS (1.033).
Looking to right the wrongs on the mound for the Birds will be Kyle Bradish in the opener, Tyler Wells in game two and then back to the top with Kyle Gibson for the finale. The Rangers will send Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney and Jacob deGrom.
I believe we see the first quality start of the season in game one by Bradish, whose second half last season showed the promise he holds. He was also better on the road last year, giving up fewer hits, home runs and a much better batting average agasint. Luckily for Bradish, he gets his first start in a ballpark where he should be able to avoid the long ball and rely on his strikeout ability.
BATTERY ❌️-FACTOR
Our BATTERY ❌️-FACTOR for this series is quite simple: the Orioles’ offense. Offensively, the Orioles need to continue to do exactly what they did in Boston.
It’s very rare you go 1-2 in a stretch of games where you score 23 runs. The pitching will come around, and to be successful against another good offense, the steady production needs to continue.
Look for batters like Adley Rutschman, Adam Frazier, Cedric Mullins and Austin Hays to stay hot in Texas and lead the team.
GAME 1 STARTING LINEUPS
Baltimore Orioles (1-2): Managed by Brandon Hyde
1. Cedric Mullins CF
2. Adley Rutschman DH
3. Anthony Santander RF
4. Ryan Mountcastle 1B
5. Gunnar Henderson 3B
6. Kyle Stowers LF
7. Adam Frazier 2B
8. Jorge Mateo SS
9. Anthony Bemboom
SP. Kyle Bradish RHP
Texas Rangers (3-0): Managed by Bruce Bochy
1. Marcus Semien 2B
2. Corey Seager SS
3. Nathaniel Lowe 1B
4. Adolis García CF
5. Josh Jung 3B
6. Robbie Grossman RF
7. Jonah Heim C
8. Brad Miller DH
9. Josh H. Smith LF
SP. Jon Gray RHP
First pitch of game one is set for 8:05 p.m. EST. You can catch watch tonight’s game on MASN2 or listen on your local Orioles Radio Network station.
How do you feel going into this series? Let us know in the comments below! And make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook and Twitter, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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