Two teams loaded with talent were ready to clash in Cincinnati, as the first place Orioles took on the upstart Reds with a lot of excitement surrounding the series.
The O’s once again showed the league just how good they are and how far they have grown after winning 101 games last season.
The Birds are second in the majors in run differential (+53) and have the best record in the American League at 23-11.
The Orioles gave up just two runs the entire series while completing their fourth shutout in 12 games, a stretch where their opponents have scored more than three runs only three times.
Let’s see how this series unfolded:
Game 1: O’s 3, Reds 0
Cole Irvin just doesn’t want to give up runs and is making it difficult to remove him from the rotation, as the realistic possibility of a six-man rotation is growing.
Irvin would go 6.1 innings, throwing his third straight scoreless outing and bringing his career-best scoreless streak to 20.2 innings.
Aided by a Ryan O’Hearn two-run home run and an Adley Rutschman run-scoring double, Irvin (W, 3-1) went into cruise control and shut the Reds down.
The offense was led by O’Hearn, Gunnar Henderson and Ryan Mountcastle, each collecting two hits apiece.
Yennier Canó (H, 8), Danny Coulombe (H, 7) and Craig Kimbrel (S, 8) finished off the shutout victory, taking the Orioles to 102 series without being swept.
*Note: Only three O’s starters have a longer stretch of scoreless innings than Irvin over the past two decades: Matt Harvey (21.1 IP, July 18-Aug. 4, 2021), Erik Bedard (21 IP, July 7-20, 2007; 22 IP, April 23-May 4, 2005) and Dean Kremer (22.2 IP, June 17-July 4, 2022).
Game 2: O’s 2, Reds 1
It was business per usual, as John Means (W, 1-0) made his season debut and turned back the clock.
The veteran lefty went seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out eight while throwing just 85 pitches (58 strikes).
With Rutschman leading the offense, the Orioles only needed two runs to take this one. Rutschman, who had three of the teams’ seven hits, and Jorge Mateo each hit solo home runs to provide all the offense.
Cionel Pérez (H, 2), Kimbrel (H, 1) and Canó (S, 1) finished off the game and the 2-1 win, providing the Orioles with the series victory and their third straight win.
*Note: After going a full year since his last out of the park home run, Jorge Mateo has now hit two in three games.
Game 3: O’s 11, Reds 1
The offense got a little tired of the pitching carrying them and exploded for a hit parade in the series finale. Though Dean Kremer would continue the starter scoreless streak (17.2 innings), the offense carried the pitching.
Kremer (W, 3-2) went six scoreless innings, allowing one hit with six strikeouts and one walk on 93 pitches (53 strikes).
Offensively, the Orioles pounded out 11 total hits, with seven going for extra bases, including three home runs.
Anthony Santander, who had three hits and five RBIs, hit a grand slam (5), Jordan Westburg (6) a two-run shot and Ryan McKenna (2) a solo shot.
Rutschman, who collected two RBIs, had two more hits (.324 avg), including his sixth double of the season, as seven of the O’s position players collected hits, and eight of them reached base.
Albert Suárez pitched 2.1 innings of scoreless ball in his first appearance out of the bullpen, and Mike Baumann, who allowed a run, pitched 0.2 of an inning to close out the victory.
*Note: Baltimore has held its opponents to two or fewer runs in its past seven games. It’s the first time they have done that in a single season since they did so in eight straight from Aug. 1-9, 1980. The last time an MLB team surpassed this stretch was the New York Mets, who did it in eight games from Aug. 6-14, 2022.
BATTERY ❌-FACTOR
The Reds came in as one of the best base running teams in the league.
For this series, our BATTERY ❌-FACTOR was easily achieved, as the Reds scored a total of two runs and totaled 11 hits. They had only two extra-base hits and two stolen bases in the three games.
While most of it was the O’s pitching staff shutting down the Reds’ offense, the defense also helped to quiet the Reds completely.
❌️-FACTOR: SUCCESSFUL ✅️
The Orioles are off on Monday before heading to Washington for a two-game series starting Tuesday against the Nationals. The series begins at 6:45 p.m. EST, as Corbin Burnes (3-1, 2.61 ERA) will take the mound in the Beltway Series opener.
Will the Nationals be able to stop the hottest team in baseball, or will the Orioles keep flying high? It all starts Tuesday at Nats Park.
What are your thoughts on this series victory? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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