It’s amazing how going 5-3 during the week will actually cause concern among fans.
A week that saw new players arrive and some old faces go, the Birds were able to maintain and once again show why they are one of the top teams in the league.
The Orioles just played 14 games in 13 days, winning eight of them. They closed out this week winning five of their eight games against the Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Guardians and currently are still tied for first place in the AL East with the New York Yankees.
Let’s see who stood out this week in this edition of The Great, The Good and The Ugly.
The Great: Colton Cowser
Colton Cowser is quietly becoming the player we all expected. When I say quietly, that’s only because Cowser is playing on a team with Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman and Jackson Holliday.
Cowser has put together a 17-game hitting streak and has been on fire, having seven multi-hit games during that stretch. Over the last week, The Milkman has had four of those multi-hit games.
During the last week, Cowser went 13-for-31 (.419 avg) with two home runs and six RBIs, scoring nine runs in the process.
Cowser, who’s been in the lead-off spot recently, has taken his game to another level. For the season, he is slashing .253/.335/.459/.794, leading all rookies with 16 home runs. He has added 49 runs and RBIs while totaling 81 hits in 105 games.
The Good: Zach Eflin
Zach Elfin was acquired by Baltimore in a trade with the Tampa Rays and is the type of difference-maker who can help a rotation round into form for a postseason run.
Eflin pitched a total of 12.1 innings this past week, allowing a combined five earned runs while walking one, striking out 10 and picking up two victories.
The new edition to the rotation improves to 7-7 across 21 games, with 4.05 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP across 122.1 innings. He has struck out 97 to just 14 walks and has held opponents to a .264 average against.
The Ugly: Cedric Mullins
Cedric Mullins’ season of struggles continues. For a bit, it appeared he was turning things around. But he’s on the struggle bus once again.
This past week, Mullins went 4-for-21 (.190), slugging just .238. The good news is that Ceddy did walk six times versus three strikeouts.
Mullins has managed to get his season average above .200 but is slashing .217/.274/.382/.657 with 11 home runs and 38 RBIs on the year. He’s scored 46 runs while adding 13 doubles, three triples and 19 stolen bases.
The Orioles have a day off Monday before heading to Toronto and then Tampa Bay for two three-game series.
Will a new player rise to greatness? Will another cool off? Tune in next week and find out in the next edition of The Great, The Good & The Ugly.
Which Oriole stood out most to you this past week? 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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