Sunday afternoon Orioles game thread: vs. Astros, 1:35

Remember that time the Orioles swept the Rangers in a four game series? Yeah, that was a good time. It’s long gone now as the Orioles try to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Astros on Sunday afternoon.

It’s not exactly surprising. The Astros are the cream of the crop so far this year, the best of the best. The Orioles... you know. They are what they are. They aren’t good in day games. Their starting rotation isn’t good. A lot of things aren’t good.

At least it’s Dylan Bundy pitching today. Hopefully that proves to be a good thing. He’s only started one game since the All-Star break. That one went well on a long rest. Today it will be normal rest for Bundy. Is that enough? We’ll find out! It’s going to be an adventure, defensively, because the outfield will have Trey Mancini and Mark Trumbo at the corners. It’s not ideal.

The O’s probably need all the possible offense that they can get, because Astros starter Lance McCullers is a tough customer. He’s remarkably consistent: Over the past three seasons, he has a combined 3.24 ERA. What do you think it’s even like to have a starting pitcher on the team who’s that good? Maybe some day we’ll know.