Kevin Gausman still can't solve Yankees; Orioles lose finale, 9-1

When the Orioles offense is on fire, they can overcome almost any deficit and bring about exciting wins like the O's played on Tuesday night. When it's not on fire and the starting pitcher of the day pitches as bad as the O's rotation has been all year, the result is an ugly loss. The second of these is the kind of game the Orioles played against the Yankees on Thursday afternoon, losing,

The Orioles were never really in the game at all. Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman saw to that almost from the get-go. He had been pitching well for the past six weeks, but even a pitcher who is doing well can have a bad game. Maybe the Yankees just have his number this year, as he wasn't very good in any of the four previous starts he made against them, either.

It feels like most of the season we have watched Orioles starters, particularly Gausman, get to two strikes and then be unable to put batters away. So it was again on Thursday.

Gausman's problem started from the first batter. He got an 0-2 count on Brett Gardner, couldn't put him away with two foul balls, then threw four straight out of the zone for a leadoff walk. An 0-2 count to Starlin Castro took 10 pitches total to turn into a strikeout. Right after that, a 1-2 count to Didi Gregorius resulted in a double that put the Yankees up, 1-0.

After that, Aaron Judge stepped up to the plate. Gausman flipped the script a bit, throwing a ball and then just giving up a massive dinger to Judge to put the O's in an early 3-0 hole. It took Gausman 35 pitches to get through the first inning. Even if he rebounded somewhat, it wasn't going to be a good day.

Gausman didn't rebound. Though he kept the Yankees off the board in the second inning, he still allowed a pair of baserunners, and continued to do so in the third inning. Again, it was a two strike problem: Gregorius got on with an infield single on an 0-2 count, and Gausman lost a 1-2 count to Judge by throwing three straight balls. From there, a single and a fielder's choice plated two more Yankees runs.

With a stuffed September bullpen, Gausman got the quick hook after those three innings. It took 79 pitches to get through three, with Gausman taking the full Tommy Hunter (five runs, all earned) while giving up five hits and three walks. It just wasn't a good day.

The offense was not up to the task of keeping the Orioles in the game. Facing the Yankees marquee trade deadline acquisition Sonny Gray, they never got a whole lot going. The only extra base hits the O's got all game were two-out doubles hit by Adam Jones and Caleb Joseph in the fourth and fifth innings, respectively. They could not capitalize on either scoring chance.

The lone run the O's scored off Gray, and in the game, was unearned. With two men on base, Mark Trumbo hit what should have been an easy inning-ending groundout, but Gregorius, who fielded the ball at short, airmailed the throw to second base. Jones, on base after an earlier fielder's choice, scored as a result of the error. That did it for Gray, who had thrown 102 pitches.

The Orioles offense couldn't keep them in the game and on this particular day, neither could their bullpen. They just kept giving up home runs. Mike Wright gave up a two-run home run in the fourth. Donnie Hart gave up a solo home run in the sixth. Richard Rodriguez gave up a solo homer in the seventh. The runs just piled up, and the Orioles never got another chance with runners in scoring position after Gray left the game.

The Yankees hadn't won a series at Camden Yards since September 2013. This was not an opportune time to change that. If the Twins are winners against the Rays later, the Orioles will fall to two games back of the second wild card spot.

A loss today doesn't end the Orioles season, but it does put a real dent in their chances, especially since they're about to embark on a ten game road trip that will begin with their playing three games against the Indians, who as of this writing are winners of 14 straight games. Well, maybe they're due for a loss or two?

Friday's 7:05 opener in Cleveland is scheduled to have Wade Miley start for the O's, with Mike Clevinger starting for the Indians.