Orioles minors recap 5/21: O’s affiliates win six of seven

Norfolk Tides 3, Louisville (Reds) 1 (Game 1)

The Tides rolled to a well-played all-around win in the opener of their twin bill. Asher Wojciechowski threw his second straight quality start, silencing the Bats for one run and three hits in six innings, striking out seven. In his last two starts, Wojciechowski has struck out 17 batters in 12 innings while pitching to a 2.25 ERA. Jhan Marinez pitched the seventh (and final) inning for his fifth save.

Caleb Joseph, making his first start for Norfolk since his surprise demotion from the Orioles on Thursday, contributed an RBI single out of the cleanup spot. Drew Dosch continued to scald the ball with a double and a two-run homer. As of this morning, he’s hitting .333 with 13 doubles in 90 at-bats, and I will continue to advocate for his promotion to the majors for as long as the O’s lack a capable third baseman.

Norfolk Tides 6, Louisville 5 (Game 2)

The Tides completed the doubleheader sweep with a wild comeback win in the second game. Trailing 3-0 in the fourth, Norfolk rallied for four to take the lead, sparked by a Dosch RBI single (see?? Free Drew Dosch!) and capped off by an Austin Wynns three-run homer.

The Bats tied the game in the top of the fifth, only for newcomer Renato Nunez — whom the O’s claimed off waivers a week ago — to homer in the bottom half. Again in the sixth, Louisville tied it, and again Norfolk answered right back with the go-ahead run. Mike Yastrzemski tripled and scored on a grounder. This time, the lead held.

Righty John Means, fresh off his promotion from Bowie, had a rough Triple-A debut. He gave up four runs and eight hits in 4.1 innings, getting a no-decision. Meanwhile, Joseph had another big game at the plate. As the DH this time, he was 2-for-3 with a double.

Bowie Baysox 10, Trenton (Yankees) 5

The Baysox doubled up the Thunder, doing all their scoring in the fifth and eighth innings with a five-spot in each frame. It was a great day for a pair of the Orioles’ high-end prospects, Cedric Mullins and Ryan Mountcastle, each of whom collected three hits. Mullins’ excellent performance included his sixth home run, a double, and four RBIs. He’s making a strong case for a promotion to Norfolk, if not Baltimore by the end of this season. Ademar Rifaela went 3-for-5 with two RBIs, while Austin Hays was 0-for-4 with a sac fly.

Top pitching prospect Hunter Harvey continued his up-and-down season at Bowie. He went four innings and struck out six, but also surrendered three runs on five hits. Reliever Branden Kline made his Double-A debut and coughed up a two-run homer to Chris Gittens. The winning pitcher was Luis Gonzalez, who threw two scoreless innings of relief.

Frederick Keys 6, Myrtle Beach (Cubs) 1 (Game 1)

All eyes were on 22-year-old righty Michael Baumann, the Orioles’ third-round pick in 2017, who was making his High-A debut after dominating Delmarva (5-0, 1.42 ERA in seven starts). Folks, Baumann did not disappoint. He was absolutely superb in his first start for the Keys, pitching a seven-inning complete game in which a first-inning solo homer was the only run he permitted. He struck out two, walked one, and held the Pelicans to four hits. Keep doing what you’re doing, Michael.

A pair of Wilson Garcia homers, plus a Stuart Levy two-run shot, provided all the offensive support Baumann needed.

Frederick Keys 10, Myrtle Beach 1 (Game 2)

Game two was an even bigger blowout than the opener, thanks to a six-run second and a four-run fourth by Frederick. Eight of nine Keys batters had at least one hit, led again by Garcia, who was 3-for-4 with a double. Garcia is batting .393 in 16 games since joining the Keys from the Phillies’ organization. Preston Palmeiro, son of Raffy, blasted a grand slam in the second inning, his sixth homer. Catcher Yojhan Quevedo also homered.

Starter Lucas Humpal worked five solid innings for the win, and relievers Zach Muckenhirn and Travis Seabrooke both made their Frederick debuts after being called up from Delmarva. Each pitched a scoreless inning with a hit and a strikeout.

Delmarva Shorebirds 4, Hagerstown (Nationals) 0 (Game 1)

Matthias Dietz was the star of this one, with the 22-year-old righty tossing six shutout innings to block the Suns. His outing included a four-pitch third inning. Dietz, the Orioles’ second-round draft pick in 2016, improved to 4-1 with a 3.28 ERA in seven starts.

All four Shorebirds runs scored on homers: a two-run shot by Mason McCoy (his first) and solo blasts by Trevor Craport (his fifth) and Zach Jarrett (his eighth). The seven-inning game was played in a crisp one hour and 35 minutes. That’ll do!

Hagerstown 8, Delmarva Shorebirds 5 (Game 2)

Argh! The Orioles’ affiliates were so close to completing a perfect 7-0 day. Six wins were already in the books when Delmarva carried a 5-4 lead to the top of the seventh in game two of their doubleheader, needing only three more outs to nail down the victory.

Alas, it wasn’t to be. Hagerstown rallied for four runs in the seventh. Right-hander Timothy Naughton, making his first appearance of the year, walked the bases loaded and then gave up a two-run double and a two-run single. Naughton’s poor outing cost lefty Cameron Ming a relief victory. Ming, also making his first appearance, threw 4.2 scoreless innings in long relief, striking out seven.

On the offensive side, Craport homered again, giving him a roundtripper in each game of the doubleheader. McCoy added a triple and three RBIs.

Complete box scores from Sunday’s games can be found here.

Monday’s Scheduled Games

• Norfolk at Charlotte, 7:04 PM. Starter: TBD
• Bowie: OFF
• Frederick vs. Salem, 7:00 PM. Starter: Ofelky Peralta (1-3, 6.75)
• Delmarva at Hickory, 6:00 PM. Starter: Brenan Hanifee (4-1, 2.56)