Orioles minor league recap 6/8: Hunter Harvey had a night to forget and all the affiliates lost

Columbus Clippers 5, Norfolk Tides 1

Norfolk was only able to muster a single run in this game — a solo home run in the top of the fourth off the bat of Christopher Bostick, which happened to be his eighth dinger of the year. The Tides second baseman also had a double and he’s carrying an .810 OPS on the year. The only other two batters in the lineup who registered a hit were center fielder Mason Williams and the rehabbing Mark Trumbo.

Despite lasting seven innings on the mound and recording eight punchouts, Luis Ortiz struggled mightily. He allowed five runs on seven hits and two walks to leave his ERA at 7.01 in 52.2 Triple-A innings. Not the performance you want to see from the supposed “main piece” of the Jonathan Schoop trade.

On a side note, a familiar face appeared in this game for the Clippers. Former Oriole Ryan Flaherty started at third base and hit sixth for Columbus, going 0-for-2 with a walk and a run scored.

Portland Sea Dogs 10, Bowie Baysox 3

In his first start since pitching a career high 7.1 innings, Hunter Harvey only lasted four innings against the Sea Dogs. He threw 92 pitches (58 strikes) while allowing nine hits and eight runs with three walks and two strikeouts.

Most of the damage came in the fifth inning, when the Sea Dogs scored six runs and Harvey was removed before recording a single out. Dillon Tate came on in relief and allowed two inherited runners to score on a three-run homer, contributing to Harvey’s final earned runs tally.

Tate was a starter when he was acquired last year in the Zack Britton trade, but he has recently been converted to a reliever. In 8.1 innings out of the bullpen with Bowie this year, the right-hander has a 2.16 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and .226 BAA.

On offense, Bowie couldn’t get enough going to keep up with Portland’s pace. There were only two players in the lineup with multiple hits. Center fielder Ryan McKenna was 3-for-5 with a double, a run scored and an RBI, raising his average to .226. Third baseman Rylan Bannon was 3-for-4 with an RBI, leaving his average at .275.

Down East Wood Ducks 3, Frederick Keys 2

It was a pitcher’s duel at Grainger Stadium on Friday night, with the Wood Ducks coming out on top of the Keys. David Lebron got the call for Frederick and he pitched five innings of one-run ball, giving up three hits and two walks with six strikeouts. In 42.2 Carolina League innings this year, he has a sterling 2.74 ERA with 54 strikeouts. Blaine Knight followed Lebron to the mound and took the loss, allowing two runs (one earned) over 4.1 innings. He’s got a 3.76 ERA on the year.

As a team, the Keys were 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and they left eight men on base. Frederick actually outhit the Wood Ducks 10-6, but were unable to get the timely base knocks. In fact, there were only two starters with more than one hit. Jean Carrillo, making an appearance at designated hitter, went 2-for-4 with a double. Second baseman Willy Yahn continues to produce at the plate, batting .293 so far this year. He was 2-for-5 with an RBI last night.

Hagerstown Suns 5, Delmarva Shorebirds 1

The bats went cold last night in Delmarva. The Shorebirds were facing the very real danger of being held scoreless up until the penultimate inning, when they got a solo homer from JC Encarnacion — his fifth of the year — to avoid the shutout. Shortstop Adam Hall was also one of the few bright spots. He had a pair of hits in four at-bats, giving him a .333 average and .844 OPS so far this season. But the team was 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position on the night.

Ofelky Peralta pitched worse than his 2.55 ERA, allowing four runs in just four innings with 2.00 SO/W. The Suns scored their fifth and final run of the game in the fifth inning off reliever Matthew Hammonds, and it was more than enough to get them the win over the Shorebirds.

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

Saturday’s Scheduled Games

• Norfolk at Columbus, 7:15 PM ET. Starter: TBD
• Bowie at Portland, 6:00 PM ET. Starter: Zac Lowther (4-4, 1.66 ERA)
• Frederick at Down East, 6:00 PM ET. Starter: Brenan Hanifee (4-4, 4.87 ERA)
• Delmarva vs. Hagerstown, 6:35 PM ET. Starter: Hector Guance (2-2, 4.42 ERA)