Monday Bird Droppings: Where the Orioles finally have a walkoff win

Hello, friends.

Finally, the Orioles have a walkoff win in the 2019 season. After hanging tough against Justin Verlander on Sunday afternoon, the O’s depressingly fell behind the Astros late, 7-5, before storming back with three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, capped by a Rio Ruiz two-run home run, to pull off a win.

The team may be no good for reasons that are demonstrated almost on a daily basis, including at least once in yesterday’s game that they eventually won, but they can still be a lot of fun at the most unexpected moments. When they’re so unexpected, that almost makes them even more fun.

The Astros, by the way, were reportedly the most-lopsided gambling favorites of the 2019 season yesterday. An ESPN writer noted before the game that Houston was -450 to win before Sunday’s game, meaning someone would have needed to wager $450 just for the opportunity to win back their bet plus $100. Hopefully you’re smart enough to know that you know nothing and not to bet on sports so that you’re not among those who lost that money.

Maybe that explains Jim Hunter’s immediate, delirious excitement that would not have been out of place if the Orioles had just delivered a walkoff home run in Game 7 of the World Series:

Check out Drew Bonifant’s recap of the rollercoaster game, and don’t forget to vote in the Most Birdland Player poll. Just know you will be judged if you don’t vote Ruiz.

Perhaps the Orioles can carry some of the good mojo from this improbable underdog victory into their doubleheader against the Yankees today. There’s a split set in the Bronx, 1:05 and 7:05 scheduled starts, that could exile any warm feelings you might feel towards the O’s after yesterday back out into the cold.

We all know how the Yankees just finished blistering the O’s for 16 home runs in three games in Baltimore last week. Now there’s a four-game set awaiting them, including the two games today that will prominently show off the O’s patchwork pitching staff. It may be that there will be nothing fun about either one of these games, or either of the next two after that. Don’t let that stop you from feeling good about how the Orioles won yesterday.

Mike Mussina was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame 205 days ago. The Orioles have not yet announced any plans to retire his jersey number or erect his statue at Camden Yards.

Around the blogO’sphere

‘Calm down and trust the process’: Astros’ Jose Altuve knows rebuilds like Orioles can pay off (Baltimore Sun)
Easier to trust the process after exciting walkoff Eutaw Street homers than after 23-2 blowouts.

What O’s can learn from Astros (Steve Melewski)
Melewski notes that the Astros went from three straight 100-loss seasons from 2011-13 to what’s looking like a probable three straight 100-win seasons from 2017-19.

The memorable - and forgettable - ‘89 parade (Orioles.com)
Did you remember that Baltimore threw a parade for the Why Not? Orioles? Most of the players who gathered for the celebration of that team on Friday did not.

Top Orioles pitching prospect DL Hall enjoying another second half surge after Futures Game appearance (Baltimore Sun)
Hall has a 2.25 ERA since the start of July, which is nice indeed! Hopefully he can keep it up.

More on Orioles pitching plans and bouncing back (School of Roch)
Ty Blach, come on down! You’re (according to reporting by MASN’s Roch Kubatko) the next contestant in the 2019 Orioles rotation!

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

Of all the players to ever play for the Orioles, two were born today. They are: 2012 outfielder Lew Ford, and 1980-83 reserve infielder Bobby Bonner.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: War of 1812-losing regent George IV (1762), baseball Hall of Famers Christy Mathewson (1880) and Ray Schalk (1892), physicist Erwin Schrödinger (1887), writer William Goldman (1931), jazz man Pat Metheny (1954), rapper Sir Mix-a-Lot (1963), and model/actress Cara Delevingne (1992).

On this day in history...

In 1099, an army of crusaders outnumbered nearly 2-to-1 launched a surprise dawn attack on the Fatimids at Ascalon, routing their enemy in less than an hour. This was the last battle of what we now know as the First Crusade, which established, for a time, the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

In 1624, upon the arrest of the president of French King Louis XIII’s royal council, Cardinal Richelieu became the First Minister of the country, and eventually, in fiction, a foe of the Three Musketeers.

In 1851, Isaac Singer received a patent for his sewing machine, which eventually led to the industrialization of the production of garments and textiles.

In 1994, the Major League Baseball players went on strike, eventually leading to the cancellation of the remainder of the season and that year’s World Series. Only the cancellation of the rest of the 2019 season could stop the Orioles from setting the record for home runs allowed in a season.

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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on August 12 - or at least, until the Orioles play a couple of games against the Yankees. Have a safe Monday. Go O’s!