Tuesday Bird Droppings: Where the Orioles are on a rare losing streak

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

The Orioles’ return to Baltimore the last few days hasn’t exactly gone great. Coming off an undefeated road trip in which the Birds swept both the Nationals and Phillies, the O’s have stumbled since coming home, losing three of four games (not including the resumption of the suspended game against the Nats on Friday, which they won but was officially counted as a road game).

After losing two of three to the Nationals, the Birds came out flat against the woeful Blue Jays last night, dropping the series opener by a 7-2 score. The vaunted O’s offense went almost completely silent, while Alex Cobb pitched deep into the game but was the victim of some bad luck and a couple of bad pitches. Andrea SK recapped the lifeless Orioles loss.

The Orioles have now lost two games in a row, something they hadn’t done in 11 days, when they were swept in four games by the Marlins. Maybe it’s something about Camden Yards. The O’s are 4-9 in games played at OPACY — again, not including the suspended-game resumption — compared to 8-1 on the road. I know home-field advantage isn’t really a thing this year, since teams don’t have thousands of cheering fans in the stands to give them an emotional boost, but still. That’s a startling difference.

The good news: even with their mini-slide, the Orioles would still be in the playoffs if the season ended today. They’d be the fourth wild card team (the No. 7 seed overall), as they currently have the best record of any non-division leader or second-place team.

The bad news: the season doesn’t end today (assuming no new COVID-19 crises, that is), so the Orioles are going to need to, y’know, get back to winning some games if they want to maintain their postseason position.

Links

Chris Davis’ role coming into focus for O’s - Orioles.com
Davis’ role, it appears, is having no role at all yet remaining on the roster for some reason. Somebody needs to explain to Orioles ownership what “sunk cost” means.

Iglesias becoming a consideration for injured list - School of Roch
As much as the O’s would miss Iglesias’ bat, it’s probably for the best if he heads to the IL to heal up. He’s been hobbling and wincing so much on the field that I feel like I’m the one in pain.

The Yankees and Orioles make a lot of sense as trade partners - Pinstripe Alley
Our fellow SBN blog Pinstripe Alley is interested in some O’s players, particularly Alex Cobb. Hey, I like the guy, but if a team is willing to pick up a sizable chunk on his contract and give the Birds anything of value for him, you have to take that deal.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Two ex-Orioles were born on this day: 2011 nine-game reliever Josh Rupe (38) and the late 1954-55 utility guy Bob Kennedy (b. 1920, d. 2005).

On this day in 1989, Cal Ripken passed Steve Garvey for the third-longest consecutive games streak in MLB history, playing No. 1,208 in a row. Cal’s streak would eventually become, um, a little longer than that.

And on this date in 2017, Manny Machado hit three home runs for the Orioles, including a walkoff grand slam in the ninth to beat the Angels, 9-7. It was his second career three-homer, seven-RBI game. Also, the game marked the major league debut for a little-known, 22-year-old Rule 5 O’s outfielder named Anthony Santander.