Tuesday night Orioles game thread: at Twins, 7:40

Picture it: Opening Day 2018. The Orioles were in Baltimore to take on the Twins. Dylan Bundy made the start and pitched seven shutout innings. Manny Machado had a single, a double, and a walk. Chris Davis was weirdly batting leadoff. Adam Jones hit a walk-off home run in bottom of the 11th inning to give the Orioles a 3-2 victory.

There are two things about that day. One is that the Orioles and their fans had no idea what was in store for them that year, namely the worst season in the history of the franchise. After the dust settled on the disastrous year, the Orioles would have 115 losses and three of our favorite players who appeared in the game (Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop, and Darren O’Day) would be traded away, with long time manager Buck Showalter not far behind them.

The second thing about that day was that it was the last time the Orioles beat the Twins. They lost the next two games of the series and later in the year were swept in four games on the road. In 2019 they were swept twice, going 0-6. The teams didn’t face off in 2020 due to COVID, so here we are. Will tonight finally be the night the Orioles beat the Twins?

Orioles lineup

1. Cedric Mullins (L) CF

2. Freddy Galvis (S) SS

3. Trey Mancini (R) 1B

4. Anthony Santander (S) RF

5. DJ Stewart (L) DH

6. Maikel Franco (R) 3B

7. Ryan Mountcastle (R) LF

8. Stevie Wilkerson (S) 2B

9. Pedro Severino (R) C

SP: Dean Kremer (RHP)

Twins lineup

1. Max Kepler (L) DH

2. Josh Donaldson (R) 3B

3. Alex Kirilloff (L) RF

4. Miguel Sano (R) 1B

5. Jorge Polanco (S) 2B

6. Mitch Garver (R) C

7. Trevor Larnach (L) LF

8. Rob Refsnyder (R) CF

9. Andrelton Simmons (R) SS

SP: Jose Berrios (RHP)

Let’s go O’s!