Orioles minor league recap 5/27: Henderson has yet another standout performance for Delmarva

Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 9, Charlotte (White Sox) Knights 2

Zac Lowther bounced back to post 4.2 solid innings, allowing two runs on six hits, two walks, and five hits. He will certainly want to improve further, but it’s good to see him closer to the level of performance that is expected from him.

Hunter Harvey earned the win. The righty continued his rehab with a scoreless inning, although he did serve up two hits and was unable to record a strikeout. The standout pitching performance came from knuckleballer Mickey Jannis, who earned his first save with three shutout innings in which he gave up two hits but struck out four.

Every starter in the Norfolk lineup reached base at least once in this game. Tyler Nevin hit his fifth home run of the season. Mason McCoy had two hits, including his third triple. Seth Mejias-Brean also had two hits, one of which was a two-run home run. Brett Cumberland singled and walked twice. While Rylan Bannon’s tough start to the year continued with an 0-for-4, but he did have one base on balls.

Double-A: Bowie Baysox 4, Harrisburg (Nationals) Senators 0 F/7

Rain ended this game early, but not before Kevin Smith tossed four scoreless innings and struck out five Harrisburg hitters to bring his season ERA down to 1.06 on the year. Diogenes Almengo and Ofelky Peralta were lights out in the bullpen, tossing one and two shutout innings, respectively.

There was less excitement from the Baysox bats, but still a few notable performances. Adley Rutschman had a double and a run scored in three at-bats. Robert Neustrom went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a stolen base, his fourth on the season. J.C. Escarra had the team’s only other hit and added his 12th RBI.

High-A: Aberdeen IronBirds vs. Brooklyn (Mets) Cyclones PPD

These two teams will play a doubleheader starting at 6 p.m. today in Brooklyn. Starters have not been updated on MiLB.com or Aberdeen’s website, but Blaine Knight was the probable starter prior to the rain on Wednesday, so it would seem likely that he heads to mound at some point today.

Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 12, Lynchburg (Cleveland) Hillcats 7

An argument could be made that the Shorebirds are the most exciting team in Minor League Baseball. The offense is a machine that cannot be stopped, and the club’s 15 wins are tied for the most in MiLB at any level.

The Gunnar Henderson show continued here with a 3-for-5 performance, including a double, a home run and five RBI. Maybe all of that offseason hype was completely valid? Shorebirds catcher Ramon Rodriguez had himself a 3-for-4 game. Hudson Haskin and Jordan Westburg combined to go 0-for-5 with six walks. While Darell Hernaiz was 1-for-5 with a run scored.

Delmarva used four pitchers to get through the nine innings. Xavier Moore started and went 2.2 innings, struggling with command and walking four while also striking out five. Jensen Elliot was next, and he had trouble missing bats in his 1.1 innings, failing strike out anyone while giving up two runs on three hits and a walk. Noah Denoyer earned the win with his 4.2 innings in which he gave up three runs on two hits, three walks and five strikeouts. And Kyle Martin wrapped up the game by recording the final out.

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

Thursday’s scheduled games

• Norfolk: vs Charlotte, 12:05. Starter: TBD
• Bowie: vs Harrisburg, 6:35. Starter: Cody Sedlock (0-0, 7.36 ERA)
• Aberdeen: at Brooklyn, Game 1, 6:00. Starter: TBD
• Aberdeen: at Brooklyn, Game 2, TBD. Starter: TBD
• Delmarva: vs Lynchburg, 7:05. Starter: Houston Roth (0-0, 4.50 ERA)