Sunday Bird Droppings: The fun Orioles second half rolls on

Hello, friends.

The second half of the 2021 season remains a fun one for Orioles fans. With a 5-2 win over the Tigers on Saturday, the O’s improved to 9-4 coming out of the All-Star break. That’s a fun run of baseball. It’s probably not a coincidence that it’s come when four of the five series they’ve played have been against teams out of a race, but hey, wins are wins. Check out Harrison’s recap of the game for the lovely totals, and don’t forget to vote in the MBP poll.

The last two wins have come with no thanks whatsoever to reliever Tanner Scott, who’s done a lot to show why he didn’t get traded. Scott faced three batters without recording an out on Friday, and faced three more batters without recording an out on Saturday as well. That included two walks and a hit by pitch; Scott has now walked or hit 19.1% of the batters he’s faced this year. It’s not great!

Following Saturday’s game, manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that Scott has been battling a sore knee that may end up landing him on the injured list, though that’s not certain yet. Someone’s coming off the active roster today, as Keegan Akin will be activated from the COVID injured list and head into the bullpen.

This recent good stretch of O’s baseball has shifted their current position in the 2022 draft standings. At 37-66, the Orioles have dropped below the Texas Rangers, recent losers of 12 straight. The Rangers blew a late lead but then won a walkoff in extra innings last night and are now 37-67. This puts the O’s in line for the #3 pick. The Orioles are now on pace for a 58-104 record on the season. I think I’d enjoy if they could somehow avoid crossing the 100 loss mark, but I certainly won’t be holding my breath.

After today’s 1:10 finale against the Tigers, the Orioles will play four of their next five series against teams who are contending in the 2021 season. Early August will be the exact opposite in opponent quality compared to the start of their second half. I hope you’ve been able to enjoy what you could of the last couple of weeks while you could.

Around the blogO’sphere

Orioles quiet trade deadline signals that return to contention might not be so far away: ‘I think it’s getting closer’ (The Baltimore Sun)
Some people, including those in the Orioles beat writer class, are drawing inferences from Paul Fry and Tanner Scott not being traded prior to the deadline that I would not draw.

What’s left to look forward to after the trade deadline? (School of Roch)
Roch’s list of questions for the second half of the Orioles season is so thorough that he even wonders if people will keep mixing up Shaun Anderson and Shawn Armstrong.

What Galvis’s departure means for Urias and Martin (Baltimore Baseball)
Ramón Urías is going to be the shortstop for the next little while, and Richie Martin is going to play in Norfolk once he’s through with his rehab. Next!

Phillies tug at heartstrings with Freddy Galvis’s return (Fangraphs)
The lone Orioles trade prior to the deadline wasn’t among the more earth-shaking ones made. Fangraphs has some nice things to say about the prospect they got in return, though.

Tyler Alexander, Spenser Watkins face off as ex-teammates (Orioles.com)
Today’s Orioles and Tigers starting pitchers were teammates at four different levels in the Tigers minor league system. Pretty neat that they are going to be starting pitchers in the same big league game.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

Today in 1994, Cal Ripken Jr. played in his 2,000th consecutive game. The Orioles won a 1-0 game over the Twins as Arthur Rhodes pitched a complete game shutout. Rhodes followed with a CGSO in his next game as well, then the strike hit after that. Ripken’s streak paused at 2,009 during the strike.

In 2003, the Orioles traded Sidney Ponson to the Giants for three players: Kurt Ainsworth, Ryan Hannaman, and Damian Moss. This trade felt important at the time and ultimately didn’t matter at all.

There are several former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2008-18 outfielder Adam Jones, 2002-03 pitcher Travis Driskill, 1975-77 first baseman/outfielder Tony Muser, and 1959 three-game pitcher George Bamberger.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: explorer William Clark (1770), anthem writer Francis Scott Key (1779), writer Herman Melville (1819), fashion figure Yves Saint Laurent (1936), rapper Chuck D (1960), and rapper Coolio (1963).

On this day in history...

In 1798, the British fleet launched a surprise night attack against the French navy at Aboukir Bay. When the battle wrapped up two days later, the British had achieved a decisive victory, sinking two French ships of the line and capturing another nine. British admiral Horatio Nelson was made a baron following the Battle of the Nile.

In 1834, Britain’s Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 came into effect, abolishing slavery in the British Empire, though it lingered through the British East India Company territory for another decade.

In 1914, the conflict we now know as World War I escalated significantly as the German Empire declared war on the Russian Empire.

In 1965, Frank Herbert’s Dune was first published. The title is recognized as the world’s best-selling work of science fiction. A new movie adaptation is set for release on October 22.

In 1981, MTV went on the air for the first time. The first music video played on the channel was The Buggles’s song “Video Killed The Radio Star.”

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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on August 1. Have a safe Sunday. Go O’s!