Wednesday Bird Droppings: Looking to bounce back in the Bronx

Good morning Birdland,

Last night was kind of a bummer, right? Alexander Wells looked less than good. Adam Plutko and Shaun Anderson were poor as well. Keegan Akin did alright out of the bullpen, which is probably the role he should just stick with at this point. But in general it was just not a fun game of baseball. Drew had the misfortune of writing the recap if you would like to get all caught up.

Of course, there are always a few good nuggets buried in the dirt.

Richie Martin got back on a major league field for the first time since 2019, which is awesome. I won’t lie, though. There were definitely times in the last two years where I just completely forgot about Martin entirely. His rookie season was underwhelming, and the already slim chance of him being the team’s “shortstop of the future” had all but evaporated. However, the guy clearly has some physical skills that can make him a weapon on a major league squad. He will immediately become the fastest player on the roster, and he should spell Pat Valaika at second base a few times the rest of the season. Would rather learn more about him than Domingo Leyba.

Perhaps the more important development for the future of the Orioles is the continued resurgence of Ryan Mountcastle at the plate. He went 2-for-4 with a double, extending his hit streak to six games. The Rookie of the Year is going to be out of reach, but he has shown a lot of moxie to bounce back from a couple of poor stretches to become the kind of force in this lineup that was expected. That’s huge for this team’s hopes in 2022 and beyond.

Links & Notes

Mancini: ‘I had a feeling I was going to stay, and I was happy to’ | BaltimoreBaseball.com
We’re happy too, Trey! Some of the things GM Mike Elias said afterward made it seem like the team never seriously attempted to deal the first baseman at all, and perhaps they are even interested in a contract extension. We will see how that situation develops over the off-season, but for now it feels good to keep the face of the franchise around through the end of the summer.

OF prospect Diaz back in action, starts rehab | MLB.com
It’s been a nightmare season for Yusniel Diaz. Injuries have been a recurring problem for the 24-year-old throughout his career, but this is the first year in which that has been paired with extremely poor play on the field. An OPS of .550 isn’t going to knock down the big league door, and given that we are in August already it is entirely possible that he does not receive the September call-up that felt inevitable coming into the year.

AL East Notes: Eshelman, Barnes, Darwinzon, Brasier | MLB Trade Rumors
Don’t fret, Thomas Eshelman fans. The soft-tossing righty is sticking around the organization. He will just be plying his trade down at Triple-A Norfolk for the time being. Why would he go anywhere else? There are not many clubs with such few big league pitching options, so there is always a chance that Eshelman gets another shot at some innings in Baltimore.

Orioles birthdays

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

• Jon Knott turns 43. The lefty spent seven of his 19 career MLB games with the 2007 O’s. He went 3-for-14 with a home run.
• B.J. Surhoff celebrates his 57th birthday. The former first overall pick had two stints with the O’s; 1996 through 2000 and then again from 2003 through 2005. He had a 105 OPS+ with the club, and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2007.

Orioles history

1998 - O’s ace Mike Mussina no-hits the Tigers through seven innings before allowing a double to DH Frank Catalanotto.

2005 - Lee Mazzilli is fired as Orioles manager and replaced by bench coach Sam Perlozzo. The team held first place in the AL East on June 23, but has since fallen 10.5 games behind.