Monday Bird Droppings: The Orioles try to avoid their worst start since 1988

Hello, friends.

Well, this Orioles season could have started off better, couldn’t it? The Orioles have continued their losing ways against the Tampa Bay Rays. After this sweep to start the season, the O’s have now been beaten in 15 straight games by the Rays. It’s hard to fathom it, but when you watch games like yesterday’s, which the O’s lost, 8-0, it’s not much of a surprise. Check out Alex Church’s recap of the game for the not-so-lovely totals.

One of the unfortunate hallmarks of this era of rebuilding for the Orioles is the frequency with which they set the kinds of franchise or even MLB records that you don’t want to set. They are at it again to start off the 2022 season. The Baltimore Sun’s Nathan Ruiz noted that the O’s are now 2-27 against the Rays over their last 29 matchups, the worst such stretch in Orioles history.

This was not the only ignominious record from the weekend. Orioles batters combined to strike out 37 times over these three games. That’s the most strikeouts the team has ever had after its first three games, breaking a record that was set only last year. The strikeout-heavy early 2021 Orioles managed to sweep the Red Sox in spite of this. The 2022 Orioles have not been so fortunate.

The Orioles are now the last winless team in all of MLB. There were eight other teams who entered Sunday also winless just like the O’s. Every one of them was victorious while the O’s lost again. The 1988 team has a long way to go before they can pop the champagne, but as it stands now, only these O’s have a chance to knock them off for this year.

Among the things that were poor about the first series, there were some silver linings. Relievers who are not named Paul Fry generally performed well, allowing just two earned runs in 11.1 innings - and one of these runs really should have been unearned after Rougned Odor made a bad throw that Ryan Mountcastle couldn’t catch yesterday, but the Rays scorer gave a little home cooking to his batter. The Camden Yards scoring contingent needs to learn that trick.

With how O’s relievers got bombed by the Rays last year, that’s almost a little victory right there. Many other things did not go so well. Jordan Lyles delivered the promised five innings but also gave up five runs. Tyler Wells’s experiment as a starter did not have a good first trial. Why did we spend the whole lockout sad that baseball was gone, again? I’ve already forgotten.

The home opener awaits today. I will be at the stadium. I wonder how many other fans will be. As recently as during yesterday’s game, there were commercials advertising how tickets are still available. Hard as it is to imagine, not even the lure of getting the first look at the new left field fence at Camden Yards seems to have been able to draw a sellout crowd in to the home opener after the last four years of Orioles baseball.

The action is scheduled to get rolling at 3:05. The Orioles are looking to avoid their first 0-4 start since 1988. By the way, the last time they played the Brewers for a home opener was... 1988. There could be better omens. Perhaps Baltimore’s own Bruce Zimmermann making his first start of the year in the home opener will help cancel out the weight of recent and distant history.

Around the blogO’sphere

The roster merry-go-round is already spinning. The Orioles optioned DJ Stewart to the minors following yesterday’s game.

Kremer lost to oblique injury (School of Roch)
I wouldn’t say it was a loss, Bob. No, but seriously, Dean Kremer was going to pitch in relief yesterday until he had an oblique issue crop up while warming up. That probably means a roster move is coming for a pitcher before today’s game, because Keegan Akin already pitched three innings on Saturday and somebody needs to start on Tuesday while also keeping another arm available for long relief.

As Orioles enter season with another puny payroll, club hopes changes made ‘beneath the surface’ begin to show (The Baltimore Sun)
Fans will be hoping for this also, especially after this past weekend did not give much of a fun start to the season.

O’s 2020 second rounder bashes three homers (Orioles.com)
Outfielder Hudson Haskin isn’t one of the most talked-about O’s prospects, but he’s a name worth knowing anyway - especially after hitting three home runs yesterday. He was tied for 18th on our Camden Chat composite top prospects list.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

The most recent Orioles victory on this day came in 2018, when the team beat the Blue Jays, 5-3. Kevin Gausman’s six inning, three run effort proved to be enough thanks to the offense going 6-14 with RISP. The team was 5-8 after this win; they went 3-12 to finish April.

There are a few former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2014-15 outfielder Alejandro De Aza, 1992 reserve infielder Steve Scarsone, and 1981 four game catcher Willie Royster.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: ...actually, I went through the list of birthdays twice and no one really jumps out at me. You might find your own interesting birthday buddy on the list, or maybe you already know one that I didn’t notice.

On this day in history...

In 1713, five separate governments signed peace treaties in Utrecht with France, ending most of the significant fighting in the War of the Spanish Succession. European powers went to war over concerns that French king Louis XIV’s grandson had become king of Spain (Philip V) and might eventually unite France and Spain. The peace confirmed Philip’s rule of Spain in exchange for his renouncing a claim on the French throne.

In 1814, an entirely different war involving France moved towards conclusion as the Treaty of Fontainebleau settled the War of the Sixth Coalition, with an anti-Napoleon coalition finally beating him in battle and forcing his abdication and exile. About a year later he came back anyway, necessitating a seventh coalition to send him packing for good.

In 1868, Japan’s Tokugawa shogunate came to an end after rule since 1603. The final shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, surrendered Edo Castle to imperial forces, restoring an emperor to the throne of Japan.

In 1963, Pope John XXIII delivered an encyclical titled Pacem in terris (Peace on Earth), notable for being the first such communication addressed to all Christians rather than solely Catholics. John XXIII wrote the message knowing he was dying of cancer. He passed away about two months later.

In 1970, the Apollo 13 mission launched.

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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on April 11. Have a safe Monday. Go O’s!