Saturday afternoon game thread: Orioles @ Red Sox, 4:10 pm

After their nail-biting win on Thursday and a day off on Friday, the Orioles are looking to claim their first series of the season. To do so they are sending Dean Kremer to the mound and sending out possibly their best starting lineup, even if the batting order looks a little bizarre.

If you, like me, are a Kyle Stowers Fan Club member, you might be wondering why Ryan McKenna over Stowers in left field. Despite hitting them well in the minors, Stowers has been given virtually no at-bats against lefties in his brief major league career. This normally would rile me up, and probably will on a future day, but after thinking about it I am ok with the decision.

The starter for the Red Sox is Chris Sale. He has barely pitched since 2019 so it’s hard to say how he’ll do, but in his career, he is a lefty who is especially tough against his fellow lefties. And after the defensive debacle that was game one, I like having one of the surest defenders on the team in the outfield.

Things to look forward to today include seeing if Adley can continue his quest to reach base every time this season; how Gunnar will look at third base, and if Dean Kremer will reward my faith in him by having a good start to the season.

It was looking earlier like the weather might wash away today’s game, but the forecast now predicts the rain will hold off until about 8. Let’s hope that holds true.

Orioles lineup

1. Ramón Urías (R) 2B

2. Adley Rutschman (S) C

3. Ryan Mountcastle (R) 1B

4. Anthony Santander (S) DH

5. Austin Hays (R) RF

6. Gunnar Henderson (L) 3B

7. Jorge Mateo (R) SS

8. Cedric Mullins (L) CF

9. Ryan McKenna (R) LF

SP: Dean Kremer (RHP)

Red Sox lineup

1. Alex Verdugo (L) RF

2. Rafael Devers (L) 3B

3. Justin Turner (R) DH

4. Masataka Yoshida (L) LF

5. Adam Duvall (R) CF

6. Triston Casas (L) 1B

7. Christian Arroyo (R) 2B

8. Reese McGuire (L) C

9. Enrique Hernández (R) SS

SP: Chris Sale (LHP)

Let’s go O’s!