Tuesday Bird Droppings: The Orioles’ interleague road trip rolls on

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

I don’t know about you, but I’m a big fan of the newly balanced MLB schedule, which allows each team to face every other team in baseball every season. There’s no reason the Orioles should have to slog through 19 games a year against their own division foes while going years without playing against certain National League teams. As a baseball fan, I like being able to watch as many different teams as I can. And as an Orioles fan, I like that the O’s won’t have to play nearly as many games against their own division, which happens to be the toughest in the majors.

The Orioles’ current six-game road trip is giving them a chance to visit some ballparks and teams they haven’t seen in a long time. They just completed their first trip to San Francisco since 2016, and tonight they begin a series in Milwaukee for the first time since 2017. The Brewers, of course, were once a fierce AL East rival of the Orioles — I don’t need to remind you how the 1982 season ended — but since they moved to the National League in 1998, the two clubs have played only 15 games against each other.

These next three days will be a feel-good story for the Urías family, as brothers Ramón and Luis are set to face each other for the first time as big leaguers. (The Brewers visited Baltimore last April but Luis was injured.) The younger brother was just activated off Milwaukee’s 60-day IL last night after suffering a hamstring strain on Opening Day, while Ramón, who recently returned from injury of his own, is likely to be in the Birds’ lineup at some point in the series, especially if Gunnar Henderson’s back is still balky. It will be adorable.

The Brewers, who led the NL Central until last night, will be no easy opponent for the Orioles. But it sure beats playing the Yankees and Red Sox ad nauseam.

Links

Because You Asked - Across the Spider-Verse - School of Roch
In Roch Kubatko’s latest freewheeling mailbag, he tackles questions about Kyle Stowers, Grayson Rodriguez, pupusas, and waffle fries. I told you it was freewheeling.

Connolly’s Tap Room: Who is your Most Valuable Oriole so far this season? - The Athletic
Dan Connolly asks readers who gets their MVO vote. I don’t want to say there’s only one right answer, but Adley Rutschman is the only right answer.

Minor Monday: Bowie’s McDermott tries to work on control - BaltimoreBaseball.com
Patrick Stevens talks with pitching prospect Chayce McDermott, who’s working on a new sweeper. He hopes that the pitch will get hitters to...Chayce. (Thank you, I’ll be here all week.)

Orioles reset: Like Buster Posey before him, Adley Rutschman showing value of having a two-way catcher
Just over one year into his career, Adley is already getting legitimate Buster Posey comparisons from Posey’s former teammates and manager. Like I said, the only right answer as MVO.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! The only player in O’s history with a June 6 birthday is “Mervelous” Merv Rettenmund, who spent six years with the Birds as a reserve outfielder and homered in the 1970 World Series. He turns 80 years young today. Enjoy your day, Merv!

On this date in 1967, O’s first baseman Curt Blefary had himself a heck of a doubleheader in Washington. In the first game, he crushed three home runs, including an eighth-inning two-run shot and a ninth-inning grand slam in a 16-4 win. Blefary added three RBIs in the nightcap, giving him 10 for the day.

Random Orioles game of the day

On June 6, 1973, the Orioles clobbered the visiting White Sox at Memorial Stadium, 14-4. A seven-run eighth inning helped the O’s turn it into a rout. In that inning, the Orioles sent 11 batters to the plate and took advantage of two Chicago errors, including a throwing error by shortstop Eddie Leon with the bases loaded that plated all three runners. It was part of an atrocious overall performance by the White Sox, who committed four errors and walked eight batters, allowing the O’s to score 14 runs on just nine hits. You would never have known that the White Sox were in first place at the time.

Brooks Robinson and Earl Williams homered earlier in the game for the Birds, who ran their winning streak to four in a row to improve to 24-22. They never fell below .500 the rest of the season on their way to winning the AL East for the fourth time in five years.