Baz’s Blunders Sink O’s Offense in 6-2 Loss
The Orioles’ struggles at the plate reached new heights yesterday as they fell to the Athletics 6-2. A dismal performance from starter Shane Baz and an equally anemic showing from Orioles hitters were the perfect recipe for disaster.
For the fourth time this season, Baz walked more batters than he struck out, further exacerbating the issue. His inability to locate pitches left him leaving too many in the zone, and the Athletics took full advantage.
Aaron Civale’s Solid Performance Goes Unappreciated
At the other end of the spectrum, Aaron Civale pitched a much more solid game than expected, despite being on the losing side. Although his stuff wasn’t particularly sharp, he found ways to outmaneuver the Orioles’ lineup and get the job done.
Civale walked just one batter and struck out five over six innings of work, giving his team a glimmer of hope in what was shaping up to be a tough matchup. Still, even Civale’s best efforts couldn’t salvage this loss.
Two Inning Disaster
Baz’s command-challenged outing was highlighted by a disastrous top of the third inning, where he allowed three of the six Athletics’ runs to score. The damage began when Brent Rooker came to the plate with two on and one out.
Rooker took Baz deep on a 95 mph fastball that hung just a little too long, sending a two-run homer over the center field wall. What was already a tough situation quickly turned into a nightmare as Baz proceeded to walk the next batter, forcing in an additional run.
The Orioles’ offense, meanwhile, failed to capitalize on a rare opportunity to score in the bottom of the third. With two on and two outs, they managed to plate just one run on a groundout, leaving the deficit at three runs.
From there, the game was all but over. The Athletics tacked on three more runs over the course of the final five innings to seal the victory and leave the Orioles with little more than a footnote in the box score.
The Baltimore Orioles now trail the Athletics by 5.5 games in the AL wild card standings, a gap that seems to grow wider by the day.
