After sweeping the Royals, the O’s get swept out of Oakland

In the series finale, Britton was on the mound and so it seemed that the Orioles would be able to avoid the sweep and take one from the series. But, Britton could not get his 6th win of the season giving another bad performance on the mound.

In the loss, he lasted only 5 2/3 innings, only his second time not pitching at least 6 innings. He gave up a career high 10 hits and 6 runs with 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. 6 runs is too many for a starter to give up to be able to still give your offense a chance to win the game. The Orioles came close, scoring 4 runs, but it wasn’t good enough.

The big inning for both teams came in 5th, where each team scored 4 runs. The A’s had scored a run in the 1st inning when Britton started getting into trouble. Then he went through the next few innings very smoothly before the 5th came up. He got the lead-off man out but then allowed 2 consecutive singles before recording the 2nd out. Following that, He then gave up an RBI single followed by a 3-run homer. The last run he allowed in was in the 6th off a sac fly.

Before the big 4-run inning for the A’s in the 5th, the O’s had one of their own that made it look like they would squeeze out in a win. J.J. Hardy and Mark Reynolds got consecutive hits followed by Andino sacrificing to move them over a base. Felix Pie then hit a RBI single followed by Nolan Reimold getting an RBI walk. Nick Markakis hit an RBI ground out as did Vladimir Guerrero. Yet, these were the only 4 runs the Orioles scored and they fell short again.

Hopefully, the Orioles can put this sweep behind them and move on to the Mariners, who they swept earlier this season at home. In addition, Brian Matusz will be activated to make his debut start against the Mariners on Wednesday. Not only is this good for the team’s season and success, it can also serve as a good emotional boost following the tough sweep.