Baltimore Orioles, Yovani Gallardo need more than just homers

Yovani Gallardo provided a fairly decent start in his hometown, but the Baltimore Orioles fell to Texas 8-4.

If I had told you that the Baltimore Orioles were going to smack three home runs last night you probably would have thought that Yovani Gallardo was going to win the game. The problem of course was that first off those three homers were all solo shots – as they say, solo home runs generally don’t hurt you. But the Orioles also left nine runners on base last night. That can be a killer.

While this isn’t always true (it certainly wasn’t on Friday night), sometimes you need more than just homers to win games. Now I don’t necessarily buy into the philosophy that some seem to be saying which is that it doesn’t matter how many homers they hit, they can’t pitch. Gallardo actually pitched fairly well last night – he was just left in a little too long. Gallardo’s line: 6.0 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 2 K.

It might be fair to question why he was sent back out in the seventh, which is when Texas took control of the game. Keep in mind however that hindsight is always 20/20. Showalter would have only sent him back out using sound baseball reasoning – not just because, in other words. There could have been a matchup coming up that he liked, or something along those lines. Point being however, let’s not judge the decision based on the result. 

Reviewing the Brew

The Orioles took an early 1-0 lead on a Machado home run in the first inning, however Texas tied it in the last of the first with a sac fly-RBI off the bat of Beltre. Adam Jones would homer in the third, and Chris Davis in the fifth, and the O’s had a 3-1 lead in the middle innings. They also got an RBI-single from Alvarez in the fifth, to take a 4-1 lead.

But Texas chipped away – and all at once at that. Beltre grounded into a fielder’s choice-RBI in the fifth, and Mazara added an RBI-single in the seventh to bring Texas to within one. They would tie the game on Fielder’s FC-RBI, and then they took the lead  on Moreland’s RBI-double.

A moment later Odor would add an RBI-double of his own, however he took third base on an error in right field by Trumbo. Odor would score on Andrus’ RBI-single, and Texas won it 8-4. T.J. McFarland took the loss and recorded a blown save, and you have to wonder if he might be one of the candidates to go down when the litany of roster moves occur in the near future. I don’t say that because of this specific game, but due to the fact that he hasn’t played much overall, and he has an option. 

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At the end of the day, as I said sometimes you need a bit more than the long ball to win games. Ironically Texas didn’t smack one home run in their home park last night – a park in which homers fly fairly frequently. But that’s how this game works sometimes.

As I said above, it’s fair to question why Gallardo was sent out in the seventh inning. But my point is not to question the reasoning of sending him back out. There is such a thing as making the wrong decision for the right reason – and that’s what Showalter probably did.

Next: Baltimore Orioles: Mark Trumbo sets record in slam-bang end

Weather permitting, the series will conclude this afternoon in Texas. Mike Wright will get the start for the Orioles, and he’ll be opposed by Texas’ Derek Holland. Game time is set for just after 3 PM.