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Baltimore Orioles need to make sure that Cleveland Rocks

By Domenic A. Vadala

Courtesy of Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Courtesy of Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Baltimore Orioles would do well to wake up this weekend in Cleveland. With the AL East so tight, they need to ensure that they keep pace.

The Baltimore Orioles find themselves licking their wounds in Cleveland this weekend after being handled by Houston all week. Keep in mind folks, Houston’s a small ball team – both offensively and defensively. The Orioles are most certainly NOT a small ball team. Houston used the Orioles’ aggressiveness against them, forced them to play their (Houston’s) game, and then beat them with experience.

However the phrase that pays there is beat them with experience. A team like Houston has experience with small ball. The Orioles do not. So if the Orioles are to get back on track with their winning ways, adapting to the small ball way of life isn’t the way forward.

That’s just not how this team is put together. They’re assembled to be able to smack teams right out of the ballpark. And if they’re going to be successful this weekend in Cleveland, that’s the only way forward. We all know the song from the “Drew Carey Show” of yesteryear…the O’s need to ensure that Cleveland Rocks this weekend if they’re going to win some games.

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    • I’m saying that figuratively of course. However some people will look at that Houston series and say that it exposed exactly what was wrong with a team like the Orioles. Maybe it does. However the team can’t change who it is or how it’s made up. Small ball is someone else’s game…remember, Houston beat them with experience. So if the current Orioles were to try to play that game, they’d probably fail miserably.

    No folks, the only way forward is to continue smacking the ball around and out of the ballpark. Obviously you have to balance that with RBI-singles and doubles here and there, but this Oriole team won’t find much success in NOT playing for the big inning. Does that mean they need to just keep hacking at whatever’s thrown their way? Perhaps they should be a bit more selective with their pitches – but in a sense, yes that’s exactly what I’m saying.

    More from Orioles News

    The O’s find themselves heading home after Sunday’s game for a Memorial Day matinee with Boston – the first of a four-game set. Then NY comes to town next weekend. This is going to be a key week for the Orioles, as they’ll be playing exclusively in the division. As tight as the AL East is right now, they need to have a good week on the heels of that Houston series.

    Furthermore they need to start by having a successful weekend series in Cleveland before that’s even on the radar. The O’s will find themselves playing in Progressive Field, a ballpark that was all but a carbon copy of Camden Yards. So perhaps the hitters will have an easier time picking up the ball and getting the ball to carry.

    Next: Baltimore Orioles swept out of Houston in feast or famine world

    The big league season is a marathon – not a sprint. So while it was a tough week for the Birds, you can’t get hung up on one game or a stretch of games. If you do, you can’t move forward. And as I said, the best way for the Orioles to move forward is to do what they do best: mash the ball.

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