The Orioles finished the final month of the season with a 16-12 record, which was their only winning month of the entire year.  Not to mention, they played the role of spoiler against the Red Sox as they won five of seven this month and essentially eliminated them from the playoff picture last night.

In 11 appearances against the Sox, he was 1-1 with a 3.46 ERA (5 earned in 13 innings).

For those of you who missed the game last night, it was a wild one.  After an hour plus rain delay and many missed chances by the Birds to regain the lead, again they were able to take down Jonathon Papelbon.  With a 3-2 in the bottom of the 9^th, it looked as if Boston would at least force a one-game playoff with the Rays at worst.

But, super utility man Robert Andino came through in the clutch again!  After a game-tying double by outfielder Nolan Reimold with two down, Andino laced a low line drive to left field.  It dropped just in front of Carl Crawford and Reimold raced around to score the winning run.

Although the Birds only won 69 games all season, aforementioned, 16 of those victories came in the last month of the year.  They really played their hearts out this month and if this is any indication of next season, it will be an exciting and magical year in Birdland.

September vs. the Red Sox

Historically, any Orioles fan knows that the Sox have dominated the Birds over the past 14 years, and up until this month, they had this season as well.  Entering September, the Birds were only 3-8 against the Sox.  But, amazingly, the Birds won the last two series and finished 8-10 vs. the Sox this year.

Series in Boston

Although the Birds were able to win those five games, their starting pitching really struggled against the former AL East Champs.  In the seven contests, their rotation sported an inflated 7.83 ERA.  Collectively, they tossed only 31 innings (about 4.1 per outing) and they surrendered 27 earned runs (29 total).

In 4 games against Boston, he sported a 3.00 ERA (2 earned in six innings).

In five of the seven games, their starters allowed at least four earned runs and only two times a starter last six innings or more.  In the four game series at Boston, the starters really had a hard time getting outs.  They tossed only 16.1 innings and gave up 18 earned runs!

Former phenom and prized left-handed starting pitcher Brian Matusz ended his season in horrific fashion as he lasted only 1.2 innings and surrendered six earned in Boston.  Rick VandenHurk pitched to a no decision as he lasted only three innings and allowed four earned runs (five total).

But, even though the Birds’ starters couldn’t pitch deep into the games, their bullpen pitched magnificently, which allowed their rejuvenated offense to mount comebacks.

With the exclusion of the ugly 18-9 loss in Boston when the pen allowed 12 earned, the Birds’ pen on the road allowed only one other earned run over 9.1 innings (three games, 0.98 ERA).  In the final game of the four game set, the pen tossed 2.1 innings without allowing a base hit.

Series at Home

The Birds’ starting pitching this past series in Baltimore performed better, but still not great.  Tommy Hunter tossed five innings and allowed only one earned run, but received a no decision as the Birds’ offense battled back and eventually won Monday night 6-3.

Tuesday night, rookie Zach Britton struggled in his final outing of the year as he lasted only 4.1 innings and he surrendered five earned runs in the Birds only loss in the series.  Last night, Alfredo Simonmatched Britton’s innings pitched, but allowed only three earned.

In 2 games against the Sox, he sported a 3.00 ERA as he allowed 1 earned (a home run) in three innings of work.

The bullpen again pitched very well in the three game series.  They tossed a collective 13.1 innings and allowed only four earned runs (2.71 ERA).  Overall, their bullpen surrendered 17 earned runs, including the 12 in one game, over 32 innings pitched, which equates to a respectable 4.78 ERA.

Offense

You must be wondering how the Orioles have been able to come away with five victories when their starting pitching allowed upwards of seven runs per game.  Well, the answer is their offense.

The Birds broke out against the Red Sox over their last two series.  They scored a combined 45 runs, which averages out to almost six and a half runs per game (6.43).  Infielder Chris Davis and Reimold both sported .333 batting averages, not to mention Andino’s sudden surge of power.

Andino, who had two game-winning hits off of closer Papelbon, smashed two homeruns and drove in nine RBI over the course of the two series. He collected eight hits in 29 at-bats (.276 average) and really came through in the clutch.

In 5 games against Boston, he didn't allow an earned run over his 4.1 innings pitched.

Catcher Matt Wieters went six for 21 in six games with two home runs and four RBI against the rival Red Sox.  Reimold, who has been on a tear as of late, compiled six hits as well, in just 18 at-bats, including a home run and six RBI.

Not to mention, the all-time hits leader among Dominican-born MLB players Vladimir Guerrero collected nine hits in 31 at-bats (.290 average), including five RBI.  And, shortstop J.J. Hardy crushed two home runs, including his 30^th of the season, and four RBI while going eight for 28 against the Sox this month.

So, overall, even though the Birds starting pitching struggled against the always-tough Red Sox lineup, their bullpen stepped up their game, with the exception of the blowout.  And, their offense found ways to win ball games and never game up late until the last out was recorded.  These last two series are definitely encouraging leading into the off-season and hopefully it will drive the Birds to be better next year.

Follow  me on twitter: Alex_VanRees

The Orioles have played spoiler for both the Rays and Red Sox over the last week.  The Birds took two of three from the Rays, and so far, they’ve taken two of three from the Sox with one game left tonight.

Mark Reynolds is 5 for his last 14, including 2 homeruns and 6 RBI in 4 games.

The Birds are 5-2 over the last seven days, and their bats have really come alive during that stretch.  As a team, the Orioles are hitting at a lofty .287 clip.  Designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero continues to rack up his hits as he leads the team with a .414 average, including 12 hits in all seven games.

The Orioles really needed this jolt of hitting because their pitching, both starting and relieving, posted very low, uncharacteristic numbers since September 14^th.  Collectively, they sport a 6.39 ERA; the starters pitched better, although not by much, with a 5.66 ERA, compared to the pen’s inflated 7.47 ERA.

Offensive Explosion

The Birds scored 44 runs over their last seven games, which averages to 6.3 runs per game.  They scored at least six runs in all five of their wins and they’ve only scored less than six runs one time.

Guerrero, whose power numbers have dropped drastically, is still putting together an impressive season with the bat, just not how the Orioles pictured.  On the year, Guerrero’s collected 155 hits in just 137 games (an average of 1.13 hits per game).

The hitting machine recorded 12 hits over his 29 at-bats this week, including a double, triple and a homerun.  He scored six runs, but only drove in four RBI.  On the season, he’s only collected 58 RBI and knocked 13 homeruns.

Utility infielder Robert Andino continues to stay hot and become a better player every day.  It’s fun to watch him because he can do some many things for your ball club.  He’s displayed superb defense wherever he is penciled in, and he’s really improved his clutch offense as of late.

Nick Markakis is 7 for his last 26 with a double and a triple, but only 3 RBI.

Andino recorded eight hits in his 24 at-bats this past week, including a double and a homerun.  Not to mention, he drove home six RBI and scored five times over seven contests.

Other Hot Hitters

First/third baseman Chris Davis’ bat    finally come around since he joined the Birds at the end of July.  He’s nine for his last 28, including three doubles and a homerun.  He’s drove in four and scored five times while he hit .321 last week.

Although catcher Matt Wieters only appeared in five of their seven games, he continues to pound the baseball.  He batted at a .333 clip with five hits in 15 at-bats, including a homerun and three doubles.  He drove in two RBI and scored six times.

Pitching: Cause for Concern

Starters

Let’s start with the good.  Tommy Hunter finally showed what he can really do on a mound and why the Orioles were so eager to trade for him.  He tossed his first scoreless outing in the black and orange.  He went seven innings and struck out five for his fourth win of the season.

Jo-Jo Reyes tossed 4 innings and surrendered 3 earned runs over his last two outings.

Rookie Zach Britton got back on track after he allowed four earned runs to the Bronx Bombers in his previous outing.  He tossed seven impressive innings against the Angels, surrendered only one earned run and struck out seven to earn his 10^th win of the year.

Jeremy Guthrie has really pitched well the entire month of September, and although he allowed four earned runs to the Sox on Monday, he still won two games this past week.  He tossed 13 innings, allowed six earned runs, and struck out 13 against the Rays and Red Sox.

The Ugly

Brian Matusz continues to struggle this season and he hasn’t shown any signs of the pitcher he was a year ago.  In his latest outing, he lasted only 1.2 innings and he gave up six earned runs to Boston and he received his eight loss of the season.

Alfredo Simon, who has been pitching very well as of late, was hit hard in his last outing.  He was charged with six earned runs in just five innings against the Angels for his ninth loss of the year.

Willie appeared in 3 games and tossed 2 innings without allowing an earned run.

September call up Rick VandenHurk has struggled in the rotation this month.  He started last night’s game against the Red Sox and lasted only three innings.  He surrendered four earned runs, five total, and struck out four as he pitched to a no decision.

Overall, their starter’s pitched to a 3-2 record, tossed only 36.2 innings (5.1 innings per outing), and they gave up 23 earned runs.

Relief Pitching

A week and a half ago, the Birds’ bullpen was turning on all cylinders and they were pitching as a very cohesive unit.  This past week, everything fell apart.

All of the Birds’ relievers sport an ERA above six over the last week, except set up man and as of late closer Jim Johnson, Jason Berken, Willie Eyre, Zach Phillips and Pedro Strop.  As a whole, the bullpen holds a 7.47 ERA as they’ve allowed 21 earned runs in just 25.1 innings.

Chris Jakubauskas, who was extremely hard to hit in August, allowed five earned runs in one inning against the Sox.  Closer Kevin Gregg appeared in two games and allowed three earned over two innings.  Brad Bergesen surrendered four earned in just 1.2 innings and Jeremy Accardo yielded four as well over two innings.

The Birds’ most reliable pitcher all season, Johnson, has a 1.80 ERA over that stretch.  Strop, Eyre, Phillips and Berken tossed a combined 8.1 innings without allowing a run.

So, although their pitching faltered this past week, their offense stepped up and won them important games.  The Birds need to win six of their last eight games to get to 70.  Let’s see if they can do it!

Follow me on twitter: Alex_VanRees

The Athletics are known for their tremendous pitching staff, which their team is built around; even though they haven’t blown the Orioles out of the water in many contests, the A’s pitchers have dictated and controlled most of these games with clutch hitting and strong pitching.

JJ Hardy has picked up 7 base hits in 25 at-bats this season against the A's with 1 homerun and 2 RBI.

Out of all of the American League teams, the Athletics have proven to be the most difficult for the Birds to compete against.  We all know the Orioles’ pitching staffs over the last ten years have been horrendous, and although some years their offense performed well, their pitching was that much worse.

Over the last 10+ seasons against the Athletics, the Orioles’ pitching staff has surrendered 492 total runs (5.02 runs per game), while their offense has produced only 340 runs in 98 games (3.47 runs per game); the A’s have outscored the Orioles by 152 runs.  The Orioles have won only won 26 games since 2000, 13 in Oakland and 13 at home (30 losses at home, 32 at the Coliseum).

The Birds have only won 28% of the series they’ve played against the A’s as they won only nine of the 32 series between the two clubs; they’ve dropped 21 and tied two two-game shortened series.  Oakland’s swept the Birds nine times and the O’s have returned the favor on five occasions.

The Birds have never had a winning season against them- the closest they’ve reached to a winning season was back in 2007 when they split their eight games.   The Birds also were winless two years and lost seven or more games in five different years.

Over the last six + seasons, the Birds have a .333 winning percentage against the A’s as they’ve collected 14 wins in 42 games.  The Orioles next lowest winning percentage over that same time is the Yankees at .337 (34-67) and in the Western Division, their next lowest winning percentage is against the Angels at .396 (19-29).

So, you may be thinking to yourself how the Birds always seem to manage to fall apart and always struggle against the Athletics, who have had some very impressive seasons (102-60 in 2001 and 103-59 in 2002), and some forgettable seasons (75-86 in 2007 and 2008)- the answer has been a combination of Orioles’ pitching struggles and Oakland’s pitching domination.
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