Baltimore Orioles split first two games with Seattle Mariners

After the Baltimore Orioles routed the Mariners on Monday evening, the Mariners evened the series Tuesday evening.

It seems the Baltimore Orioles exhausted their offense Monday evening after recording 16 hits and 11 runs.

The final score on Tuesday was 1-3 as Jonathan Schoop scored the lone run in the first as a home run off of Andrew Albers. The pitcher earned his first win in his first outing with the Mariners.

Albers held the O’s to six hits with only the home run scoring. Manny Machado continued to add to his outstanding August stats. While he only landed on base once on Tuesday, he did it with a double. That is his 11th extra-base hit for the month. With that double, his batting numbers are at a season high of .260/.317/.475.

Orioles’ home run tear

Speaking of Machado, his performance on Monday was also worth noting. In the second inning, he hit his second grand slam of the month in the same West Coast road trip. His first of the month was against the Los Angeles Angels on August 7. Monday’s grand slam was in the second inning, where the O’s scored six runs. The team batted around in that inning with RBIs credited to Chris Davis and Caleb Joseph.

Along with the Machado grand slam on Monday, three other O’s hit long balls. Tim Beckham hit is 16th of the season to lead off the game. That home run was his fourth of the month. Seth Smith hit his 12th in the 5th inning and Trey Mancini hit his 21st in the 7th inning. Smith and Davis each earned two RBIs in the win on Monday.

Miley’s pitching struggles

Unfortunately, the offensive momentum from Monday did not continue into Tuesday. Along with the lack of hits on Tuesday, the Wade Miley did not pitch as well as he has been this month. The last time he only went 4.2 innings was a month ago against the Chicago Cubs where he gave up seven runs off of nine hits. Tuesday, his final line was 4.2 innings with three runs scored off of five hits and three walks. In most situations, that line would be good enough to get the win. But, the run support was non-existent. In Miley’s three other starts in August, he gave up a combined total of three runs.

Miley was pulled with one out remaining in the fifth. As usual, the relief pitching staff came in and closed down the opposing team. Darren O’Day got the final out in a quick strikeout, then got two more in the sixth. Mychal Givens struck out two in the seventh. And, Brad Brach finished the eighth. Givens and Brach each gave up a hit, but did not allow any runs to score.

Gausman’s pitching successes

On Monday, the pitching was exceptional. Kevin Gausman earned his ninth win of the season, pushing his win-loss record above .500. His ERA is a season low of 5.08. His final line on Monday was seven innings, six hits, two runs, one walk, and six strike outs. Miguel Castro finished the game, pitching the last two innings. He struck out three, gave up two hits, and one run. It was a good day.

This up-and-down play has been the MO for the O’s for the last six games. The team continues to sit just under .500 with a record of 59-61. Their next series is against the red-hot Los Angeles Angels who took two out of three last week.

Next: Who should be the everyday O's shortstop?

The O’s face the Mariners with a 3:40 PM start time for their rubber match in Seattle. Ubaldo Jiminez faces left-hander Marco Gonzalez. The O’s get the day off Thursday before facing the Angels in Baltimore on Friday.

Home/Orioles News