Baltimore Orioles: Machado's grand slams show how good the O's are

The Baltimore Orioles celebrated Manny Machado‘s third grand slam of the month by giving him a face full of shaving cream.

The Baltimore Orioles’ young third baseman added three home runs and seven RBIs to his 2017 stats.

While Machado continues to be celebrated for his prowess at the plate, he could not have achieved three grand slams without the help of the rest of the team.

In order to hit three grand slams, nine other players have to be on base at the right time. Those men deserve to be recognized for their timely hitting.

The first grand slam

On August 7, the Orioles arrived in Los Angeles to face the Angels. At the time, the team had a .500 average and the Angels were 55-58. By the end of the sixth inning, the two teams were tied at two runs each. Then, the seventh inning started. Tim Beckham popped out, but Seth Smith and Welington Castillo each hit singles. Joey Rickard struck out and Adam Jones walked after being hit by a pitch by JC Ramirez.

With two outs and the bases loaded, Machado approached the plate. On a 1-0 count, he swung for the fences. The Orioles led 6-2 and finished the game with that score.

The second grand slam

One week later in Seattle, Machado and the O’s did it again. This time, the big inning was the second. Yovani Gallardo was pitching for the Seattle Mariners. The fact that Machado was able to hit a grand slam in this inning was shocking because it was loaded with offense. After Trey Mancini popped out to start the inning, the first hits came from Mark Trumbo, who doubled and then Chris Davis, who swapped with Trumbo and earned a RBI. Seth Smith singled, moving Davis to third. Then, Caleb Joseph earned a RBI moving Davis home and Smith to second. Then, Beckham singled.

With Smith, Joseph, and Beckham all on base, Machado was up next. After a 1-2 count, he homered. By the time the inning was over, the O’s were up 7-1 and Trey Mancini and Trumbo both batted twice.

The third grand slam

The third grand slam of the month came Friday night, only four days after the second. In a night loaded with home runs, ten to be exact, Machado’s walk-off was a perfect end cap. By the ninth inning, Machado had two home runs on the day, while Joseph and Trumbo each had one. After the Angels finished their at-bat in the ninth, the score was 7-5 Angels.

The O’s ninth-inning rally began with Anthony Santander‘s very first MLB hit. His timing could not have been better. Joseph followed him, but struck out. Seth Smith entered the game as a pinch-hitter and did his job, earning a walk and moving Santander to second. The Angels then made a pitching change replacing Yusmeiro Petit with Keynan Middleton. The rest is history as Beckham took advantage of the pitching change and singled. The Angels were stuck. With nowhere to put Machado, Middleton had to pitch to him. After seeing one strike, Machado brought in the ducks and the team won 9-7.

Next: Machado and a few grand slam statistics

The grand slam requires a team effort, which is what makes it one of the most exciting offensive events. When one teammate can achieve three of these in less than two weeks, it proves that the rest of the team can hit, too. To get those three grand slam, Machado benefitted from the offensive prowess of Smith who was on base for all of the August grand slams and Beckham who crossed home plate in two of them. The two catchers, the rookie, and Jones also earned runs.

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Baltimore Orioles: Machado’s grand slams show how good the O’s are

The Baltimore Orioles celebrated Manny Machado‘s third grand slam of the month by giving him a face full of shaving cream.

The first grand slam

The second grand slam

The third grand slam

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