Baltimore Orioles: The good and the bad from the first game

Baseball is back, Baltimore Orioles fans. And, your Orioles played their first game of 2018 today against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Sadly, the Baltimore Orioles did not win. The final score was 6-3.

Even though the O’s lost, there were a few encouraging moments with the youngest players on the team.

One offensive highlight

The highlight of the game was Chance Sisco. In the ninth inning, the kid who wants to be the backup catcher hit a three-run bomb. He knocked in two other young guys, DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle. Stewart ended up on base with a line drive to centerfield. Mountcastle sent one up the middle, too and ended up with a double.

That was it for Orioles offense.

Reflecting on the pitching

Pitching was up and down. Mike Wright started the game and went two innings. He gave up one of everything, except a home run and ended up with an ERA of 4.50. Chris Lee gave up a few more hits, but only one run in two innings. He, too, has a 4.50 ERA after one game.

In the fifth and sixth innings, the Orioles were able to hold the Rays and not give up any runs. Pedro Araujo pitched in the fifth and Joely Rodriguez pitched in the sixth. The real trouble came in the seventh and eighth as Jeff Ferrell and Donnie Hart each gave up two runs and two hits in their debuts. Jimmy Yacabonis closed the game in the ninth and struck out two.

Quiet veteran bats

The veterans did not do anything notable. In fact, the big names were less than stellar in their 2018 debut. Adam Jones had two at-bats. He struck out once and left four runners on base. Ouch. Manny Machado walked. And, Chris Davis put up a big O-fer. There wasn’t much for Orioles fans to cheer about at Ed Smith Stadium today.

Bats that got busy

Despite the lack of production from the big boys on the squad, the Orioles did get 11 hits. Tim Beckham got on base. And, one of the newest additions to the Orioles, Alex Presley batted 1.000 today in his two at-bats. Sisco’s dinger wasn’t his only hit. After the first game, his slash is 1.000/1.000/2.500. Impressive. Hopefully, he can keep it up.

The takeaway

The Orioles minor league players look ready for a fight. It is clear that they want spots on the 25-man roster. It is shame that out of 11 hits, the Orioles could only score three runners. For comparison, the Rays had 10 hits and six runs scored. Regardless, this was the first game of the 2018 baseball season!!! And, there’s another one tomorrow.

Next: Orioles spring training broadcast schedule

To make matters worse, the Orioles played a split-squad Rays team. None of the recognizable Rays were playing in Sarasota. The still recognizable Rays were played in Port Charlotte and they defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates by a score of 6-3.