Baltimore Orioles vs Oakland Athletics: 3 takeaways from the Birds’ rough weekend

The Baltimore Orioles pitched well against the Oakland Athletics, but it wasn’t enough to stymie their brutal losing stretch.

The Baltimore Orioles‘ recent tour of California was a road trip to forget. There were some undeniably positive moments over the course of the six games, but after suffering back-to-back sweeps, the Birds will return to Maryland with little to show for it.

The always tenacious Oakland Athletics proved to be particularly frustrating opponents. All three games of the series were decided by two runs or fewer, but the men in green managed to come out on top in each one, outscoring the O’s 10-5.

It might be comforting to say that the Orioles have reached rock bottom, but it seems that they find a new way to disappoint with every game. At this rate, Memorial Day — GM Dan Duquette’s set date for reevaluating the team and presumably kicking off a rebuild — can’t come soon enough.

Still, with strong starts from Kevin Gausman and Alex Cobb, the Birds did provide a few reasons to smile. Baltimore posted a 2.30 team ERA for the series, well below their season mark of 4.95. They still lead all MLB teams in runs allowed per game, but with the light-hitting Kansas City Royals next on the schedule, they may not own that ignominious distinction for much longer.

Even with those causes for optimism, though, the 8-26 Orioles are a long way from salvaging their season. With a 3-16 record outside of Camden Yards, their road struggles are only getting worse. In the following slides, check out our top three takeaways from the deflating weekend.