Baltimore Orioles: Analyzing at the First Few Series of the 2020 Schedule

Even though we can’t buy tickets to watch the Baltimore Orioles at home or away, it’s still useful to know when and where they are playing.

We knew the Baltimore Orioles would play the AL and NL East teams, but we didn’t know exactly how it would all play out.

With the schedule out, we can finally figure out how the season will go.

The Orioles open the season against the Red Sox in Boston. Most likely the Sox will bring use Eduardo Rodriguez, Nathan Eovaldi, and Martin Perez. The Orioles could win a few of these games, if they can get their bats going. The Red Sox no longer have household names in their rotation or in the bullpen.

Then they head off to Miami, for two games at the Marlins before returning home to face the Marlins again. These four games could go either way, and Orioles fans will get to see Jonathan Villar play in Camden Yards again.

July 31, the Rays come to town. But, the Orioles might get lucky enough to face the middle and end of the rotation. It all depends on whether the Rays use five or six pitchers in their rotation. Most likely the O’s will face Charlie Morton, then Yonny Chirinos, and Ryan Yarbrough. The Orioles might be able to pull off a win in this three-game series.

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After the Rays leave Baltimore on August 2, the Yankees come to town. It looks like the Orioles could start the Yankees series against Gerrit Cole, then face the second and third in their rotations. Masahiro Tanaka will most like be recovered from his minor concussion. Then, someone from the Yankees seven possible starters will be in the third game. Cole’s tough, but Tanaka and the third starter might be manageable. It’s the hitters that the O’s have to be prepared for in this series.

Then the Orioles take a short trip to Washington to face the Nationals, and their rotation is just as solid as it was in 2019. The Orioles will most likely not have to face Max Scherzer, which is always good news. But, they will most likely have to face Steven Strasburg and Patrick Corbin. Anibal Sanchez should also toe the rubber, and he can be tough, too. The Nats have a tough outfield, and the 2019 World Series champs should fare well against the Orioles pitching.

This Tweet from Daren Willman of the MLB shows how far the AL and NL East travel compared to teams in the other divisions. It’s practically artistic:

After the Nats, the Orioles head to Philadelphia. The Phillies have a few dangerous hitters in Bryce Harper, Andrew McCutchen, and Didi Gregorius. Their pitching staff is looking good, too. Orioles fans might not be too happy after the six consecutive games against the Nats and Phillies.

So by August 13, in the first seven series, the Orioles will not have more wins than losses. They have some incredibly tough teams to face in the first three weeks of the short season. Honestly, their easiest series are the first two, against the weakened Red Sox and the Marlins.