Orioles must avoid this one problem during Twins rematch

May was supposed to be an easier month for the Baltimore Orioles. Six of their nine series in the month were slated against teams with a losing record. One of those six has been flipped as the Orioles welcome the Minnesota Twins to Baltimore on Wednesday.

The Twins are arguably the hottest team in the league. Entering the month, they had a 13-18 record but are now 21-20. Minnesota is riding an eight-game winning streak, with three of those wins against Baltimore.

The Orioles didn't score more than two runs in a game during that three-game set. They were outscored by the Twins 19-5. Hits weren't necessarily hard to come by, as Baltimore recorded 23 total in the series. However, one stat stuck out even more than the lack of runs.

The Orioles struck out 35 times while getting swept by the Twins. That's 43% of the outs in the series, which included a 17-strikeout game by Minnesota's pitching staff. Baltimore drew just five walks compared to those 35 strikeouts, further contributing to a bottom-seven walk rate and a bottom-three strikeout rate among MLB teams.

Baltimore has struck out 10 or more times in 14 games this season. The Orioles carry a strikeout rate of 24.3%, a bump from their 22% rate in 2024. It doesn’t seem like much, but that's the second-highest increase in strikeout rate for an MLB team compared to last season.

Good things can happen when the ball is put in play. Strikeouts do nothing for a team, and it's almost impossible to win a game, let alone a series, while striking out nearly half the time in those games. Improving plate discipline will help the Orioles in multiple ways.

Orioles make changes ahead of Twins series

Following the postponement of the series opener against the Twins, the Orioles are altering their pitching plans, at least for the time being. Baltimore has not listed a starter for the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader. Dean Kremer will get the ball in game one, slated for a 12:05 p.m. ET first pitch.

Cade Povich was supposed to start Tuesday night, but there's no guarantee he hits the mound on Wednesday. Orioles reporter Andy Kostka said pitching prospect Chayce McDermott was added to Baltimore's taxi squad. Teams are allowed to carry one extra player during a doubleheader, suggesting that McDermott could be the 27th man and make his first MLB start of the season for the O's Wednesday night.

The Orioles also announced Wednesday morning that Ramon Urias was reinstated from the injured list following a hamstring strain. Urias carries a .292 batting average in 22 games. Outfielder Dylan Carlson was optioned to Triple-A as a corresponding move.

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