3 most disappointing Orioles performances of 2024 MLB playoffs

They say pitching wins championships. But no matter well you pitch, you need some semblance of an offense to win in the playoffs. The 2024 Orioles did not have that.

Throughout the year, the Orioles tried to use last season's three-game sweep in ALDS against the Texas Rangers as motivation. Everyone said the right things, and despite losing three straight to Texas, the Orioles' young core had gained some playoff experience. They had won 101 games, the most in the American League and Rookie of the Year Gunnar Henderson had announced his presence in a big way, going 6-12 with a home run against the Rangers.

None of the platitudes about "what the Orioles had learned" from the 2023 playoffs mattered in a stunning and completely deflating sweep in the Wild Card Round against the lower-seeded Royals. Perhaps worst of all, it was the Orioles' star players who came up short, time and time again, when it mattered most.

As I wrote following last year's season-ending sweep, this article discusses the three most disappointing performances from the 2024 playoffs.

(3) Anthony Santander, 1-8, 2 Ks, 7 LOB

Anthony Santander had the best season of his career by far, mashing 44 home runs, driving in 102 runs, and posting an .814 OPS. Nice timing for Santander, who will likely command a contract at or north of $100 million this off-season. But if Santander was hoping to leave a lasting impression heading into the off-season, he failed on the biggest stage.

It wasn't just that Santander went 1-8 in the series. After all, a two-game series will inherently produce unreliable, small sample sizes. No, what frustrated Orioles' fans most about Santander (and the other hitters on this list) was his repeated inability to come through in the clutch.

In a series where the Orioles scored just 1 run, every chance with runners in scoring position mattered immensely. In the bottom of the eighth inning in Game 1, trailing 1-0, the Orioles placed runners on first and second when Gunnar Henderson walked and Jordan Westburg singled. Up came Santander, one of the Orioles' best hitters. After taking a ball, he bounced out to short, ending what felt like the last real threat of the game.

Santander had another huge chance in Game 2. Finally, it appeared momentum had swung in Baltimore's favor following Cedric Mullins' home run and three straight Orioles reaching with no outs in the bottom of the fifth. But again, Santander could not come through, popping up a high fastball for the first of three unproductive outs, leaving the bases loaded in the fifth. The Orioles would neither score again, nor get a runner past first base, and lost 2-1.

(2) Adley Rutschman - 1-8, 2 Ks, 4 LOB

Adley Rutschman has been mired in a slump that has left fans as perplexed as they are frustrated. Rutschman is one of the leaders of the team and, supposedly, one of their best hitters; so it was especially upsetting that his struggles continued into the playoffs, especially his inability to hit in the clutch.

In Tuesday's 1-0 loss, Rutschman came up with no outs and a runner on first in the bottom of the ninth inning. He got ahead 2-0 and fans thought maybe, just maybe, this could be his signature moment. It wasn't. Rutschman struck out looking on a pitch that, while out of the strike zone, was one he had to swing at with 2 strikes.

Rutschman also batted in that fateful bottom of the fifth inning in Game 2 with the bases loaded and two outs in a 1-1 game.. In a game with no offense, a simple single may been enough to force game 3. Instead, Rutschman bounced to short, with series hero Bobby Witt Jr. throwing him out easily despite fielding the ball in shallow left field. (And it certainly doesn't help that the Orioles selected Rutschman ahead of superstar Witt in the 2019 MLB draft.)

Rustchman will return as the Orioles' starting catcher in 2024. Until then, he has five months to figure out exactly how his 2024 season cratered so significantly.

(1) Gunnar Henderson - 0-7, 4 Ks, 2 BBs, 3 LOB

Heavy is the head that wears the crown.

Gunnar Henderson is the best player on the Orioles' roster, so the expectation was that he could save the day when all else failed. It wasn't just the fact that he went 0-7, as an 0-7 stretch over two games is generally understandable. But as the Orioles' best player, each time Henderson was retired felt all the more deflating.

In a 0-0 game in the bottom of the third in Game 1, Cedric Mullins doubled off the out-of-town scoreboard, and it looked like the Orioles might break through first. But one out later, Henderson could only manage a weak ground ball to first, stranding Mullins. In the fifth with the score still tied at 0 and runners at first and third, Henderson had another chance to be the hero. Instead, he flailed at an outside pitch from Cole Ragans for strike three.

Gunnar Henderson batted in the seventh and ninth innings of Game 2, with the Royals nursing a 2-1 lead. If anyone could save us, it's Gunnar, fans thought. But Henderson struck out both times, the latter on a low changeup to end the season. And as the best player, Henderson's repeated failure to come through in the clutch in two nail-biting losses stung the most.

Henderson, Rutschman, and Santander were All-Stars this season, and fans expected them to come through when it mattered most. They simply did not play like All-Stars in the playoffs, and the Orioles are now out, wondering how a fun season could end so fast.