Orioles embarrass Yankees to clinch postseason berth, break lengthy streak

It's official - the Baltimore Orioles have clinched a spot in the 2024 MLB postseason! With a victory in the Bronx against the Yankees on Tuesday night, along with a Twins loss in Miami shortly thereafter, the Orioles were able to put enough space between them and the rest of the field and push their magic number to 0.

It's been a long and arduous path through the 2024 season for both the Orioles and their fans. The Birds lost three of their five best starting pitchers early on and had to run with a makeshift rotation for the better part of the year.

Corbin Burnes was mostly as good as advertised. He was bad in August but was an early Cy Young candidate in the first half and has thrown 25 incredible innings to help carry the Orioles in September. Albert Suarez had a historic scoreless streak and Dean Kremer did his best to carry the extra load, but overall the Orioles created their rotation on the fly.

Orioles clinch 2024 postseason spot with victory over Yankees

It wasn't just the pitchers that got hurt, though. At one point, the O's had 13 players on the IL, including All Star infielder Jordan Westburg for an extended period. Jorge Mateo, who became an integral piece of the infield picture with his strong play, was lost for the year with season-ending elbow surgery back in August.

The Orioles were forced to call up Jackson Holliday and Coby Mayo earlier than expected due to injuries. The two haven't hit quite as well as fans would have hoped but both have incredibly bright futures ahead of them.

Overall, the Orioles were able to fight through their numerous injuries and capture an elusive postseason spot with just 5 games left to play. It feels a bit wild but the Orioles haven't gone to the postseason in back to back years since 1996-1997.

The early 2010's Orioles teams were good enough to accomplish the feat but never did. They earned 3 postseason bids, in 2012, 2014, and 2016, but weren't able to make it two years in a row. These 2024 Orioles have done so, however, for the first time in 27 years.

The Orioles are technically still alive in the AL East race, though it's unlikely that they'll reach that goal. They'd have to win out and have the Yankees go 0-5 in their next 5 games, and only then they'd pass the Yankees thanks to holding the tiebreaker.

Despite the division title being a long shot, it's still a great feeling for Orioles fans to know that this team has clinched a postseason spot. Anything can happen in October, and the Orioles are finally getting a handful of those previously mentioned injured players back just in time for the playoff push.

With any luck, the Orioles will be able to put together a hot streak and go on a deep postseason run. Regardless, this will be a fun team to watch in October, and the Orioles have about as bright a future as any other franchise in MLB. It's a great night to celebrate in Birdland. Happy Clinchmas, Orioles fans.