What happened? Dean Kremer’s second straight outstanding start wasn’t enough for the Orioles on Thursday.
That’s because, for the second straight game, the Orioles outhit the Minnesota Twins but failed to convert on a multitude of scoring chances, and their bullpen failed them in the eighth inning as they lost, 5-2, at Target Field in Minneapolis.
The Orioles (13-23) have lost five straight and are 10 games below .500 for the first time since June 15th, 2022. It matches their longest losing streak of 2024.
Kremer allowed two runs on three hits in seven innings, striking out eight and walking two. He left with the game tied at 2.
“Definitely did everything he could,” manager Brandon Hyde told reporters in Minneapolis. “That’s back-to-back games of throwing the ball absolutely outstanding. Should never have gotten to that point. We wasted, we squandered so many opportunities. The game should have been out of hand early, but Dean did everything he could.”
In the bottom of the eighth, Yennier Cano (0-2) walked Harrison Bader, who stole second. With one out, Byron Buxton walked, and Gregory Soto replaced Cano.
Soto struck out Trevor Larnach, whose home run tied the game in the sixth. Brooks Lee doubled to score Bader and Buxton, and Ty France singled to bring home Lee.
“We just did a lot of things to lose the game,” Hyde said. “Not a whole lot went right.”
The Orioles (13-23) outhit Minnesota (18-20), 10-5. They were 2-for-13 with runners in scoring position and left nine on base.
They did get a clutch hit from Gunnar Henderson in the sixth, with Emmanuel Rivera on second. But Rivera, who is not the swiftest of runners, was thrown out at the plate on a close play.
Rivera’s out was the last Orioles baserunner. Twins pitching retired the last 10 Orioles.
After France’s single scored Buxton in the first, the Orioles tied it at 1-1 on Rivera’s double in the second. Ryan Mountcastle’s sacrifice fly gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead.
For the second straight game, Jhoan Duran pitched a spotless ninth for his sixth save.
Rivera was 3-for-4. Maverick Handley had his first major league hit, and Coby Mayo had his first hit of the season.
What can be done to improve RISP? The Orioles had runners on second and third with none or one out in the second, third and fifth, and failed to score.
“Multiple runners on base. The punchouts …i t’s the big leagues, you’ve got to be able to make some contact in certain situations,” Hyde said. “We squandered a lot of scoring opportunities. We’re just not moving the baseball with runners on base.”
Hyde said the Orioles are aggressively addressing the failure to hit with runners in scoring position.
“We’re talking about it a lot,” he said. “We’re trying to slow the game down for them and trying to put them in situations, just having a tough time in those situations for a while now.”
Heston Kjerstad thinks the Orioles can still improve in big situations.
“There’s [a possible] approach change for some of us, Kjerstad said. “There’s a lot of us trying too hard. I speak for myself mostly. Sometimes with runners in scoring position, I tend to try to do too much and just try to dial it back and put the ball in play and something will happen.
“Losing’s not fun. Really disappointing. We’ve got a better club than that, and we can definitely play better baseball,” Kjerstad said. “None of us are enjoy losing. It takes a toll on us and you want to win. Coming home with a loss is never the funnest way of going home”
How does Kremer feel about the team? Last Friday night, Kremer pitched seven scoreless innings against Kansas City, allowing just three hits. It was the last game the Orioles won.
“I still do believe that it’s still early,” Kremer said. “It’s really hard to be [eliminated] from the playoffs in the first few weeks of the season. Guys are taking the losses hard and the wins are awesome when we get them.”
Kremer is trying to avoid being concerned about the team’s lack of offensive production.
“I learned a few years ago that no matter what the offense is doing, whether they’re putting up 10-spots or goose eggs, it really doesn’t matter,” Kremer said. “It shouldn’t affect how I’m pitching and how aggressive I am towards a lineup.”
What does it mean? The Orioles have much work to do to try to become competitive. Ten games under .500 doesn’t guarantee that the season’s over, but they’ll have to play well for the rest of this month to right themselves.
What’s the word? “I think it’s inexperience, pressing.”-Hyde on the Orioles failure to deliver big hits.
What’s the stat of the day? The Orioles are last in the majors with a .190 average with runners in scoring position.
What’s next? Tomoyuki Sugano (3-2, 3.00) will pitch for the Orioles when they open a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday at 9:38 p.m.
Kyle Gibson is scheduled for Saturday, and Zach Eflin is expected to start on Sunday.
Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich,@BaltimoreBaseball.com