Orioles can’t deliver clutch hit in 5-2 loss to Twins

Two Minnesota home runs, and the O’s going 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position, doomed Baltimore to their second straight loss in Minneapolis.

The Orioles’ struggles with runners in scoring position struck once again Wednesday night, as the Baltimore bats failed to deliver the clutch hit in a 5-2 loss to the Twins.

The O’s had three moments Wednesday in Minneapolis where it felt like a timely base hit could turn the tide in their favor. Ramón Laureano gave the Orioles an early 1-0 lead with a solo HR to center in the top of the 3rd. However, a three-run blast for the Twins in the bottom of the inning meant the O’s were chasing Minnesota for the majority of the evening.

Baltimore’s only successful attempt at cutting into the deficit came via a two-out rally in the 5th. Laureano again kick-started the scoring, following up his homer with a double into the right-center gap. Heston Kjerstad wasted no time driving him, jumping on a first pitch change-up and driving it into right field. A bobble from Minnesota RF Trevor Larnach allowed Laureano to score and cut the deficit to 3-2.

The top of the order couldn’t pick up the bottom of the lineup, however, as the rally ended after one run. Nine hitter Emmanuel Rivera poked a 3-2 single into right to move Kjerstad to third and put the Orioles 90 feet from tying the game. Minnesota then turned to former Oriole Danny Coulombe to face Cedric Mullins, and the lefty reliever punched out Mullins to leave Kjerstad stranded at third.

Mullins’ punchout was the first of the three failures that doomed any thoughts of a Baltimore comeback. Ryan’s Mountcastle and O’Hearn tried to jump-start another two-out rally in the 6th. O’Hearn legged out a single on a hard-hit grounder to first, with Coulombe not covering the bag in time. Mountcastle then reached on an infield single of his own, tapping a Louis Varland curveball down the third base line to get on base.

With the tying run once again in scoring position, the chance to be a hero fell to the hottest hitter on the team, Jackon Holliday. The 21-year-old nearly made it three infield singles in a row, bouncing a slow grounder into the triangle between first, second and the pitcher’s mound. However, Varland made a tumbling play on the ball before shoveling it to first to just beat Holliday at the bag.

The Orioles’ final chance at getting back into the game came in the 8th with Twins’ set-up man Griffin Jax on the mound and Baltimore down 5-2. Gunnar Henderson started off the inning with another infield single, beating the throw to first after a hard grounder to the left side. Then, with one out, O’Hearn dumped a softly hit single into left field to move Henderson into scoring position.

The rally would die before it started, though, thanks to a double-play ball off the bat of Mountcastle. RMC got a Jax fastball at the top of the zone and tried to shoot it back up the middle. The Twins’ pitcher got just enough of his glove on the ball to slow it down, and Willi Castro scooped it, stepped on second and fired onto first to complete the 1-4-3 double play. Baltimore never threatened against Twins’ flame-throwing closer Jhoan Durán, as he punched out the side in the 9th to end the game.

While the pitching wasn’t spectacular, it wasn’t the reason the Orioles lost. Starter Charlie Morton’s line was fall from pretty with 4.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K. However, Morton’s night was mostly good, only to be spoiled by one really bad mistake. The 41-year-old veteran took a more traditional approach against the Twins, throwing his fastball or sinker 57% of the time and working his curveball off of it. He started off the game by punching out Byron Buxton and Trevor Larnach on fastballs—getting Buxton to wave through a heater up before seeing Larnach chase a four-seamer that tailed off the plate.

Morton worked around a lead-off walk in the 2nd to post back-to-back scoreless innings to start his evening. Three straight good innings were too much to ask from Morton, though, as the ugly side of his game poked its head back out in the 3rd.

Castro led off the inning by singling to left on a changeup that was slightly too elevated. The O’s starter then walked No.9 hitter Kody Clemens to put two on for former All-Star Byron Buxton. Morton made his worst pitch of the night to the Twins center fielder, hanging a first pitch curveball that Buxton blasted into the second deck off the left field stands.

The 18-year vet came back out for the 4th and worked around a leadoff single by rolling a double play ball. That’d be his last inning, as Brandon Hyde pulled Morton for Bryan Baker in the bottom of the 5th—ending the second-oldest pitcher in baseball’s night at 70 pitches.

Like Morton, the bullpen was largely good, but their evening was tarnished by a poorly-timed long ball. Baker worked scoreless 5th, surviving hanging a slider to Buxton (he singled) and a Larnach liner to right (Kjerstad tracked it down).

Seranthony Domínguez took over in the 6th and started the inning with a flyout by Ty France and a punchout of Carlos Correa on a perfectly executed sweeper. Domínguez would give up a single to Brooks Lee on a 99mph fastball sent back up the middle. However, Adley Rutschman erased his pitcher’s mistake by gunning down Lee at second on a stolen base attempt.

Perhaps the most questionable decision Brandon Hyde made all night was sending Domínguez back out in the top of the 7th. With Twins slugger Royce Lewis leading off the inning, Hyde looked to play the right-on-right, only for Domínguez to walk five straight fastballs. The O’s then turned to Keegan Akin, looking to keep the deficit at 3-2.

Akin punched out Castro for the first out of the inning and then Minnesota turned to their bench with pinch hitter Harrison Bader. The roll of the dice paid off for the Twins, as Akin left a slider over the plate and Bader sent Minnesota’s second homer of the night over the left field fence for the 5-2 lead.

**

The loss on Wednesday means Baltimore drops another series and has now lost seven of the 11 series they’ve played this season. They’ll try to avoid their second sweep of the season when Dean Kremer takes on Joe Ryan tomorrow afternoon at 1:10pm ET.