BALTIMORE–What happened? When Tony Mansolino took over as Orioles’ interim manager on May 17th, he said his first goal was to get the team to within 10 games of .500. Instead, he lost his first four games as manager, and the team fell to 18 games under on May 24th.
Since then the Orioles are 14-6, and they’re 10 games under .500 after they completed a three-game sweep of the Los Angeles Angels, 11-2, before 33,370 at Camden Yards on Sunday.
The 11 runs scored were the most since they scored 12 on Opening Day in Toronto. Eight of the 11 runs were scored in the sixth, seventh and eighth.
Gary Sánchez hit a grand slam, and Ramón Urías and Jordan Westburg hit two-run homers to lead the Orioles. Sánchez, who came off the injured list on Saturday, homered for the second time in two games. His seventh-inning grand slam put the Orioles ahead, 9-2.
Urías hit a two-run home run in the first against Yusei Kukuchi (2-6), and Westburg hit his in the eighth.
Mansolino’s starting lineup didn’t feature four regulars — Colton Cowser, Jackson Holliday, Ryan O’Hearn and Adley Rutschman. Cowser was rested for a third day because he collided into the center-field wall on Thursday night. O’Hearn has a left ankle injury. Mansolino said both could have been used on Sunday, but they weren’t needed.
“We’re 10 under. We’ve got a long way to go, but we’re kind of in it in a weird way,” Mansolino said. “There’s some belief in there. It’s like, now if we can get five under. If you get to five under, all of a sudden, eyes are open and you can kind of see it a little bit. Really happy to be where we’re at, really happy with how we played.”
For the second time in four games, Mansolino started an opener, right-hander Scott Blewett. He allowed a home run to Nolan Schanuel with one out in the first. In the third, Zach Neto doubled with two outs, and Cade Povich came in (2-5). Schanuel singled, and Neto scored on Povich’s wild pitch.
Povich allowed three hits in 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Seranthony Domínguez relieved Povich with the Orioles leading 5-2 and the bases loaded and one out in the seventh. He struck out Jo Adell and LaMonte Wade Jr. to run his scoreless string to nine innings.
The Orioles took a 3-2 lead in the fourth when Gunnar Henderson doubled and scored on Ramón Laureano’s RBI single.
Sánchez singled with two outs in the sixth and scored when Kikuchi threw the ball down the right-field line on Cedric Mullins’ bunt base hit. Mullins scored on Coby Mayo’s double to give the Orioles a 5-2 lead.
The Orioles claimed right-handed pitcher Kyle Tyler off waivers from Philadelphia and optioned him to Triple-A Norfolk. Tyler is 1-2 with a 4.31 ERA in 15 games with the Angels, San Diego and Miami in three seasons. This year, Tyler is 4-3 with a 5.31 ERA with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
How well are the Orioles playing? Westburg said the Orioles remind him of the team he joined in 2023.
“A little bit. It’s different. It’s a different clubhouse. We don’t have as many vet guys as we had in ’23,” he said. “The energy is there. The competitiveness is there. We played a couple of close games the first two games of the series. Yesterday was kind of a back-and-forth game, reminded me a lot of ’23. Nobody got down. The dugout stayed into it.
“Each guy went up there with the idea that ‘I’m going to start something,’ and turn the momentum or turn the tide a little bit. That’s kind of how it felt in ’23. The clubhouse is different, though, different personalities, a little bit younger, which is not a bad thing. Happy to see us playing with some energy. Hopefully, this becomes our identity going forward.”
How did Povich and Blewett handle their roles? Povich pitched for the first time in relief, and he said it wasn’t much different.
“No, not at all. Same progress, same I think video, like preparation,” he said. “The only thing that was different was when I played catch and when I threw in the bullpen.”
This was the second time this season Blewett has been an opener. He threw three innings for Atlanta on April 22nd.
“Just trying to keep the same routine as I had as a reliever,” Blewett said. “Keep the same mindset. Don’t try to do anything different. There’s a little different attack plan for me in that situation. I know the skipper wanted me to go face the lineup one time through, which is great. Just go out and be as efficient as possible
What does it mean? The Orioles have a difficult road trip coming up this week. They play four games at Tampa Bay and three at Yankee Stadium.
What’s the stat of the day Sánchez hit the sixth grand slam of his career. His last came on August 15th, 2023 against the Orioles.
What’s the word? “We’ve got a really big challenge coming up on this road trip, and then we come home and we have another challenge. The schedule the rest of the way is a gigantic challenge, but with the way we’re playing, if we keep it up, we’re going to be just fine.”-Mansolino on the Orioles’ schedule
What’s going on in the minor leagues? Chayce McDermott allowed four runs in 4 1/3 innings as Triple-A Norfolk lost to Nashville, 5-0. In his first game with the Tides this season, designated hitter Heston Kjerstad was 1-for-5.
Designated hitter Adam Retzbach drove in three runs with a two-run homer and a game-winning RBI single in the 10th as Double-A Chesapeake beat Harrisburg, 6-5. Second baseman Anthony Servideo and catcher Silas Ardoin also homered.
Single-A Delmarva beat Salem, 5-4. Ben Vespi (2-0) threw two scoreless innings in relief.
High-A Aberdeen’s game at Jersey Shore was postponed by rain.
What’s next? The Orioles start a four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa on Monday night at 7:35. Zach Eflin (6-2, 4.08) will start for the Orioles. The Rays will start Ryan Pepiot (3-6, 3.31).
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