Connect with us

Baseball

Orioles salvage W in The Bronx. Prove they are a force to be reckoned with as end of regular season looms.

📸 Photo Credit: Bill Menzel/ Latino Sports

NEW YORK — As the reminiscent of a storm brewed nearby, the Baltimore Orioles didn’t let the ringing thunder of the American League East champions scare them on Friday night as they salvaged a 2-1 win at Yankee Stadium.

A pitching dual and lapse in control allowed the Orioles to skid past the Yankees in Friday night’s matchup. Orioles starting pitcher Jordan Lyles held the Yankees to four hits, one run, and one walk — to Aaron Judge — over seven innings before handing the ball over to Santo Domingo native Félix Bautista. 

Both Lyles and Yankees starter Domingo Germán allowed one to two mistakes to tamper with their ERA. From an error resulting in an RBI single in the top of the first, plus a wild pitch in the sixth for Germán and a 90-mph sinker above the plate for Lyles, the two pitchers held their breath in a close game that meant more than a tally mark in the win or loss column. After polishing up after their costly mistakes, Lyles and Germán sailed through the rest of their outing, allowing both teams’ offense to take the lever.

Jordan Lyles got the W in Friday night’s match-up against the Yankees. The right-handed pitcher tossed seven innings of one-run ball with one walk and nine strikeouts. (📸 Photo Credit: Bill Menzel/ Latino Sports)

In his 13th start of the season and on five days rest, Germán went 5.1 innings in the series opener against the Orioles, giving up a single run, three walks, and striking out six after throwing 78 pitches before Boone signaled to the pen. Germán has allowed a total of three runs or fewer in 12 consecutive starts. 

“I feel really good, thank God,” Germán said despite taking the loss. “For me, it’s about keeping my routine going, keep the preparation going. But overall, I feel really, really good.”

With Frankie Montas on the 15-day IL, Germán’s opportunity to start has allowed him to showcase his post-injury strengths as the postseason vastly awaits with six regular season games left on the calendar. 

Despite the loss, Domingo Germán stretched out a solid outing against the Orioles. Germán’s final stat line of the night: 5.1 innings pitches, three hits, one run/earned run, three walks, and six strikeouts. (📸 Photo Credit: Bill Menzel/ Latino Sports)

One of the surprising stars to come out of the 2022 season is rookie and versatile player Oswaldo Cabrera. Cabrera has become one of the Yankees’ most relied-on players; whether it’s to get on base or hit for power or make aggressive plays in the outfield, he’s found a way to contribute in a profound way and pick up the residual power that sometimes leaks from the Yankees lineup. 

Cabrera hit a solo home run just over the right-field wall at 311 feet to tie the game at one, his fifth home run and 18th RBI of the year (38 career games played in 2022). Cabrera has put up numbers that warrant a spot on the Yankees postseason roster. The 23-year-old rookie has tethered a solid slash line of .250/.313/.434 over the course of his first big league season. 

“He’s surpassed that,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said regarding season expectations from Cabrera. “I expected just first and first and foremost, his ability to play the outfield at the level events. With some injuries that we’ve had become, he’s kind of a fixture in our lineup. So I have a lot of belief in him as a player and what he’s going to be in his career. But you know, to come in and impact this like he has, I’d say is at least a little surprising.”

FIRED UP 🔥 Oswaldo Cabrera shows all the emotions after hitting a game-tying home run in the bottom of the fifth inning. (📸 Photo Credit: Bill Menzel/ Latino Sports)

As the Yankees clinched the American League East against the Toronto Blue Jays Tuesday night in Toronto, they use the next two series against the Orioles and Texas Rangers to determine which strengths will be selected to play in the American League Division Series starting Tuesday, October 11, 2022.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said there isn’t a finalized postseason roster, and the opportunities to be penned on that roster remain ongoing until the season’s final game against the Rangers. 

With a Yankees loss, the Houston Astros clinch the No. 1 seed in the American League and home-field advantage in the 2022 postseason. 

The Baltimore Orioles sit five games outside the final Wild Card spot and are just one loss or a Seattle Mariners win away from being stripped of a miraculous and unforeseen playoff berth. 

Despite seeing a surprising turnaround to the 2022 season, with an 81-76 record and five games above .500, the Orioles are fourth in the American League East behind the Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays — who clinched a playoff berth and a trip to the American League Wild Card Thursday night — and the Tampa Bay Rays. 

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement

Facebook

Latest Article

More in Baseball