In fact, just a week ago, the Orioles entered Fenway Park and swept two games from the Red Sox? Especially the second game of the game – the ridiculous 4-3 O's victory in 11 – actually put Boston fans into full-blown collapse mode. However, within a few days, the momentum of both teams has changed.
Sox rushed into Yankee Stadium and humiliated the first three of the four games before dropping the ending. Meanwhile, O's four threw four to the Astros to sweep with yesterday's victory. Sales tells the story of each team. Although Boston employees performed well over the weekend, winning four runs in total in three wins, Orioles’ shooters were shelled and gave up 26 runs in their three losses.
Sox has reached the top of the Yankees and Mariners’ wildcard rankings and is currently leading four games in the first non-competitive team, The Royals. So they seem to be in a comfortable position to secure a playoff location, as this is not any history of the Red Sox's collapse late in the season.
The Red Sox have both the fifth best era and the fifth-ranked OP in the Grand Slam, which gives them a comprehensive team that should have a clear advantage in this series on paper. But as the Orioles proved last week, the game wasn't played on paper. There may be more wild baseball and Red Sox fans collapse in the next four games.
Game 1: Monday, 6:35 pm, Marne
LHP Brennan Bernardino (4-2, 2.93) vs RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (10-5, 3.97)
Don't look now, but Sugano…maybe it good again? The Nippon Professional Baseball veteran was the Orioles' most reliable starter in the first two months, then collapsed in June and July, but rebounded in August. Each of his last three games allowed only one run, including last Tuesday’s game against the Red Sox (where it failed to run). For the first time since June 20, the song has pushed his era to the age of under 4. Sugano defeated his long-time NPB rival Masataka Yoshida twice in last week's game.
For Sox it's usually Walker Buehler's turn, but after 22 starts working to reach 5.40 ERA, he's been moved to the bullpen. His last outing was when he walked four orioles in many innings, the last straw. Sox will use left-handed Bernardino as an opener and launch it with a bullpen game or a bulk reliefer.
Match 2: Tuesday, 6:35 pm
RHP Lucas Giolito (8-2, 3.72) vs. TBD
It was a nice comeback season for Giolito, who rebounded between three different teams in 2023 – pitching for two of them – and then missed the full time of 2024 and was with Tommy John Surgery. He started a little rusty this season, releasing ERAs at 6.42 in his first seven games, but he has been outstanding at 2.55 ERAs since June 10. He ruled the Orioles on May 24 and worked for seven innings. Before that, he had not faced birds since 2022.
O'S has not officially announced Tuesday's starter, but signs suggest it will be Kyle Bradish, marking the long-awaited reward he has started with his June 2024 Tommy John surgery. O's right-hander has completed six start-up rehabilitation missions and is ready for the first time since last June 14. The Orioles miss him very much. Don't expect old-fashioned bravery, but if he can build some situations and get speed and commands, he will carry some motivation until 2026.
Game 3: Wednesday, 6:35 pm, Marne
RHP Brayan Bello (10-6, 3.07) vs. TBD
The 26-year-old Bello has had his best season yet, bringing 134 ERA+ into the game. He gave up on fewer hits and home runs than ever before, even as his strikeout rate dropped to a career low of 6.8. He seemed to have made a consistent effort to cause weak contact and have the batsman hit the ball on the ground, which paid off. Bello was the Orioles' side stab last season, defeating the four O's he faced. However, Gunnar Henderson's number has four extra hits out of 16 bats. Ryan Mountcastle, on the other hand, is 10 to 1.
O again has no entry-level announced Wednesday. It was originally Brandon Young's position, but he landed at Illinois State University (IL) with left hamstring pressure, which he suffered at the beginning of the recent start.
Game 4: Thursday at 1:05 pm, Marne
LHP Garrett Crochet (14-5, 2.38) vs. LHP Cade Povich (2-7, 5.13)
Povich appears to be fighting Young to keep his rotation position after Bradish's return, but Young's injury puts Cade on probation. Povich hasn't taken a complete step in his 2024 rookie season. His numbers were pretty similar throughout the game, including the same 1.43 whip and an ERA (5.13) (5.13), 7 points better than last season’s score. A big change is that he is adding strikeouts to boost K/9 to 7.8 to 9.9. These include a career-high 10 strikeouts in Houston on August 16. But until he starts to play more deeply – he has worked just over five innings in the last six outings, and he has no strong reason to be part of the 2026 rotation.
Povich is facing a daunting task of trying to beat crochet, who is winning the Al Cy Young Award. The lefty made a sensation against the Red Sox in his first year, currently leading the AL in wins (14), strikeouts (207), and most notably, the situation hit (166.1), a remarkable total for the pitcher Boston has taken him and is considered a major injury risk. Take a look at the crochet baseball Savant page – everything is actually red. (The red is very good.) He is the highest percentage imaginable for each statistical category. Crochet surpassing Tarik Skubal to become a Cy Young favorite, but he is very close. Good luck with the Oriole attack.
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