The Orioles made the most of a festive day in Baltimore with nearly every member of the roster contributing.
That was about as good of an Opening Day as you could hope for if you’re the Orioles. Their newly-acquired ace looked like a guy that will compete for a Cy Young, the entire offense was humming, and the defending AL East champs beat up on an inferior opponent. In the end, that added up to an 11-3 win over the Angels on Thursday afternoon in a somewhat rainy Baltimore.
The good vibes started well before first pitch. David Rubenstein and the new ownership group were introduced to the press after their acquisition of the team was finalized earlier in the week. Rubenstein himself spoke and gave some inspiring words around giving back to his hometown and how important the Orioles are to the city of Baltimore and the surrounding area. The relationship between ownership and the fans won’t stay rosy forever, but at least for today it was perfect.
The pageantry of Opening Day followed, and it brought everything you would expect. The fans were fired up, the orange carpet was unfurled in all of its glory, and Camden Yards was ready to erupt.
Scoring would come early and often in this one, and although it was mostly one-sided, the visitors were the ones to take the early lead. Mike Trout got hold of a Corbin Burnes slider in the top of the first and parked it deep to left-center field for a solo home run.
That would prove to be Burnes’ only miscue of his debut. Seriously. In total, the big righty tossed six innings, and the only baserunner he allowed was Trout’s trot around bags. He tossed 82 pitches and struck out 11.
Everything was working for Burnes. His fastball averaged 95 mph—more than half-a-mph better than 2023—and it maxed out at 97. Plus, he showed off his curve, which had a ridiculous 75% (6-for-8) whiff rate. It was evident that the entire Angels lineup was off balance apart from one day pitch to Trout. Burnes’ case for AL Cy Young has been opened.
Making a statement. pic.twitter.com/IR12wALcQh
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 28, 2024
After that top of the first inning this game belonged to the Orioles. Early on, they manufactured runs. The first three batters of the home half of the first all reached base—Gunnar Henderson walk, Adley Rutschman single, and Ryan Mountcastle walk—to load the bases for Anthony Santander. Although the slugger would have himself a big day, he had to settle for an RBI fielder’s choice here to tie things up 1-1. Later, a Jordan Westburg single put the good guys ahead 2-1.
Answering right back. pic.twitter.com/BU43LNMYeX
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 28, 2024
Three more runs came in the bottom of the second inning. Ramón Urías reached on an error by Anthony Rendon. Jorge Mateo followed with a double to put two runners in scoring position. Rutschman knocked them both in with a one-out single to make it 4-1. A Mountcastle single scooted Rutschman up a base, where he then scored on a Santander sacrifice fly to deep center field.
David Rubenstein on play-by-play pic.twitter.com/O2HsYfZMAL
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 28, 2024
Santander was in the middle of more runs in the fourth inning. Henderson had led off the frame with a single, and a few batters later Santander brought him home with a massive two-run homer well beyond Walltimore in left field to make it 7-1.
Our favorite version of a hard launch. pic.twitter.com/UQGT4MaFGf
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 28, 2024
The Baltimore lead grew by another run in the sixth inning. Mateo opened up with a walk and then stole second before a wild pitch pushed him all the way to third. Rutschman worked a walk of his own, and Mountcastle followed up with a sac fly to right field, scoring Mateo.
The Orioles’ final runs of the day came in the bottom of the seventh. That’s when Cedric Mullins showed off his muscles. He smacked a long fly ball to centerfield, just beyond the reach of Trout, to score Austin Hays (walk) and Ryan O’Hearn (double).
Knock knock. pic.twitter.com/Gga6KGgXgr
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 28, 2024
It was an impressive performance from the entire Orioles’ lineup. All nine starters reached base at least once, and eight of them had one hit or more. As a unit they walked (six times) more than they struck out (five times). Santander’s four RBI were a team-best.
After Burnes was done with his dominating performance, he turned the final three innings over to the Orioles’ bullpen. Mike Baumann worked a clean seventh inning, in which he flirted with 99 on his fastball. Then it was Dillon Tate’s turn.
Tate is coming from back from missing all of 2023. It is understandable if he looks rusty early on, and that was certainly the case here. His sinker velocity was well-below where we last saw him. Rather than sitting in the mid-90s, it was often in the upper-80s/low-90s today. Not only that, but he had trouble finding the strike zone, walking two in his lone inning of work. That got him into trouble and he ultimately allowed two runs when a possible double play turned into a fielder’s choice plus an error as Mateo’s throw to first base bounced and then got past Mountcastle at first base.
It is far too early to pass judgement on Tate (or anyone), and he’s not a pitcher that has ever relied on whiffs to make his living. The lowered velocity is not ideal, but we will need to see more of him. Hopefully he bounces back as the weather heats up and he grows into the season.
Keegan Akin was tapped for the ninth inning, and he did great! The lefty recorded two strikeouts and worked a perfect half of a frame to close out a dominating win for the Birds.
What else is there to say? This was an Opening Day dream come true, and perhaps only an indication of good things to come.
After an off day on Friday, the O’s and Angels will be back on the field Saturday afternoon for game two the series. Grayson Rodriguez is on the bump for the Birds while the Halos counter with righty Griffin Canning. First pitch is set for 4:05 from Camden Yards.