Ryan O’Hearn and Jackson Holliday have advanced to the final round of All-Star voting at their respective positions.
Good morning, Camden Chatters.
The Orioles finally had a night off yesterday after a slog of 16 games in 16 days, during which they went 8-8 and made no progress toward playing like a contending team. They ended the stretch exactly as they began it — 12 games under .500, in last place in the AL East and the third-worst record in the American League — but now with 12 fewer games on the schedule to make any kind of postseason push. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, folks, but these O’s aren’t going anywhere good.
But they will at least have an All-Star (as required by MLB rules) and might even have two. Yesterday marked the end of the first round of voting, in which the top two finalists at each position advance to a head-to-head final round to determine the All-Star starters. The Orioles have two finalists: second baseman Jackson Holliday and designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn.
Congrats to Holliday and O’Hearn for making it this far. And if there’s any justice, O’Hearn will win the second round of voting and earn his first career All-Star selection. He’s clearly the best DH in the AL now that Rafael Devers has been shipped off to the National League. Let’s hope there’s no Yankee bias in the voting that propels an inferior hitter, Ben Rice, ahead of O’Hearn in the final round.
As for Holliday, his numbers pale in comparison to his competitor, Detroit’s Gleyber Torres, so he’s a long shot to be voted in. Still, the fact that he’s in the conversation is a testament to how much he’s improved his game in his second big league season. Holliday has made adjustments and shown a lot more confidence compared to his rough rookie year and is cementing himself as the Orioles’ everyday leadoff hitter. And it feels like he’s only starting to scratch the surface of his talent. If he’s not an All-Star this year, he’ll have plenty more opportunities in the future.
It’s been an ugly season for the Orioles, to be sure. But they do have some bright spots, and O’Hearn and Holliday have been two of the brightest.
Links
Orioles ‘not concerned’ over 3 no-hit bids in 5 days – The Baltimore Sun
The “weird stuff happens” explanation would be a lot easier to swallow if the Orioles were an otherwise good team. They are not.
Orioles approaching trade deadline decisions – School of Roch
Sorry, but…what decisions? There is no universe in which the Orioles should be buyers at the deadline.
Should Orioles trade or extend Ryan O’Hearn? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com
O’Hearn is a great story and deserves to be an All-Star, but an extension for a 31-year-old DH is a risky proposition. Still, it’s not my money.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Six former Orioles were born on June 27: infielders Óscar Salazar (47), Jeff Conine (59), and Jackie Gutiérrez (65); outfielder Nelson Simmons (62); and right-handers Jim Johnson (42) and the late Lou Kretlow (b. 1921, d. 2007).
On this date in 1964, Orioles slugger Boog Powell singlehandedly defeated the Washington Senators, hitting three solo home runs that accounted for all of the Birds’ scoring in a 3-1 win. Boog’s first two blasts came in the first and the fourth against Senators starter Jim Hannan, and he added the cherry on top with a ninth-inning shot off reliever Ron Kline.
On this day in 1967, the Orioles’ Frank Robinson was injured in a scary collision with White Sox second baseman Al Weis, causing him to get double vision and miss a month. Before the injury, Robinson was making a bid for a second straight Triple Crown season — batting .337 with 21 homers and 59 RBIs — but hit “only” .282 with nine homers and 35 RBIs after his return in late July.
And on this date three years ago, the O’s hit back-to-back homers in consecutive innings for the first time in franchise history, leading a 9-2 blowout in Seattle. In the third, rookie Adley Rutschman — playing in front of hundreds of friends and family — went back-to-back with Ryan Mountcastle, and in the fourth, Anthony Santander and Austin Hays also hit two straight dingers off M’s starter George Kirby.