The Orioles continue to play a series of low-scoring close games at Oriole Park, with the new wall dimensions this year no doubt contributing greatly to that. Last night the teams combined for just three runs on 11 hits as the Twins beat the Orioles 2-1 to start a four-game series.

The Orioles went 2-4 versus the Twins last year and have now lost 17 of 20 to Minnesota since 2018. The Birds are 14-33 against the Twins since 2014.

The Orioles (8-15) scored nine runs – a season-high – in winning Sunday against the Red Sox. But they have scored just one, two and one run in the other three games around that one recently. So the offense remains remarkably inconsistent. This series the offense is matched up against a pitching staff that ranks second in the American League and fifth in the majors with a team ERA of 3.06. The Twins' rotation ERA of 2.58 is first in the AL and second in the majors.

The Twins (14-9) lead the AL Central by 3 ½ games over the Guardians and by 4 ½ games over the White Sox. Minnesota began the year going 4-8 but have now won 10 of 11 games, allowing just 23 runs in that span. In those 11 games, the Twins have a plus-33 run differential.

Tonight’s game features a marquee pitching matchup between two somewhat unheralded pitchers that have put up excellent numbers to begin the 2022 season. It’s O’s left-hander Bruce Zimmermann (1-1, 0.93 ERA) against Twins right-hander Joe Ryan (3-1, 1.17 ERA).

For a team that ranked last in the major leagues in team ERA last season, the Orioles have made some impressive pitching improvement thus far in the 2022 season. Baltimore’s ERA was 5.84 in 2021 and the next closest team to that was really not that close with Arizona at 5.11.

But this season the Orioles have gone from worst to, at one point on the recent road trip, close to first. They ranked near the top of the league to that point in team ERA, rotation ERA and bullpen ERA.

The club took a step back when it gave up 27 runs in three games at Yankee Stadium, but still is doing overall much better in American League pitching stats. Through last night’s game – a 2-1 loss to Minnesota at Oriole Park – the team ERA of 3.60 is eighth in the league and the rotation ERA of 3.53 is fourth. In bullpen ERA, at 3.67, the O’s are ninth.

Right-hander Tyler Wells gave up one run in five innings last night. It was the 19th time in 23 games that an O's starting pitcher allowed two earned runs or less. That happened 10 times in the first 23 games a season ago. O's starters have an ERA of 1.72 in home games.

It is a nice trend for the better. During the West Coast trip, I sat down with O’s second year pitching coach/director of pitching Chris Holt to discuss some reasons for the potential turnaround. Holt was one of the first hires by executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias after he took over with the Orioles and he headed up the O’s minor league pitching development starting in 2019 and still does today, even with his bigger role now on the major league staff.

The Orioles' homestand continues tonight at Camden Yards. After the Birds took two of three from Boston over the weekend, winning the last two games, they begin a four-game series against Minnesota.

The Twins (13-9) are a team on a good roll. They are 9-1 since a 4-8 start to their season. They just won two of three from Tampa Bay, taking the last two games versus the Rays by 9-1 and 9-3 scores. Minnesota is now 13-7 against Tampa Bay since July 2018. The Twins' run differential is a plus-32 over the past 10 games.

Minnesota has moved into first place in the American League Central, leading by three games over Cleveland and by 4 1/2 over the Chicago White Sox. The Twins are the fourth current first-place team the Orioles have played. Baltimore went 1-2 versus Milwaukee, 2-4 against the New York Yankees and 2-1 versus the Los Angeles Angels, so 5-7 against the first-place teams.

Minnesota’s rotation ERA of 2.62 is the best in the AL and fourth in the major leagues. The Twins' overall team ERA of 3.15 ranks second in the AL, and its 3.80 bullpen ERA rates 13th. Over the last 10 games, Minnesota pitchers have allowed just 22 runs total and allowed two runs or fewer six times in that span.

The Twins are 3-4 in series openers, 3-3 against the AL East, 5-5 in road games and 8-0 when they outhit their opponent.

Captain Obvious checked in with me again this weekend. To his credit, he first asked me how I was feeling and then discussed the O’s offense. He told me they were really struggling. This call came before Sunday’s game, when the Orioles scored a season-high nine runs.

It was obvious they had a good day and we didn’t need any Captains to notice that.

But they had scored just three runs combined in the first two games of the Boston series and, as always, the Captain had a valid point.

Here is the good news: Before Sunday, they were struggling so much that the stat sheet and history tell us they will get better, at least to some degree. And then we can look at several key Baltimore hitters and see how they are performing and how when they get it going - and they likely will - that should help too.

First, here is a look at the lowest scoring teams in the majors the last three years in runs per game, and where the Orioles were in those seasons.

After last night’s 2-1 win in 10 innings over Boston on a throwing error by the Red Sox, the Orioles and Sox have split the first two games of this series. They have scored seven runs combined in the games.

Today, the Orioles (7-14) host Boston (9-13) in the rubber game in the series. A win would give the Orioles their third series victory of 2022 and they are 1-1 in rubber games.

Last night was the club’s second walk-off win of the season and they are now 2-0 in extra-inning games. They are 4-4 at home and 3-8 versus the American League East, and the win ended a five-game losing streak for the Orioles.

They continue to play a lot of close games, with 13 of the 21 decided by two runs or less. Baltimore is 4-4 in one-run games and 1-4 in two-run games.

The Orioles are moving into what looks like a bit of a softer spot in their schedule. The combined records of the teams they played in their first six series – the Rays, Brewers, Yankees, Oakland and Angels – is 66-41 through Saturday, for a win percentage of .617. The combined records of the teams they play the next five series starting with this one – the Red Sox, Twins, Royals, Cardinals and Tigers – is 46-54 for a win percentage of .460.

The Orioles began a long homestand last night and they once again struggled for offense. They didn’t score until Ryan Mountcastle blasted a 423-foot homer in the last of the ninth in a 3-1 loss to Boston.

The Orioles (6-14) have now lost five games in a row. They are also now 3-4 at home (scoring just 18 runs), 3-8 at night, 3-4 in series openers, 1-11 when their opponent scores first and 2-8 versus the American League East. The Red Sox improved to 9-12.

Right-hander Kyle Bradish made a solid major league debut, allowing three runs (two earned) and five hits over six innings on 81 pitches. But he took the loss as the Orioles were held to just five hits for the fourth time this year and second time in three games.

The Orioles are now 13-6 dating back to 2008 when their starting pitcher was making his big league debut.

Mountcastle’s second homer avoided a shutout, and the blast had 111 mph exit velocity. Mountcastle produced three of the top 10 exit velocities in the game as he also smoked a lineout at 106 and a single at 102 mph.

After completing a 10-game road trip where they went 3-7, the Orioles begin a three-team, 10-game homestand tonight against Boston. And right-hander Kyle Bradish, acquired from the Angels in the December 2019 Dylan Bundy trade, will get the start for the O's, making his big league debut.

Bradish, who went 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA in three Triple-A starts this year, is ranked as the Orioles' No. 9 prospect via Baseball America and No. 10 by MLBPipeline.com.

In 15 innings at Norfolk - where he went four, five and six innings in successive outings - he allowed eight hits and two earned runs with three walks to 17 strikeouts. He posted a 0.73 WHIP and .148 batting average against.

Bradish ended last year pitching on a roll for Norfolk, giving up two earned runs in 20 innings over his last four starts. So in his past seven Triple-A starts dating to last year, he has a 1.03 ERA, allowing 21 hits in 35 innings with nine walks to 41 strikeouts.

Lefty Rich Hill (0-1, 4.85 ERA) starts for the Red Sox. The 42-year-old Hill has thrown 13 innings this year, giving up 15 hits and seven runs with six walks and seven strikeouts. He has a 1.615 WHIP, a walk rate of 4.2 and strikeout rate of 4.8.

It’s on to The Bronx for the Orioles' three-city road trip. The Birds play the Yankees tonight in the first of a three-game series to wrap up the trip. It began with the Orioles going 1-3 at Oakland and then 2-1 in Anaheim versus the Los Angeles Angels.

The Yankees lost two of three in Baltimore in the series just before this O’s trip. But New York is 5-1 since leaving Baltimore and swept Cleveland three in a row over the weekend by scores of 4-1, 5-4 and 10-2. New York scored just six runs in the three games at Camden Yards, but has scored 28 runs in the six games since. The Yankees (10-6) begin play tonight half-game behind Toronto for the American League East lead.

The Orioles (6-10) lost 7-6 to the Angels on Sunday. They beat Los Angeles on Friday and Saturday, then fell short of getting a sweep. Had they done that, it would have been their first road sweep since June 28-30, 2021 at Houston and first sweep of Los Angeles in a three-game series since Aug. 27-29, 2010 at Angel Stadium.

The Orioles offense produced 16 runs at Angel Stadium. After scoring just 24 runs during the first 12 games, and going 4-8, the O’s have scored 20 over the last four games, going 2-2.

The last five games have been decided by one or two runs and the Orioles are 3-2 in those games. They are 5-5 since starting the year 1-5. They are 3-4 on this road trip and 3-2 on the season in series-opening games. Baltimore is 0-5 when it homers in a game and the Birds had their first two-homer game on Sunday.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Orioles road trip has moved to the East Coast and they face the New York Yankees tonight. The Orioles (6-10) took two of three from the Yankees (10-6) in the series in Baltimore that preceded this trip.

New York scored just six runs in three games in Baltimore. But in winning five of six since then - and they just swept three from Cleveland on Sunday - they’ve scored 28 runs.  

The Orioles have not won back-to-back series against the Yankees since taking the last series against them in 2016 and the first of the 2017 season. So it’s been a minute.

Here are a few thoughts from the West Coast part of the trip.

Mancini is mashing: Trey Mancini is batting .237/.288/.339/.627 and those numbers in no way reflect the quality of his contact. He hit a three-run homer Sunday and he has been mashing baseballs during the entire trip where his OPS is just .646.

After winning Saturday night to provide a series victory, the Orioles shoot for another win today over the Los Angeles Angels as they seek to sweep this three-game series.

The Orioles, who are 3-3 on this road trip and 5-4 the last nine games, beat the Angels 5-3 Friday night and 5-4 last night. Baltimore is now 3-3 in games decided by one run and 2-3 in two-run games.

The last five games on this trip to Oakland and Anaheim have been decided by one or two runs and the Orioles are 3-2.

Right-hander Chris Ellis (0-0, 0.00 ERA) will get the start in today’s series finale, his second of this season and road trip. On Tuesday at Oakland, Ellis went 4 1/3 scoreless innings on four hits with three walks and two strikeouts. He threw 62 pitches and did not get a decision in a game the Orioles would lose 2-1 to the Athletics. He threw first-pitch strikes to 12 of the first 16 batters he faced that night, and getting ahead in the count was important during his outing.

Ellis made one start this season at Triple-A Norfolk before joining the Orioles and he threw four hitless and scoreless innings for the Tides. After his strong outing on Tuesday, Ellis remarked how excited he was to be back in the big leagues.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – After Joey Krehbiel pulled off a nice escape act and stranded two runners in scoring position in the eighth inning Saturday night, it would once again be Jorge López time. The right-hander, who always seemed to struggle in the fifth innings of his starts, is now a closer, and he is pitching with the determination and effectiveness of an All-Star right now.

Asked to save the game for the second time in two nights and third in four days, López did it again last night. Throwing 98 mph again, López recorded the final two outs with a strikeout of Shohei Ohtani and an Anthony Rendon grounder as the Orioles held on for a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels. They had a narrow 5-3 win on Friday night and can sweep this series this afternoon.

When the series started, the Angels were 8-5 and in first place in the American League West, had won seven of nine games, had beaten Houston 7-2 and 6-0 in its previous two games and ranked second in the AL in slugging and OPS.

But the Orioles have held their offense in check and López has been bringing the heat in the ninth.

“When the season started I told him, ‘I’m going to pitch you late game against the toughest part of the lineup,’” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Because I believe so much in his stuff. Whether that is going to be the seventh, eighth or ninth, he’s going to face the middle of the order. He’s taken it and run with it. He’s super confident on the mound. It’s never been about stuff with Lopie. His stuff has ticked up out of the 'pen because it’s a shorter sprint. He doesn’t have to go through the lineup a few times. And I think he’s relishing getting the ball in a high-leverage spot. It’s exciting to watch him. He’s come a long way.”

ANAHEIM, Calif. – It was another night where an Orioles starter kept his team in the game and another night where that pitcher allowed two earned runs or fewer. That is an ongoing O’s team record.

But one pitching stat did take a hit tonight: the O’s staff had allowed just six homers in the first 14 games – tied for fewest in MLB with San Francisco. But they yielded three tonight – including a tie-breaking shot by Brandon Marsh in the sixth – as the Los Angeles Angels took a 4-2 lead.

But on this night, the Orioles had a comeback in them.

They scored three times in the top of the seventh off the Angels bullpen and won 5-4 in front of 43,883 at Angel Stadium. They improved to 6-9 overall and 5-4 in their past nine games.

The Orioles have won three of four and have won a series for the second time this season.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The news of Orioles left-hander John Means needing Tommy John surgery became official today as announced by the pitcher himself via Twitter. But in the Orioles clubhouse, it’s clear some, maybe most of his teammates had advance warning.

Still that doesn’t make it easier to take when someone they see as not only the best pitcher on the staff but a leader too and a valued close friend is going to miss the rest of the season.

“It’s something that, it’s obviously a blow,” manager Brandon Hyde said in the Orioles dugout. “It’s a blow to John, to our club. Not going to have John for a while and John’s a big part of our pitching staff, a big part of our team. Injuries happen but I feel bad for John. Not only what he brings on the field, on the mound, but the leadership he brings to our clubhouse. It’s going to be tough without him. But we have to have guys step and take different roles.”

Hyde said there was no reason to have a team meeting or anything of that nature about this news or to try and have any special words for his players.

“No, I think we all are professionals and these things happen. Injuries are part of the game. You know we lost our opening day starter and that hurts and I think we’re all aware too that it was going to be an extended time he would be out. We need to get John healthy and ready for 2023.”

ANAHEIM, Calif. – After their latest well-pitched game on Friday and with a 4-4 record over the last eight games, the Orioles continue their road trip tonight at Angel Stadium. The Orioles (5-9) play the Los Angeles Angels (8-6) in the second of a three-game series.

With Friday’s 5-3 win, the Orioles improved to 2-3 on this road trip and to 3-2 in series-opening games. If they can win one of the next two, they will have their second series victory of 2022.

Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann and three relievers teamed up for an eight-hitter with just one walk and nine strikeouts last night. Zimmermann allowed two earned runs over six-plus innings and is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA. Then Félix Bautista, Cionel Pérez and Jorge López combined for three scoreless out of the ‘pen. Catcher Robinson Chirinos drove in three of the five Baltimore runs.

One of the more improbable things that happened last night was how the Orioles handled Shohei Ohtani, the 2021 American League MVP and the 2021 AP Male Athlete of the Year.

A player who last year had a .965 OPS and 46 homers. A player who in ’21 became the fourth player all-time and first American Leaguer to tally 45 homers, 100 RBIs, 100 runs and 25 stolen bases in a single season.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – If you haven’t been impressed yet by the Orioles' dramatically improved pitching, maybe you missed the last of the fourth inning Friday night.

O’s lefty Bruce Zimmermann was rolling again. He had buzzed through the first three innings against the Los Angeles Angels, a first-place team beginning play Friday, on 33 pitches. In the last of the first he fanned reigning league MVP Shohei Ohtani and then got Mike Trout to line out and Anthony Rendon to ground out. On seven pitches, by the way.

But here they came to bat again in the fourth and this time they were getting a second look at Zimmermann. So up came Ohtani, who hit 46 homers last year. Zimmermann struck him out swinging on five pitches with a slider. Next was Trout, a three-time MVP and eight-time Silver Slugger, who fanned at a curveball to go down on strikes on the fifth pitch. And then five more would be needed to strike out Rendon, also a Silver Slugger winner, with a changeup.

It wasn’t Carl Hubbell in the 1934 All-Star game, but for a guy throwing 90, 91 mph, it was darn impressive.

“That 1-2-3 (in their lineup) is a serious punch. It’s definitely a challenge but that is what makes this game fun, is playing against guys like that," said Zimmermann.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – He was getting ahead of hitters. He had their timing disrupted with his changeup. His fastball was hitting spots and his secondaries were on point. Lefty Bruce Zimmermann, whose season began with two scoreless outings, threw a third straight strong game tonight.

It was some impressive pitching.

And the Orioles offense, which came to life yesterday after Trey Mancini’s ejection, tonight matched their season high in runs.

The Orioles beat the Los Angeles Angels 5-3 to start a three-game weekend series. They improved to 5-9 overall, to 2-3 on this road trip and to 2-6 in road games.

How good was Zimmermann tonight?

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Orioles three-city road trip has advanced to city No. 2. They are in Anaheim tonight to start a three-game weekend series with the Angels.

The Orioles (4-9) started this trip losing three of four in Oakland and lost 6-4 on Thursday afternoon. Austin Hays drove in two runs with a double and a single, Rougned Odor added an RBI single, and Ryan McKenna added a sac fly.

It was yet another close game for the Orioles, who are 2-6 in games decided by two runs or less, going 1-3 in both one- and two-run games. The O’s offense has produced just 28 runs (2.15 per game) and they’ve scored two or less nine times.

The Angels (8-5) are in first place in the American League West as this series begins. They lead Oakland by a half-game, are one game ahead of Seattle and 1 ½ up on Houston. They won the last two games of a series with Houston that ended Wednesday by 7-2 and 6-0 scores. The Angels have won five of six and seven of their last nine games.

Their offense has been real strong, averaging 5.0 runs per game, and the Angels have 16 homers, tied for the AL lead. They also lead the league in steals with 11 but also lead by a big margin in caught stealing with eight. The Angels rank third in the AL in batting (.253), and second in on-base percentage (.333), slugging (.423) and OPS (.756).

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Two nights ago, he was walking off the field in the second inning at Oakland after a scary moment, but Orioles catcher Robinson Chirinos is back in the lineup tonight when the O's open a series at Angels Stadium. He will catch and bat seventh.

Chirinos was thrown a 92 mph fastball by A’s right-hander Daulton Jefferies, and the ball was high and tight. It hit his shoulder and then his face in the cheek area, and Chirinos had to leave the game.

But by the end of the game the team felt they had dodged a bullet – as Chirinos had barely dodged a direct blow to his face - and their starting catcher was going to be okay.

Chirinos wanted to play yesterday in Oakland, but manager Brandon Hyde wanted to hold him out. But he’s back in there tonight.

“I’m thankful to be back in the lineup today,” Chirinos said this afternoon in the Orioles clubhouse. “If you go back and look at that replay, maybe by an inch we would be having a different story today. So thank God protected me from that hit by pitch. It was a scary moment for me and my family.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Orioles veteran lefty Paul Fry has been with the team for five seasons now. He’s been in bullpens with the likes of Zack Britton, Darren O’ Day, Brad Brach, Mychal Givens and Richard Bleier.

Now he is part of this new-look rebuilt Orioles bullpen that is off to such a great start. For a team with an overall staff ERA of 2.87, which ranks sixth-best in baseball, the bullpen has sure been doing its part. The ‘pen ERA is 2.83 and that is ninth-best in the majors. The bullpen pitchers have allowed just two homers in 13 games, tied for the best mark in the majors.

Did Fry see this coming? What potential did he see in his teammates in the ‘pen heading into the year?

“Lot of guys with a lot of talent,” he said during a pregame interview in Oakland. “So we are going out there trying to pick each other up every outing. We’ve said it before, you pass the baton to the next guy. We are subtlety kind of competing with each other there, trying to one up each other, who has the better outing just like the starters do. You know all these close ballgames is really bringing us closer. We are all finding new roles here and there. So I’ve been impressed so far.”

Every year the bullpen is like a team within a team, developing its own collective personality.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – As the Orioles’ road trip moves on to Anaheim for a series this weekend with the Los Angeles Angels, it will, no doubt, be three more games in the big leagues to savor for 26-year-old right-hander Félix Bautista.

The big man with a big arm from the Dominican Republic in the O’s bullpen is a bit of a late bloomer. But for him, better late than never.

Before the 2015 season the Miami Marlins released him, and the Orioles signed him on Aug. 4, 2016. Now, in his seventh season on their watch, he finally arrives in the majors. Bautista slowly made some gains with his command and control, and then he had a breakout 2021 season, pitched at three levels in the minor leagues.

For the player first signed as an international free agent in 2012, it was a long path to the major leagues. But now he’s throwing 99 mph with a nasty split, and the Orioles are thrilled he’s here.

He started last season with high Single-A Aberdeen and then moved to Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. The hitters got better but he kept getting outs, especially strikeouts. He is an imposing figure on the mound and features sometimes dominant stuff.