O's 'pen comes up big in Game 2 plus Stowers on team camaraderie

Team Ticker - the team playing with heart and guts - pulled out the second game of the doubleheader Saturday night at Fenway Park.

The Orioles latest win in a close game came after they lost such a game Saturday afternoon. They fell 5-3 in the afternoon but beat Boston 4-2 in the evening. 

The Orioles (20-28) scored all four runs in the third inning on a Ramón Urías RBI single and Rougner Odor three-run homer, his fourth on the season. That gave the Orioles an early 4-0 lead, which was a nice response to the earlier loss. Their pitching took it from there.

Boston (22-25) had scored 120 runs in its previous 16 games or 7.5 per game in that stretch heading into the doubleheader. Then they got just seven runs in the twinbill and just two in the nightcap.

After O's righty Denyi Reyes allowed one run over 3 2/3 in his first major league start, the Baltimore bullpen came up big yet again. 

Joey Krehbiel, Félix Bautista, Cionel Pérez and Jorge López combined to give up one unearned run in 5 1/3 innings with Krehbiel getting the win and López getting four outs on 17 pitches to record his sixth save and lower his ERA to 1.16.

The O's bullpen has allowed four earned runs in 16 1/3 innings in this series and lowered their season ERA to 3.00 through Game 2.

The Birds are now 10-15 in American League East games, which works out to 4-9 versus the Yankees and 6-6 against the rest, including a 4-2 mark against the Red Sox.

The teams play the fourth of this five-game series this afternoon with lefty Bruce Zimmermann (2-2, 3.78 ERA) facing right-hander Nick Pivetta (3-4, 4.25 ERA.)

Stowers on farm player internal competitions: Players in the Orioles' minor leagues system compete against other teams, yes, but also against both their teammates and other players in the Orioles organization. When the Orioles call up a player from the minor leagues they have their entire minor league system to choose from for that talent.

If they need an outfielder from Triple-A, they have all the outfielders at Triple-A to choose from, not to mention those from other levels if they want to consider them.

But just because that is true doesn’t change the fact that those players are teammates and friends. Sometimes very close friends and a player can both be disappointed he didn’t get a specific callup while at the same time being happy and excited for the player that did.

This is life in and the business of baseball. It was true yesterday and it has been for years and years. And it will be true tomorrow and for many future years.

For Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Kyle Stowers, a player certainly pushing for a callup with his most recent hitting and homer tear, he is exactly one of those players. Hopeful his day is coming soon, but excited for whichever players may beat him to Baltimore.

“To me, I just see the day-to-day life to be more enjoyable when you are pulling for guys,” Stowers said during a Norfolk Tides Zoom interview on Friday. “The most fun teams I’ve ever been on and the most successful teams I’ve ever been on, guys truly pull for one another. So, when you have guys playing well, even if I’m not and I’m able to be happy for that person, it’s such a way more enjoyable life to live.

"As far as for my own career and what that means, I truly believe that if I take care of my business and play the best baseball I can play, that I’m going to be okay. So that allows me to truly, truly root for players that in theory I’m competing with even though for me it doesn’t feel that way.”

I’ve interviewed Stowers enough now to believe every word there is true and sincere. He seems like someone that other players would consider a great and supportive teammate. Having such players still means something in a big league clubhouse where talent still rules over all else, but character and being a good teammate still also counts.

When it come to a player that I’m sure Stowers fully expected to beat him to Baltimore, catcher Adley Rutschman, Stowers is thrilled for a friend that got to the show. Not just a friend, but a very close friend.

“He’s the real deal in every sense of who he is,” said Stowers. “You can just start with his performance on the field as a catcher. And everything, off the field, as a hitter. He’s just so steady. Same guy every day. And he deals with I mean, a pressure if you will, obviously a lot of us don’t love to use that word, but like I mean, he just handles his business so well.

“Obviously being the face of the rebuild. You wouldn’t know that he is the first overall pick unless you already knew who Adley Rutschman was. He doesn’t give off that vibe. He just is another guy that wants to work his butt off. And then off the field he’s one of my best friends. I really enjoy being around him and I’ve learned so much from him as a person and player."