O's skipper showing patience as losses mount (plus Triple-A All-Stars)

If there is one thing we have learned about Orioles manager Brandon Hyde during a very trying season it's this: He has amazing patience.

He has to answer some of the same questions both before and after every game. It's usually about his pitchers giving up too many homers, throwing too many pitches middle-middle, their continued struggles and the club's starting pitching depth at Triple-A Norfolk being poor.

Alex Cobb ended last season pitching great and then got hurt. Dan Straily pitched to a 4.12 ERA last year and then couldn't come close to that here. Numerous pitchers getting chances have struggled - from David Hess to Gabriel Ynoa to Yefry Ramirez, Evan Phillips, Miguel Castro and a host of others. This is just a partial list, and several others at Triple-A failed to make progress. Both Baltimore and Norfolk lead their leagues in homers allowed.

So while players like John Means, Hanser Alberto and Pedro Severino (again, just a partial list) have taken steps forward, there have not been enough.

But the manager calmly answers the same questions just about every day. But what are the reporters supposed to ask? The team has lost 13 of 14. They gave up four homers one day to the Padres and five the next.

Hey skip, how about that scoreless ninth by Mychal Givens?

No, we ask about the things that impact the game, and most times this year there are things that go wrong. Each side is doing its job - media addressing problems, since we report on every game, and manager trying to calmly say the same thing each time - because it's true. And doing it with poise and patience.

Hyde has been a real pro, if you ask me. Clearly, his players like and respect him. Trey Mancini called him a guy you want to run through the wall for. But no manager can make a poor pitching staff great - or even league average.

If you want to focus on organizational positives you can find them. Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson have signed. July 2 is coming. Delmarva. Bowie over the last few weeks on a roll. Some young pitchers taking steps forward. Starting pitchers with 2.00 ERAs at Bowie who are not that far away. The team getting up to speed with the big boys in analytics and international scouting. Mike Elias is a huge positive for me.

But then gametime arrives and something goes wrong each night, it seems. A hopeful future crashes into a painful present day.

As someone who interacts daily with fans on this blog, Twitter and a radio show, I'm impressed that so many fans have patience right now and do indeed see a hopeful future. They are looking at the big picture. On the radio I often hear from fans who are level-headed and understand how the hopeful future collides with the current situation each night at 7. I hope that at some point such thoughtful and supportive fans are rewarded.

But for now we're seeing opponents' batted balls flying out of the park and then hearing a manager get the same questions. Then showing how patient and professional he can be.

International League All-Stars: O's Triple-A Norfolk prospects Ryan Mountcastle and Keegan Akin are heading to play for the International League team against the Pacific Coast League in the Triple-A All-Star game. It is set for Wednesday, July 10 in El Paso, Texas.

Mountcastle, 22, has hit .311 with 13 home runs and 47 RBIs in 69 games through Wednesday for the Tides. Currently rated as the No. 2 prospect in the Orioles system by MLB.com, Mountcastle ranks among IL leaders in hits (2nd, 89), total bases (T-6th, 144), average (8th, .311) and RBIs (T-8th, 47). He leads Orioles minor leaguers in home runs and RBIs, and on June 2 he matched Norfolk's franchise record with three home runs in a game. It's the third consecutive All-Star nod for Mountcastle, who was also an Eastern League Midseason All-Star with Double-A Bowie in 2018 and a Carolina League All-Star with Single-A Frederick in 2017.

Akin, 24, has gone 3-2 with a 4.37 ERA in 15 games (14 starts) for Norfolk this year. Currently rated as the No. 6 prospect in the Baltimore organization by MLB.com, Akin ranks among league leaders in strikeouts (2nd, 83), ERA (6th, 4.37) and batting average against (T-7th, .261). The Western Michigan University product will be appearing in his second straight All-Star Game, as he also represented the Bowie Baysox in the 2018 Eastern League All-Star Game.

Norfolk Field Coach Ramon Sambo will also be representing the Tides in the game, as he is one of three coaches leading the International League in the contest. Sambo is in his first season in Norfolk and his 13th season in the Orioles organization.