TORONTO – Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg has not played since he was hit by a pitch July 31 against Toronto and suffered a fractured right hand.

With the O’s set to play the Blue Jays again, this time north of the border, Westburg was quite upbeat today about making it back to the Orioles before the regular season winds down.

“It’s hard to tell. It just comes down how quickly the bone heals and how quickly I can progress,” Westburg said this afternoon in the visitor’s clubhouse with his arm wrapped and using a splint. “I am just taking it one day at a time and personally, I’m optimistic I can be back before the end of the season. I am going to do everything I can to get back out there.”

Do the doctors share that optimism?

“Well, I don’t have any concrete timetable right now. Just trying to be optimistic and set my attitude and worry about taking it one day at a time,” said Westburg, batting .269 with an .815 OPS in 101 games.

TORONTO - The Orioles begin a three-game series tonight at Toronto as their 10-game road trip continues at Rogers Centre. They went 2-2 at Cleveland, winning the final two games of that series on Saturday and Sunday. 

The Orioles scored 16 runs on 30 hits in taking the final two games at Progressive Field. In going 7-5 the last 12 games, the Orioles have scored 6.4 runs per game while batting .291 as a team with 24 doubles, four triples, 17 homers and an .859 club OPS in that span. The Orioles are averaging 6.0 runs per game since the All-Star break, going 9-8, the fourth-best mark in the major leagues. They have a .361 OBP, third in the majors, in that span. 

Right-hander Grayson Rodriguez (13-4, 3.86 ERA) gets the start for the Orioles in the series opener, coming off a home win versus Toronto. Last Wednesday in Baltimore he allowed four runs (three earned) in six innings to the Blue Jays. In seven starts this season against American League East clubs, Rodriguez is 4-2 with a 3.98 ERA.

The O's begin play tonight once again tied for first with the Yankees, with both clubs at 67-46. The Orioles are 23-10 in 2024 versus AL East clubs, including a 6-4 mark against Toronto. They are 3-0-1 in four AL East road series, going 11-3 in those 14 games.

Toronto (51-61) has lost four of its last five games and is 7-9 since the All-Star break and 26-28 at home this season. 

From June 24-26, the Orioles lost two of three at home versus the Cleveland Guardians. This series at Cleveland has started with the O's losing the first two games of this series by 10-3 and 8-4 scores.

The Baltimore pitchers have allowed 18 runs and 11 walks at Progressive Field and the starters - Trevor Rogers and Dean Kremer - have allowed nine runs and 12 hits over a combined 9 1/3 innings.

Cleveland, which holds the best record in the majors and best home record in the majors, leads the American League Central by six games over Kansas City and 6 1/2 games over Minnesota.

At 67-42 (.615), Cleveland is the only team in the major leagues with a current win percentage of .600 or better. The Guardians have won five in a row and eight of their past 10 games. They are 9-5 since the All-Star Game and 35-15 at home.

The Orioles (65-46, .586) began today tied for the third-best record in the majors, behind only Cleveland and the Philadelphia Phillies (65-44, .596).

As the Orioles added several players in deals at the trade deadline – including two starting pitchers and two for their bullpen – some promising prospects left the organization.

No doubt for coaches, managers, trainers and all staff on the O’s farm and in their player development system, some players they liked and worked hard to help improve, walked out that door. Relationships were developed and now continue, but the players are no longer with the Orioles.

The O’s traded Connor Norby, Kyle Stowers, Seth Johnson, Moisés Chace, Jackson Baumeister, Matthew Etzel and Mac Horvath, among others, during this process.

On a conference call to announce they had signed top draft pick Vance Honeycutt on Thursday, vice president of player development and domestic scouting Matt Blood was asked if some of the top draft picks the Orioles added this year somewhat offset losing some of the prospects they traded.

“I don’t think they’re related," Blood replied. "We’re just very excited to have been able to select Vance. He’s a player that we’ve liked for a long time. He’s a player that we know is a fantastic person and has a chance to make a big impact at the big league level.”

A straight doubleheader is coming up today at Oriole Park as the Orioles (62-43) host Toronto (49-56) to begin a four-game series.

The Orioles beat San Diego 8-6 on Sunday to avoid being swept three in a row as they snapped San Diego's seven-game win streak.

Even with that win the Orioles are 1-4 their past five series. They have lost five of seven, 10 of 15 and 12 of their past 19 games. They improved to 13-18 the last 31 games.

The Orioles had lost eight of their past nine home games until taking the win on Sunday.

Orioles pitchers have allowed six or more runs for six consecutive games, allowing six, six, six, six, nine and six runs. That is the longest such streak since eight straight games allowing six or more runs from Aug. 12-19, 2021.

The Orioles have been swept this year three in a row by St. Louis, Houston and the Chicago Cubs. Today the San Diego Padres, winners of seven in a row, will try to add their name to the list.

San Diego (57-50) has won the first two games of this series by 6-4 and 9-4 scores. The Padres have won these last seven versus Cleveland, Washington and the Orioles. They have outscored their opponents 43-12 in this stretch, pitching three shutouts.

Their team ERA is 1.57 during the seven games as they have allowed a .143 batting average, a .443 OPS and just four home runs.

Their hitters are scoring 6.1 runs per game in the win streak, batting .308 with an .832 team OPS in the seven games.

San Diego is 12-3 in its last 15 road games, and that is the best road record in the major leagues since June 19.

This stat has been pointed out a few times, but even in going 12-18 the last 30 games, the Orioles gained ground on the Yankees. Yes, that is crazy.

On June 20, before the last 30 games, the Orioles were 49-25 (.662) yet a 1/2 game out of first place. Since June 21, even in losing 18 of 30, the O's still lead the American League East by one game after their loss yesterday and the Yankees' 10-inning victory last night.

The games, beyond the stats, tell us that the Yankees have played poor ball for a long time too. But the Orioles' play has fallen. here is a statistical look:

Here are some O's team stats through June 20 and where they ranked in the major leagues:

* 5.27 runs per game (1)
* OPS of .769 (2)
* Slugging .456 (1)
* Home runs per game 1.61 (1)
* Team ERA 3.13 (tied for 1st)
* OPS against .632 (1)
* 0.83 HRs allowed per nine innings (2)

It's already been a busy day for the Orioles, who have made two trades involving seven players and added two pitchers. But tonight they get back on the field and host San Diego to begin a new homestand.

Earlier today they dealt outfielder Austin Hays to the Philadelphia Phillies for relief pitcher Seranthony Domínguez and outfielder Cristian Pache. Later they acquired starting pitcher Zach Eflin from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor league pitcher Jackson Baumeister, infielder Mac Horvath and outfielder Matthew Etzel. The Orioles selected all three in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Baumeister was rated their No. 17 prospect by MLBPipeline.com and No. 18 via Baseball America. Horvath was ranked No. 10 by MLB Pipeline and No. 13 by Baseball America. Etzel was not a top 30 prospect.

The Orioles are 61-41 and leading the American League East by two games over the Yankees after their wild win Thursday at Miami, 7-6 in 10 innings. The Birds hit three early homers in the win as Anthony Santander and Connor Norby hit solo shots and Colton Cowser added a three-run blast.

Cowser has a six-game hitting streak and is 8-for-20 in this span with two doubles, two homers and nine RBIs. During the streak he is batting .400 with an OPS of 1.300.

With all the speculation that the O’s might be trading some prospects at the trade deadline and amid recent reports via ESPN that the club might be willing to deal Ryan Mountcastle and Cedric Mullins, it was another long-time O's player leaving the club.

Austin Hays, a veteran of 557 games over parts of seven seasons with the Orioles, was dealt to the Philadelphia Phillies.

The return was right-handed reliever Seranthony Domínguez and outfielder Cristian Pache.

Domínguez, 29, provides help for the Baltimore bullpen, which allowed late-game runs the last two days at Miami.

Domínguez is 3-2 with a 4.75 ERA and 1.222 WHIP on the year over 36 innings. Over the last three seasons, since 2022, he has a 3.74 ERA and 1.256 WHIP.

With a one-game lead atop the American League East, the Orioles have played 96 games with 66 to go. They begin play after the All-Star break tonight at Texas to start a three-game series on the same field that hosted the All-Star Game on Tuesday night.

Last season at the break, the Orioles were 54-35 (.607) and two games out of first. Now they are 58-38 (.604) and leading the division by a game.

When last seen the O’s pulled out that crazy 6-5 win in the last of the ninth Sunday versus the Yankees. Had they not won that game they would have gone 0-6 on their homestand.

So even with that victory, one that gave them sole possession of first place in the American League East, they have lost five of six, six of eight and seven of the last 10 games.

Since June 21, the Orioles are 9-13 with a minus-45 run differential. In that span they have scored 3.8 runs per game with a team ERA of 5.69.

The MLB Draft resumed this afternoon as the clubs will make selections in rounds three through 10 on the second of three days of drafting. The Orioles today added another college hitter to begin their day.

In round three: With pick No. 97 overall, the O's selected University of Southern California outfielder Austin Overn. A lefty hitter and righty thrower, he is 21 and just completed his second season at USC.

Over 59 games, he hit .270/.349/.461/.810 with 12 doubles, five triples, eight homers, 57 runs, 17 steals and 32 RBIs. He was honorable mention all-Pac 12.

Overn's best tool, per MLB.com is a 75 grade run tool. The site ranks him as its No. 131 prospect.

On the streaming of the draft today, analyst Jonathan Mayo said, "he might be the fastest guy in the draft class. Not a lot of power. We are talking speed from the left side. Maybe the best defensive outfielder in the entire class."

Can a team struggling to score runs get them today against a pitcher they hit hard less than a month ago?

We're going to find out as the Orioles again face Yankees right-hander Luis Gil (9-5, 3.27 ERA), who is making his 19th start of the season.

When Gil faced the Orioles May 1, he pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings on just two hits. But the rematch June 20 at New York was very different. The righty entered that game with a 2.03 ERA.

He allowed eight hits and seven runs - both season highs - in just 1 1/3 innings as the Orioles won 17-5 to take that series.

They scored in the first inning that night on Ryan O'Hearn's single to lead 1-0 and knocked Gil out by scoring six runs in the second inning. An inning that featured Cedric Mullins' two-run homer and Ryan Mountcastle's bases-clearing, three-run double.

It is not an exaggeration to say the Orioles have done very well in the MLB Draft. They have high picks near the top of the board they like, players like Adley Rutschman, Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser, and some that came a bit later that are now All-Stars, like Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg.

They have the No. 1 farm system in baseball, and that farm is a big reason they lead the American League East.

But as another draft is set to begin tomorrow night, the Orioles are confident, but not cocky, that they will do well again.

“I think we have some humility. We can’t just turn anything into gold. That is just not the reality,” the O’s vice president of player development and domestic scouting, Matt Blood, said Friday at Oriole Park in a predraft update with local media. “I think that good scouting makes good player development and good player development helps make good scouting. I like to think that our two departments are very in sync and aligned. I would really hope so now, since I am overseeing them both.

“But it is something we take a lot of pride in, is our efficiency of development. We are going to look for players we feel like we can help and players that, if they come to our system, they will have an even better chance to be major league contributors.”

After scoring 14 runs in the last two games of the series at Oakland over the weekend, it looked like the Orioles offense was starting to roll again. But tonight, early on, it didn’t look that way as they faced Chicago Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga in the second game of the series. 

Coming into this game the O’s had scored three runs or fewer five times in the last eight games, those two wins at Oakland standing out as good days in this run.

And their early struggles on offense carried through the night as the Cubs beat the Orioles 4-0 in front of 20,694 at Oriole Park. For the game, the Orioles went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

The O’s have lost three of four and four of their past six games as they fall to 29-19 at home and to 57-35 for the season.

They are now 12-13 versus National League teams. Their season win percentage is now .620 and they remain, narrowly, on a pace to win 100 games, projecting for 100.4 wins at that percentage over the full year.

With a team ERA of 5.78 the last 17 games, and having allowed 19 runs Saturday and nine last night, the Orioles could use a well pitched game tonight in the second of their series with the Chicago Cubs.

Enter right-hander Corbin Burnes (9-3, 2.32 ERA), who is looking to become a 10-game winner in his 19th start of 2024. Burnes was selected to pitch in the All-Star Game and could even be chosen to start for the American League.

He has strong credentials for that. He ranks second in the league in ERA (led by Kansas City's Seth Lugo at 2.21). He is third with 14 quality starts, one off the league lead, and is tied for fifth in opponents OPS at .590. He ranks seventh in both batting average against (.215) and WHIP (1.021).

The Orioles are 12-6 in his outings and Burnes is 5-1 with a 1.78 ERA and 1.121 WHIP in 10 home starts, in which the Orioles are 7-3.

Since April 26, Burnes has made 12 quality starts in a 13-start span, going 6-3 with a 2.16 ERA. He has allowed a .592 OPS in this stretch. 

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde gave some props to the fans today. The Orioles-Cubs game last night, the series opener that Chicago won 9-2, saw an attendance of 30,373.

According to the Baltimore Sun, that was the largest Tuesday night crowd at Oriole Park since the Orioles and Mets drew 34,068 on Aug. 18, 2015.

“You know, I remember it when we had some 8,000 nights," said Hyde. "So, to have 30,000, wish we would have played better. To have people support us, the fans and the area support us the way they are, it’s a noticeable difference.

“You just feel more of a buzz. More of a buzz in the crowd and you are not hearing individual conversations above your dugout. It’s more of a big baseball feel. You hear the roar of the crowd instead of individual sections.”

At this point there are four Orioles headed to the All-Star Game in Texas: starters Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman, along with pitcher Corbin Burnes and infielder Jordan Westburg.

The Orioles today announced that Catie Griggs will serve as the first female president of business operations in team history. She begins with the club on Aug. 19.

On Friday, Griggs resigned her position as president of business operations for the Seattle Mariners. The North Carolina native cited a desire to be closer to family on the East Coast. Griggs arrived in Seattle in July 2021 after four seasons as the chief business officer for Atlanta United in Major League Soccer. She oversaw all aspects of the Mariners organization outside of baseball operations.

“Catie’s track record of success, diverse business experience, and commitment to excellence made her the perfect fit to lead the next chapter of our business operation in Baltimore,” said Orioles owner and control person David M. Rubenstein. "The entire Orioles organization welcomes Catie as we continue to elevate every aspect of our operation.”

Griggs managed all aspects of the Mariners' business operations, including investments to improve technology, operations and fan experience at T-Mobile Park. In addition, she led the way as T-Mobile Park became the first venue to host both Major League Baseball's All-Star Week (2023) and the National Hockey League Winter Classic (2024) within a calendar year. Combined, the two events generated more than $80 million in revenue for the city of Seattle and directly engaged more than 300,000 fans. 

Before joining the Mariners, Griggs spent the previous four years (2017-2021) helping build Atlanta United into one of the premier MLS franchises. She was chief business officer, overseeing all aspects of the Atlanta United front office. Prior to Atlanta United, Griggs was with Futures Sport & Entertainment, as well as Turner Broadcasting.

With Friday's 3-2 win at Oakland, the Orioles improved to 3-1 on their West Coast road trip, winning another well pitched game. Right-hander Albert Suárez and three relievers teamed on a five-hitter with 11 strikeouts.

The O's wins on the trip have come via 2-0, 4-1 and 3-2 scores, so three wins allowing just three runs.

The Orioles (56-32) begin play Saturday leading the American League East by three games over the Yankees, who have gone 4-14 their past 18 games with a loss Friday to Boston.

O's starting pitchers on this trip - Grayson Rodriguez, Dean Kremer, Corbin Burnes and Suárez - have allowed four runs and 12 hits and eight walks over 23 1/3 innings while striking out 28. The rotation ERA is 1.54 in this span.

O's starting pitchers have allowed two earned runs or fewer eight times over their past nine games, posting a 2.42 ERA in this stretch.

The Orioles' six-game road trip continues tonight as the Orioles (54-31) play at Seattle (47-40) in a matchup of American League division leaders. If the O's get another win there, they will have a series victory. 

Right-hander Grayson Rodriguez and three relievers teamed on a two-hit shutout as the Orioles won 2-0 in last night's series opener. Rodriguez went 6 1/3 innings, allowing two hits and four walks while recording eight strikeouts. He threw 104 pitches, three off his season high, and improved to 10-3 with a 3.45 ERA.

In two starts this year versus Seattle he has thrown 12 1/3 scoreless, allowing just three hits for an .079 average against with seven walks to 15 strikeouts.

Rodriguez produced his eighth quality start of the season and the Orioles are 11-4 in his 15 starts.

He is the third O's pitcher 24 or younger to have 10 wins in his first 15 starts of a season:

ABERDEEN, Md. - In the last two MLB Drafts, the Orioles have made 40 combined selections and 25 of them have been pitchers. But none were taken higher up the board than last year’s selection of Florida State right-hander Jackson Baumeister with the No. 63 overall pick.

He is the highest drafted pitcher taken by O's executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias since his initial O's draft in 2019.

Baumeister, 21, was selected with a Competitive Balance Round B pick, selections that were made just ahead of the third round of the draft.

After two seasons on the Seminoles staff, the Orioles took Baumeister as a draft-eligible sophomore. He did not pitch after that 2023 draft. but he has made his pro debut this year at High-A Aberdeen and is having a solid first season.

Ranked as the Orioles' No. 11 prospect by Baseball America and No. 18 via MLBPipeline.com, he is 1-2 with a 2.60 ERA. In 14 games over 55 1/3 innings he has allowed 37 hits and no homers with 35 walks and 65 strikeouts. He has a .192 average against and 1.30 WHIP for the IronBirds.