Another day, another win: O's get the victory again in Toronto

TORONTO - Anyone getting tired of watching the Orioles win yet? Yep, just kidding. But the 2019 Orioles have won their last four by six combined runs. Every game has gone down to the last pitch. Three of the games were started by James Paxton, J.A. Happ and Marcus Stroman. Four different players have saves.

But other than that ...

Hey, for a change it's fun for the fans of Birdland who no doubt are getting a good feeling about this team. The good feeling in the clubhouse was something you could sense from the start of spring training. This team seemed to be loose, together and ready for a challenge.

They got one in Yankee Stadium and now they've won twice in Rogers Centre, where they went 0-for-10 last year. They've won four in a row. The 2018 Orioles did that once from May 9-12. A win this afternoon would better that.

What's the opposite of tanking?

A rookie manager in Brandon Hyde is making a lot of moves that are working right now. His team has a win streak to talk about.

"Great. I want a good feel for our guys, and they're playing well," said Hyde after Tuesday's 2-1 win. "I want them to know that and I want them to know this is how they can play. So the energy level, the feel, the camaraderie, all that stuff's fantastic. And they're also playing for each other, too. You can see it in their at-bats, you can see it defensively, and that's where it really stands out. This is a long journey, but this first handful of games, this was my - when I was looking ahead to the season, this is how I was hoping we would play."

When told the 2019 O's matched last year's team for longest win streak already, Hyde was looking forward not backward.

"Bottom line is, I'm so day-to-day, so big picture and it's a six-month season and I don't care about last year at all, to be honest with you," he said.

Hyde could not have figured that his first four wins would feature saves from four different pitchers and none are Mychal Givens. Mike Wright, Richard Bleier, Paul Fry and Miguel Castro have those saves.

"Not really, no," Hyde said he could not have expected that. "We had (just) three guys available and Castro was one of them. So was Fry and (Andrew) Cashner did an unbelievable job of getting it to those guys and Fry did an amazing job. I felt like Castro was the better matchup in the ninth there.

"Hopefully those guys are relishing the moment and being able to pitch in big spots. I think the more you're exposed to tough situations and game-on-the-line, that's how you get better and that's how you gain confidence. I just want guys to get their confidence up. I think that that's happening. I want guys to feel like they can lock down games and you might see a new one tomorrow. Who knows?"

According to STATS, this is just the second time since saves became an official stat in 1969 that any team has had four different players record a save in the first five games of a season. The 1991 San Diego Padres also did so.

The Orioles have four straight wins by six combined runs. Cashner and David Hess have combined for 12 1/3 scoreless in this series after the Orioles starters worked to an ERA of 8.38 in New York. The O's starters and bullpen have now both pitched 22 innings.

Castro allowed a long ninth-inning homer last night to Rowdy Tellez but picked up his first save since April 23, 2015 while with Toronto. Before Tuesday's game, his skipper had some big praise for Castro.

"I love Miggy," Hyde said. "I think that is a special arm. He's just got a great way about him. I just want to see him attack hitters. He's got big stuff, end of the game stuff. That's an electric fastball and slider. I just want to put as much confidence in him as possible and go attack. If you're going to get beat, get beat because someone beats you and you don't beat yourself. I'm going to put him in all kind of situations. You'll see him close games. I just want to give him the ball and let it rip."

Cashner didn't allow a hit until the fourth inning last night, but could not match Hess' 6 1/3 no-hit innings. Still he was pretty solid over his 89-pitch outing allowing just four singles. Like Hess the night before, he had a lot of good things to say about working with catcher Jesús Sucre.

"Yeah, I think he's really known for his defense and his glove. He's a really smart catcher. It's taken us a little time....he knows what I can do and what I can't do. But I think he's done a really good job back there so far."

Before he went out and had another strong game catching an O's pitcher, Sucre talked about working with Hess Monday night. The new O's catcher said it was big for him when Hess essentially told him he would not shake him off during his start. He told Sucre, "I'm rolling with you."

Of that, Sucre said: "That's kind of special. I feel like that is some respect. I feel special. I'm here to help every pitcher. Being on this team is special. My whole career, I've been a backup and to have a chance to play every day is special."

And Hyde, a former catcher, is loving that Sucre is bonding so well with his new pitchers.

"That shows we're going in the right direction," said Hyde. "That's trust. Suc has obviously earned that already. They trust him because of what he puts into it. They know he wants a zero every inning. He's living and dying with them out there. When pitchers get that feeling about working with their batterymate, positive things are going to happen."

They are happening so far for the Orioles. Who knows how long they can ride this out and how long they can keep surprising people. But it's okay to enjoy it for now.

By the way, the 2018 Orioles went 3-21-2 in 26 road series and this team is 2-0 in road series to begin the new year.

Here are the minor league rotations in order that we have at this point:

Triple-A Norfolk: Josh Rogers, Gabriel Ynoa, Luis Ortiz, Keegan Akin, Yefry Ramirez

Double-A Bowie with a six-man rotation: Marcos Molina, Hunter Harvey, Dillon Tate (with Chris Lee as a piggyback pitcher in relief), Zac Lowther, Tyler Herb, Bruce Zimmermann

Single-A Frederick: Brenan Hanifee, Cameron Bishop, DL Hall, Matthias Dietz, Cody Sedlock

Single-A Delmarva with a six-man rotation: Blaine Knight, Grayson Rodriguez, Gray Fenter (with Drew Rom in relief), Nick Vespi, Ofelky Peralta, Hector Guance