Leftovers for breakfast

NEW YORK – Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez sat on a fastball last night like it was a clubhouse sofa.

Alvarez got ahead 3-0 against Orioles reliever Seranthony Domínguez – oh, let’s just call him the closer and stop hedging – and unloaded for his first career walk-off hit of any kind. And man, did he enjoy it.

Well, what he saw of it.

Alvarez made contact, held up the bat with one hand, released it and turned to the Mets dugout. He never looked back at the ball, gesturing to teammates with both hands and slapping his chest multiple times before beginning to round the bases. His jersey was pulled below his left shoulder after reaching home plate and being mobbed.

Domínguez struck out the first batter he faced. He struck out three Red Sox in the ninth inning the previous day. But he’s also surrendered home runs in back-to-back appearances.

The Orioles rallied from a 3-0 deficit to tie the game. The bullpen was set up to be the primary reason why they won, with newcomer Colin Selby and veteran Keegan Akin combining for 3 1/3 scoreless innings and a whopping eight strikeouts.

They were supposed to be the guys everyone talked about afterward, not Domínguez and his first major stumble since the trade.

If fears need to be calmed, the stuff still looks good. His fastballs to Alvarez were clocked at 98.8 and 97.6 mph. They were 98, 98.5 and 97.8 to pinch-hitter Jesse Winker, who struck out. But falling behind to Alvarez set him up for failure.

Domínguez can’t slump. No pressure, of course, but he can’t. Craig Kimbrel already has lost the closer’s job and is trying to resolve his mechanical issues in bullpen sessions. There’s no Danny Coulombe or Jacob Webb. Yennier Cano wasn’t available after pitching four times in the last five days, and he owns a career 5.14 ERA in the ninth inning.

I don’t know where manager Brandon Hyde turns if Domínguez can’t be trusted.

We aren’t there yet. He’s allowed three runs and struck out 14 batters in 10 2/3 innings with the Orioles. He has a cool demeanor that’s reminiscent of Félix Bautista. Rest him tonight and try again.

Who closes tonight if the situation arises? That’s going to be interesting.

* Ramón Urías’ home run wasn’t overlooked. He’s launched two in his last four games and has six hits and six RBIs in that period. Five of those RBIs came Friday night against the Red Sox.

Urías was a bench player who always seemed to be on thin ice with the young infield prospects infiltrating the roster, but he’s starting every night at third base while Jordan Westburg recovers from a fractured right hand.

Westburg is wearing a removable brace/cast on his hand. Urías is making it hard to remove him from the lineup, especially with Coby Mayo back at Triple-A Norfolk.

Liván Soto is on the roster but practically invisible, and that won’t change with the Orioles facing three left-handers in the Mets series and two more against the Astros.

“Feeling good,” Urías said. “I’m playing and I’m seeing the ball well. I think the consistent playing time has been better for me and helped me a lot making an adjustment. I’m looking forward to keep doing it.”

* Urías bats from the right side but Orioles left-handed hitters have combined for 122 home runs, most in the majors. The Guardians were second last night with 95.

The Orioles’ total is the third most since 2020 behind the 2021 Giants (131) and 2023 Braves (126) per STATS. It’s also the third-most in team history behind the 153 hit in 1996 and 128 in 1987.

Gunnar Henderson has accounted for 33. Twenty-six of Anthony Santander’s 36 are from the left side. Colton Cowser’s hit 18, Cedric Mullins has 13 and Ryan O’Hearn has 12. Adley Rutschman’s hit 11 against right-handers.

* O’Hearn grounded out last night after batting for Eloy Jiménez in the ninth inning. He had a 1.409 OPS as a pinch-hitter heading into the game that ranked as the best in baseball in a minimum 15 plate appearances, with a .563 on-base percentage and .846 slugging. Austin Hays is fourth at 1.149 but he’s with the Phillies.

This would be highest OPS from an Oriole since Pat Kelly’s 1.434 in 1979 per STATS.

The more you know …

* The Orioles are sending Dean Kremer to the mound tonight and Zach Eflin makes his fifth start Wednesday afternoon to finish the series and brief road trip.

Eflin has registered four consecutive quality starts since the trade with Tampa Bay. The last pitcher to start his Orioles career with at least four straight was Josh Towers, who strung together five in a row in 2001.

Towers made four relief appearances before joining the rotation May 28 and holding the Rangers to two runs in seven innings. He shut out the Athletics over seven innings in Oakland, tossed a complete-game shutout against the Expos, allowed two runs in seven innings against the Mets and held the Blue Jays to one run in seven. Towers issued four walks in that stretch and struck out 16.

The streak was halted by the White Sox, who scored four earned runs and five total with 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings, but Towers got another shot at them in Chicago less than a week later and tossed seven scoreless. He allowed two earned runs and three total in seven innings against the Yankees to give him seven quality starts out of eight.

The next five starts and 10 of the last 12 didn’t qualify, and his season ended on Sept. 20 when he took a swing at a dugout phone and broke his right ring finger, which caught in the webbing of the glove that he held.

Towers was named American League Rookie of the Month in June but appeared in only five games the next season and didn’t pitch again for the Orioles. His final opportunity was May 1 in Boston, where he allowed 10 runs and 11 hits in five relief innings. He spent the rest of the summer in Triple-A.

The 2005 season was his finest, when he went 13-12 with a 3.71 ERA in 33 starts with the Blue Jays. And he once confirmed to reporters that he hit a batter on purpose. We had to respect his honesty.