Looking back on a night where the runs came for the Orioles

Having fun with averages shows the Orioles have scored 21 runs the last four games. That’s a respectable 5.25 runs per game. But they got there by scoring nine, one, two and nine runs.

So yeah, some inconsistency, but at least they’ve scored a season high for runs twice in four games. And they won those two games and lost a third by one run.

Before last night, the Orioles had not hit two homers in a game at Camden Yards this year. Then they hit two in one inning. In a six-run O’s third, Cedric Mullins and Ramón Urías hit two-run shots.

The Orioles took a 6-0 lead, saw the Twins get back in the game at 6-4, only to score three more runs an inning later to pull away again and win 9-4.

So the Birds are now 9-16 overall, 6-6 at home and 3-3 during the current homestand, which has four games left.

They are 6-9 against current first-place teams. When the Orioles went 52-110 last season, they played .321 baseball. So far this year, they are playing .400 baseball against first-place clubs. They’ve gone 1-2 versus the Brewers, 2-4 against the Yankees, 2-1 versus the Angels and 1-2 against the Twins.

Will last night be a game that begins a more long lasting turnaround for the Baltimore offense? Who knows that answer. The last time they scored nine, they got three total the next two games.

But I have written and believe strongly that the big three of Mullins, Trey Mancini and Ryan Mountcastle need to get going and that when they start hitting to expectations, the offense will look a lot better. Last night, that trio went 7-for-12 with a double, homer, four runs and three RBIs.

"I'd say overall we had higher quality at-bats," said Mancini, who produced three infield hits for the first time in his career, raising his average to .265. "I'm sure pitch selection was better, but at the same time we've been talking a lot about some of the bad breaks we've gotten. Some things went our way tonight, too. Sometimes, that's the name of the game as well. But I think the quality of our at-bats was definitely better tonight.

"It energizes you, it just brings a different energy. I think we did a good job of passing the baton. ... We all know what this offense can do. I believe in everybody in this lineup. A lot of times I think we put too much pressure on ourselves and have been pressing at times, so if we can just take a step back, relax a little bit, it's a really good offense, and tonight we showed that, if we just trust the guy behind us to do the job if we don't get the pitches to do it."

Before Wednesday’s game, I interviewed Mountcastle about his struggles. He was batting .227/.261/.307 for a .568 OPS at game time. Then he went 2-for-4 with an RBI double.

Since he got out of a major slump early last year, he was confident he can and will do it again and expressed that when we spoke pregame. 

“A little bit (of confidence from going through this before)," he said Wednesday in the O's clubhouse. "This year I feel like I’m putting together better at-bats than I did last year early in the year. Some things just aren’t falling right now. I feel like I’ve probably lined out about five or six games in a row. That’s just baseball. You have to get through it, and hopefully they start dropping soon. Going through that struggle last year has definitely kept me level-headed going through a rough patch."

Mountcastle said two people that should not be taking heat for the club’s struggles this year on offense are their new co-hitting coaches, Ryan Fuller and Matt Borgschulte.

“I love those guys," he said. "They are great and they’ve been doing a good job. Like I said, we are hitting the ball hard and it’s just not falling right now. Even across the league, it seems like everything is down – homers and average."

Before yesterday’s game, I asked manager Brandon Hyde about his two young hitting coaches and whether their confidence was being tested a bit by the struggles on offense for much of the year. That was before the second nine-run outburst in four days.

“Absolutely (this is a concern),” said Hyde. “Good coaches take things personal. And especially young coaches. And you want to try and fix, you want to try and help as much as you possibly can. I think they are handling it really well. I know that they're living and dying with everybody’s at-bat. Some of us that have been around a little are trying to, you know, we stay positive with them too, because they are doing a great job.

“They are busting their butt in the cage. They’re doing an unbelievable job from a pregame and pre-series work (standpoint). The players are extremely happy with the information they’re getting and the work that’s being done. So, it’s just a matter of time. But they are staying patient and they’re doing a really good job of staying positive with our guys.”

The Twins had won 11 of 12, allowing just 25 total runs before the Orioles got nine off Dylan Bundy in 3 2/3 innings. Bundy allowed just one run in his first three starts for an ERA of 0.59. Now he has given up 15 runs over 9 2/3 in his last two games against the Rays and Orioles.

The Orioles scored 24 runs in their first 12 games (2.00 runs per game). Now they have plated 59 in the last 13 games (4.54 runs per game). That is more in line with season averages the past three years. O’s batters scored 4.50 runs per game during the 2019 season, 4.56 in 2020 and 4.07 last year.

The club matched a team record for the 11^th time last night turning five double plays. That last happened on July 6, 1999 against Toronto.

All three of Mullins homers have come at home. He is batting .348 (8-for-23) his last five games with three doubles, a homer, four runs and two RBIs.

Mancini produced his first three-hit game since Sept. 4, 2021 at the Yankees.

Meanwhile, at Bowie: The Double-A Bowie Baysox beat Harrisburg 10-5 as Gunnar Henderson went 3-4 and Adley Rutschman was 2-for-4 with a two-run single. Henderson is batting .306 now with a .987 OPS. Rutschman is 3-for-8 in two games with Bowie. In six games counting his play with high Single-A Aberdeen, he is 9-for-21 (.429) with five doubles, two RBIs, three walks and just one strikeout.

Lefty DL Hall, who threw four scoreless with six strikeouts on 54 pitches for Aberdeen on Friday night, will start today's late morning day game at Bowie. Hall gets the call at Prince George’s Stadium for an 11:05 a.m. first pitch against Harrisburg. It will be his first Bowie outing since last June 12.