O's dig bigger hole in AL East with latest loss in Detroit series opener

DETROIT – As the losses mount while the runs do not, if feels like the American League East is slipping away from the Orioles.

Their 1-0 loss at Detroit - in which they narrowly missed being no-hit - was their fifth in six games and sixth in the last eight. The Orioles are 25-27 since the All-Star break and 30-34 since July 1.

They are now three games behind the Yankees for first place at 83-65. It’s their largest first-place deficit since they were 3 1/2 games back on June 14. Their biggest deficit of the year is 4 1/2 games on June 6.

The Orioles still have three games left with the Yankees and could win the tiebreaker. But now they just need some runs and wins to make that tiebreaker matter. Or to have a chance when they face the Yankees for three games in the Bronx starting Sept. 24.

The Tigers used four pitchers last night and they had a perfect game going through seven innings. When Adley Rutschman became the Orioles' first baserunner with a walk leading off the eighth, Detroit’s bid for the first combined perfect game in major league history had ended. But they still had a chance for Detroit’s 10^th no-hitter, and it would have been the eighth pitched against the Orioles and the first since Seattle’s Hisashi Iwakuma got them on Aug. 12, 2015.

But Gunnar Henderson’s two-out triple in the ninth provided their only hit and second baserunner.

Henderson said he was thinking one hit could get it going for the Orioles, but that did not work out.

“It was a one-run ball game, and if anybody got on base, there's always a chance,” he said. “Somebody (could) run into one and hit a two-run homer or even a solo shot. We knew we were in the game and just trying to help the team win. We got the knock, and obviously didn't come through.”

In the first half the O’s were on an easy 100-win pace but all those good vibes seem to be long gone.

“I mean, we know what’s at stake but at the same time you can’t sit there and beat yourself up over it. It’s not going to help you at all,” Henderson said. “So, it’s just something we’re all learning, at least me. I’m learning how to go through, a lot of the young guys have never been through this as well, so we’re learning how to go through it.”

Now they have to get through it and find some offense on the other side.

Last night they were shut out for the seventh time this year and second in the last five games. Over the past eight games, in going 2-6, the Orioles have scored 15 runs while batting .181/.253/.305/.558.

They had been held to three hits 11 times this year and were held to two hits by Houston Aug. 25. But this was their first game with one hit since Aug. 30, 2022 versus Cleveland.

Meanwhile, Detroit is rolling. The Tigers (76-72) pushing for the final AL wild card spot, have won eight of 12 and 14 of 20.

They have the best record in the major leagues since Aug. 11, going 21-9 with a team ERA of 2.43 in this span. During those games Detroit pitching has allowed a .203 batting average and .568 OPS.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde has tried some lineup shuffling to try to get his offense going. Nothing seems to work. The O’s struck out 13 times last night and had two of 29 batters reach base.

“We’ve had a tough second half offensively,” said Hyde. “We’ve had some guys that have really struggled for the first time in their careers. We’re young. There’s a lot of things. But we’ve got to do the best right now with what we’ve got with our roster. We’ve got to come out tomorrow and compete and try to win a game.

“Yeah, I’ve seen flashes of us, offensively. There’s a lot of talent in that room, there’s a lot of guys that have put up good big league numbers and put up good minor league numbers. We have the ability to make some adjustments, we just have to collectively do it together. Hopefully we swing the bat better tonight.”

Eflin excels: Right-hander Zach Eflin had another strong start as an Oriole, allowing a first-inning homer and nothing else over 6 2/3 innings.

He is now 5-2 with a 2.22 ERA in seven O’s starts, four times yielding one run or none.

Eflin said pitching opposite a no-hit bid was not really any challenge for him. He was doing his normal thing, no matter what the offense was or wasn't doing.

“For me, in a nutshell, it was more so just first-pitch strikes," he said. "I felt like I went 1-0, 2-0 to pretty much their entire lineup. That’s not normally the way I pitch, so it kind of felt like an uphill outing the whole time. I was able to make some important pitches in big situations. First time I threw to Adley. I thought he called a really good game. It was fun working with him. Looking forward to the next one.”

Eflin’s 1.05 walks per nine innings and his 2.8 walk percentage lead the majors.

Henderson’s triple was his seventh, which is tied for third-most in the AL and tied for sixth in the majors.

Lefty Gregory Soto pitched a scoreless inning Friday night. Over his last 13 games he has an ERA of 0.79 with three walks and 15 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings.

At a time when the O’s are not scoring many runs, their starting pitchers are not allowing many. The rotation ERA is 1.37 the past three games and 2.57 the last seven games, and they've posted five quality starts.