O's game blog: O's go for series sweep versus the White Sox

With 22 runs scored in back-to-back wins over the White Sox, the Orioles look for a three-game series sweep tonight. That would also give them a seven-game sweep of the season series.

In late May, the Orioles won four straight at Chicago, but they were all close wins by 8-6, 6-4, 5-3 and 4-1. In this series, the O’s have won 13-3 and last night by 9-0.

They’ve scored 22 runs on 27 hits the last two games, with three doubles, a triple and two homers and they are 11-for-36 batting with runners in scoring position.

In going 6-0 on the year versus the Sox, the O’s have outscored them 45-17. On offense, they have hit .287 with an .887 OPS and 10 home runs. The Baltimore pitchers have a 2.67 ERA and have allowed a .528 OPS to White Sox hitters this year.

Right-hander Albert Suárez (7-4, 3.14) has been on a five-start pitching role and will make his 20^th start tonight. He is 2-0 with a 1.19 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in those five games, allowing four earned runs over 30 1/3 innings with five walks to 24 strikeouts.

The Orioles are 11-8 in his starts this year. Lefty batters hit .260 with a .725 OPS off Suárez, who yields a .243 average to right-handers with an OPS of .658. And he is quite solid pitching with runners in scoring position at .217/.568.

Suárez has come up big for the Orioles throughout the year.

"He's been a season-saver for us," manager Brandon Hyde said before the game. "With all the pitching injuries we've had, to have a guy like that come in and be a huge part of our rotation, give us a chance every time out and pitch well, it's been unbelievable what he's done for us. That last start in Colorado to go seven innings in that altitude. He's been massive for us."

On May 24, Suárez threw four scoreless at Chicago on 80 pitches. He allowed two runs and eight hits in seven innings on 95 pitches Friday against the Rockies.

Righty Jonathan Cannon (2-9, 4.70 ERA) gets the start for the Sox. In 18 games this year he's allowed 103 hits in 95 2/3 innings with a 1.411 WHIP and yielding 3.0 walks per nine and 6.2 strikeouts.

Over his past three starts, he is 0-3 with an 8.40 ERA, a .339 batting average against and .949 OPS. For the year, lefty batters have an .842 OPS against him and right-handers are at .747. When he pitches with runners in scoring position he allows a .333 average and 1.001 OPS.

As of this morning, the Orioles (81-59) have the best record in the American League and currently hold the No. 1 AL playoff seed. The postseason begins with the wild card round on Tuesday, Oct. 1. According to MLB, the earliest potential postseason clinching date for any AL team is Wednesday, Sept. 11th for the Orioles, Guardians and Yankees. That doesn't mean the likely date to do it, but the earliest possible date to do so.

Last night Cade Povich's 7 1/3  innings tied Corbin Burnes (7/25 at MIA) for the longest start by an O's pitcher this season; Orioles starters have tossed at least seven innings in three of the last five games after doing so twice from June 28 to August 8. Baltimore scored four runs in the second inning, the most they have scored in an inning without having a hit since May 8, 1985 at Kansas City (4, 4th inning) and the most any team has scored in an inning without a hit since the Philadelphia Phillies on July 30, 2016 at Atlanta (4, 8th inning).