Orioles manager Buck Showalter lamented the 10 walked batters in Monday afternoon's loss to the Yankees, though he noted how one was intentional. Just to be fair while frustrated.
Showalter ran out of patience with Jeremy Hellickson tonight after a fourth walk in 2 1/3 innings. Hellickson also hit a batter. Another bad game from the rotation.
Another chance for the Orioles to overcome it.
Manny Machado followed Tim Beckham's two-out walk off Dellin Betances in the ninth inning with a two-run homer into the home bullpen to give the Orioles a 7-6 victory over the Yankees before an announced crowd of 14,377 that waited through a 2 hour and 14 minute rain delay at Camden Yards.
Precipitation, puddles and poor early play, but the Orioles improved to 71-68 overall and 6-8 against the Yankees.
It began to pour again just as the grounds crew got the tarp back on the field, making for a treacherous drive home, but nothing can dampen the Orioles' mood after their latest comeback.
Manager Buck Showalter won his 1,500th career game. This one didn't seem likely after the third inning, when the Yankees scored six runs, only three of them earned.
Machado led off the bottom of the third inning with his team-leading 31st home run and Jonathan Schoop matched him in the fifth with a solo shot off CC Sabathia into the visiting bullpen. Mark Trumbo's two-run shot, the 200th home run of his career, reduced the lead to 6-5 in the sixth.
Betances retired the first two batters in the ninth, striking out pinch-hitter Pedro Ãlvarez for second out. Beckham reached and Machado launched the second pitch he saw, a knuckle-curve after he took a 99 mph fastball outside of the zone.
Bedlam ensued, of course, complete with the usual water dousing at home plate.
Machado has 14 career multi-homer games and five this season. He also has three walk-off homers.
The rotation has combined for only 10 1/3 innings in the last three games - four each for Chris Tillman and Dylan Bundy before tonight. Hellickson was charged with five runs, three earned, in 2 1/3 to leave his ERA at 6.87 with the Orioles.
Hellickson allowed only two hits, including Didi Gregorius' two-run single in the third that came after the veteran right-hander walked Aaron Judge and nailed Starlin Castro with a pitch. Matt Holliday walked to reload the bases and Showalter signaled for left-hander Richard Bleier.
Bleier let all three inherited runners score. Adam Jones dropped a fly ball from Greg Bird, who was credited with an RBI. Todd Frazier followed with a run-scoring ground ball and Jacoby Ellsbury delivered a two-run single.
It was every bit as ugly as it sounds, a finalist for worst inning of the season.
Hellickson got away with back-to-back walks to Gregorius and Holliday to open the second, but they eventually become costly. They're only called "free passes." He's allowed 10 earned runs and 12 total with eight walks in his last two starts over seven innings.
Ubaldo Jiménez sat in the bullpen again tonight and replaced Jimmy Yacabonis in the sixth. He wasn't going to start in Cleveland this weekend, but the rotation's issues extend beyond one pitcher.
Jiménez got away with a two-out single to blank the Yankees in the sixth and Darren O'Day struck out two while retiring the side in order in the seventh. The baton reached Brad Brach, who stranded two runners in the eighth. Zach Britton struck out two while retiring the side in order in the ninth.
One unearned run from the bullpen in 6 2/3 innings.
The Orioles worked veteran Sabathia for 26 pitches in the first inning, but he allowed only one run on Trey Mancini's two-out infield hit. Sabathia retired the first two batters before Schoop walked and Jones reached on a ball that rolled up the third base line and deflected off the bag.
Power got the Orioles back in the game and power ultimately let them win it. Most of it coming from their third baseman.
Showalter on the comeback: "You see the arms and the people they run out there after the fourth or fifth inning. Really, after the third or fourth inning, including Sabathia. It's really hard to do that. A great at-bat by Tim Beckham shouldn't be forgotten to set that up, got the at-bat to Manny. He's been really dialing up what we need in a time of need. Some great innings pitched out of our bullpen tonight to hold them. It's a tough lineup to hold them down except for that one inning that got away from us a little bit."
Showalter on difficulty in rallying after bad inning: "It is, but it's a reminder of what these guys are made of. Guys kept grinding little by little. I actually thought that Manny's solo home runs, goes to 6-2, and then Jon tacked one in there and Trum quick-batted one out there and next thing you know it's 6-5 and you know you have a chance to make a run at them. But the key is keep putting up zeros out there. And Ubaldo had a good inning for us in a time of need. Yac came in and his results have been good."
Showalter on Hellickson: "Just command, as you saw. That's just not the guy we've seen here and have seen before in his career. He just never got in that sequence where he had a feel for two pitches, let alone one. And when he's really going good he's got three going and adds a cutter. Even if they have to respect the command of the fastball. Never really got into a lot of ... The changeup, you could tell he was fighting it all the way through."
Showalter on whether this was a special way to win No. 1,500: "My daughter, who should be asleep right now, texted that. I don't know why she's still awake. She flew back to Dallas today. It's special because it gets us, you've got to beat those guys. It was a tough game last night. That's one of those games, you know it's going to rain tomorrow and we've been sitting around the clubhouse for two hours just like the fans are.
"And also, I was thinking about it coming up the runway, how many people are home watching that game. First time after Labor Day and people are back at work. Will be some late arrivals at work tomorrow. We're fortunate to be able to sleep in today."
Showalter on comparing Machado to other great players he's managed: "I don't get into ranking players versus other people. Manny has a chance to have a great career and he's off to a really good start. But it's been an honor to watch some really great players play at a very high level. It's something that's very hard to do. Very few people can do. Manny has a chance to fit into that group. Off to a pretty good start, huh?"
Machado on home run: "See ball, hit ball. Keep it simple. Keep it very simple and try to get a pitch you can hit.
"I'm just looking for something up I can do damage with. I'm up in the count. Just looking for a good pitch I can hit."
Betances on home run: "Trying to go breaking ball, and that didn't do much and obviously he's a good hitter. He hit that ball really well. It just stood over the plate, didn't do much, and he got the best of me. Maybe I threw too many there, but that one just hung. That one didn't do much. At the end of the day, that one bad (breaking ball) I threw, they hit the home run on. I guess it wasn't my night tonight."
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