Inside the compact and quiet guests clubhouse at Fenway Park, Jorge Mateo stopped on his approach to the showers to pat Ryan McKenna on the again, a part of a wave of help that had come the 26-year-old outfielder’s approach over the earlier quarter-hour.
With two outs within the backside of the ninth Saturday, McKenna drifted underneath a softly hit flyball to left, poised to make a catch that will have finalized a 2-0 begin to the Orioles’ 2023 season. But the ball hit the heel of his glove, then the grass, placing Masataka Yoshida on base because the tying run for the Boston Red Sox. Two pitches later, McKenna raced to his left, hoping Adam Duvall’s drive off nearer Félix Bautista would clang off the Green Monster. Instead, it narrowly cleared the enduring wall, leaving the Orioles with a surprising 9-8 loss on the walk-off residence run.
“It was unfortunate timing,” McKenna mentioned afterward. “Bautista was throwing a hell of an inning there, and all of our guys were really working hard to put us in a chance to win that game. Just tough timing.”
McKenna’s drop was essentially the most damning instance of a gap sequence that has featured a number of miscues from the Orioles’ outfield, thought-about a defensive energy coming into the yr. In Thursday’s opening day victory, Baltimore survived a triple that heart fielder Cedric Mullins did not catch on the wall, a double off proper fielder Austin Hays’ glove and a single that fell in entrance of left fielder Anthony Santander. The errors caught as much as them Saturday, erasing what had been a 7-1 lead.
With two on within the seventh, Duvall lofted a flyball towards proper, seeming as if it would curl round Fenway’s Pesky Pole for a go-ahead residence run. Instead, an ungainly route from Hays allowed it to land in truthful territory. The ball’s bounce into the stands stopped the tying run from scoring, however the Orioles wouldn’t have the identical fortune on McKenna’s ninth-inning error.
“We’ve got some areas we need to clean up,” Hays mentioned. “It’s been uncharacteristic so far. But it’s got to be better, just to put it simply. We’ve gotta be better out there, and our pitchers are doing a good job. We’ve just got to pick those guys up.”
Throughout the Orioles’ breakout 2022 season, McKenna was routinely turned to as a late-inning defensive substitute, incomes reward for his dealing with of that function. He was the beginning left fielder Saturday, with supervisor Brandon Hyde eager to stack his lineup with right-handed batters towards Boston lefty Chris Sale. Having McKenna within the outfield sooner than typical paid off within the fourth, when he laid out for a formidable diving catch.
But that play, Hays’ 5-for-5 day and the Orioles’ record-setting 10 steals by means of two video games all pale to the background when McKenna dropped a ball Hays mentioned he catches “999 times out of 1,000.”
“That’s heartbreaking right there at the end,” Hays mentioned. “I’ve obtained a variety of religion in McKenna. I’ve seen him make some wonderful performs. I do know he’s an incredible outfielder, and for those who play this sport lengthy sufficient, you’re sure to have a kind of performs occur.
“I just let him know that he’s a great outfielder, and every time the ball’s hit to him, I have 100% faith and confidence that he’s going to catch every ball, and just because this one play happened, that doesn’t change.”
Hays was amongst these to inform McKenna that it’s an extended season and they might want him to realize their hopes of reaching the postseason. Bautista and beginning pitcher Dean Kremer each famous the Orioles have 160 video games to play past Saturday’s.
“Obviously, it sucks,” McKenna mentioned. “But we move forward.”
Had McKenna caught the ball, the main focus would have belonged to a different spectacular day for Baltimore’s offense. After Adley Rutschman went 5-for-5 because the Orioles stole 5 bases within the opener, Hays managed 5 hits in 5 tries, including the staff’s fifth steal of the day. The Orioles turned the primary staff since no less than 1901 to steal 10 bases and have two gamers document five-hit video games within the first two video games of a season.
Hays’ first hit was the second of Baltimore’s two first-inning residence runs towards Sale. Rutschman singled with one out, making him the primary participant in staff historical past to succeed in base safely in his first seven plate appearances of a season. Ryan Mountcastle then launched a house run off an indication above the Green Monster, with a projected distance of 422 toes. Hays topped that two batters later, clearing the fence to the fitting of the Monster with a 430-foot solo shot. He added two doubles and two well-placed singles.
After Mateo — who suffered cuts on his proper hand whereas stealing third base within the second inning however remained within the sport — introduced in a run within the third with a bases-loaded fielder’s selection, Cedric Mullins scored three with a blast to heart. Typically the Orioles’ leadoff hitter, Mullins was dropped to eighth in Hyde’s lineup Saturday towards Sale after he hit .209 with a .570 OPS off left-handers in 2022.
Given a six-run lead, Kremer walked the leadoff man within the backside of the third, beginning an inning during which he surrendered a pair of two-run residence runs, one by Duvall.
“I just didn’t put up zeros after we scored,” Kremer mentioned, “and that let them back into the game.”
The Orioles added a run on an RBI double from Santander, serving because the designated hitter, however didn’t rating over the ultimate 5 innings. Mike Baumann pitched a scoreless fourth with McKenna’s assist earlier than Danny Coulombe and Austin Voth labored their very own shutout frames. Voth then gave up a house run to open the seventh.
The Red Sox obtained the rating to 8-7 when Hays couldn’t monitor down Duvall’s double, a ball with an anticipated batting common of .140.
“We’ve got some really good defensive outfielders,” Hyde mentioned. “We’ve simply had a troublesome couple video games, actually. Tough situations the opposite day, just a little windy at the moment. But yeah, we’ll play higher outfield protection.
“Mac’s done a really great job in the outfield for us for a few years now. Mistakes happen, and unfortunately, it was just a tough time, but we have a lot of confidence in him and his defense. I feel bad for him right now. Nobody feels worse in there than Mac, and so we’ve just got to rally around him.”
Around the horn
- The Orioles listed their starters for his or her upcoming highway sequence towards the Texas Rangers as right-handers Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells and Kyle Gibson. That traces up Kremer to start out Thursday’s residence opener towards the New York Yankees.
- Reliever Mychal Givens, who opened the season on the 15-day injured checklist with left knee irritation, is “improving daily,” Hyde mentioned, and may have a aspect session off a mound in the midst of subsequent week.
- Corner infielder/outfielder Josh Lester, among the many Orioles’ remaining spring coaching cuts, hit three residence runs for Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday after homering within the staff’s opener Friday.
- The Orioles’ different three full-season minor league associates introduced their break camp rosters Saturday. Notably, 2020 second-overall decide Heston Kjerstad is about to start out the yr at Double-A Bowie after ending final season with High-A Aberdeen, and 2022 first-overall choice Jackson Holliday will return to Low-A Delmarva to start his first full season within the group.
Orioles at Red Sox
Sunday, 1:35 p.m.
TV: MASN2
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
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Source: www.bostonherald.com