For the primary time since 2016, the Orioles are heading to the postseason.
While we all know Baltimore may have a spot within the six-team American League discipline when the playoffs start Oct. 3, we don’t know who they’ll be enjoying — and the place.
The Orioles are nonetheless in rivalry to win the AL East and safe the highest report within the league, which might give them a first-round bye into the AL Division Series. After Sunday’s sport, their magic quantity to beat the Rays for the AL East title is 10.
Here’s a have a look at the groups the Orioles might face within the postseason:
Texas Rangers
2023 report: 82-67
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 2.8%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 3-3
Players to look at:
- Shortstop Corey Seager: In a world with out Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani, Seager could be the favourite to win AL Most Valuable Player. The four-time All-Star, who was named World Series Most Valuable Player with the Dodgers in 2020, trails solely Ohtani in on-base-plus-slugging proportion (1.060) whereas batting .340 with 31 dwelling runs and 92 RBIs.
- Right fielder Adolis García: The Rangers’ offense has been among the finest in baseball, and García is one in all its most efficient hitters. The two-time All-Star leads the staff with 34 dwelling runs and 100 RBIs.
- Starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi: Now along with his sixth staff, the 33-year-old Eovaldi continues to impress, going 11-4 with a 2.96 ERA. With splashy additions Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer out with accidents, Eovaldi has been the linchpin of the rotation.
X-factor: Closer Will Smith has loads of playoff expertise, having pitched for the Giants, Braves and Astros in his 11-year profession. He’s given up simply three earned runs in 18 1/3 postseason innings.
Close ties: Catcher Jonah Heim was drafted by the Orioles within the fourth spherical in 2013. Ten years later, he beat Orioles star and 2019 No. 1 general choose Adley Rutschman in a fan vote to start out the All-Star Game in Seattle.
Tampa Bay Rays
2023 report: 92-59
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 7.7%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 5-7
Players to look at:
- Left fielder Randy Arozarena: After bursting onto the scene within the Rays’ run to the World Series in 2020, Arozarena has been a constant big-time performer, incomes his first All-Star nod this season whereas batting .261 with 22 dwelling runs and 81 RBIs.
- Starting pitcher Zach Eflin: With Baltimore-born ace Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen and Shane Baz out for the season, Eflin has been the chief of the rotation in his first season in Tampa Bay, going 15-8 with a 3.44 ERA whereas recording 9.2 strikeouts per 9 innings. He held the Orioles hitless till the sixth inning Friday, placing out eight in seven scoreless innings.
- Third baseman Isaac Paredes: With star shortstop Wander Franco on administrative go away, it falls on the remainder of the Rays’ lineup to supply. Paredes leads the staff with 89 RBIs and ranks simply behind Franco and first baseman Yandy Díaz in wins above substitute this season.
X-factor: In his first season again from Tommy John elbow reconstruction, beginning pitcher Tyler Glasnow has began to search out his type. He’s 9-6 with a 3.53 ERA, although he’s been hit laborious in two of his three begins in opposition to the Orioles this season.
Close ties: Before he turned an All-Star with the Rays, second baseman Brandon Lowe loved a standout profession at Maryland that made him a third-round choose in 2015 by Tampa Bay. Relief pitcher Shawn Armstrong was claimed off waivers by the Orioles throughout their rebuild in 2019 and was later traded to the Rays for money on the 2021 deadline.
Seattle Mariners
2023 report: 81-68
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 3.4%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 2-4
Players to look at:
- Center fielder Julio Rodríguez: As a rookie final season, Rodríguez was the driving pressure in Seattle reaching the playoffs for the primary time in 20 years, ending the longest energetic drought in any of the 4 main skilled sports activities. He’s put collectively a monster second season, batting .290 with 30 dwelling runs and 99 RBIs.
- Catcher Cal Raleigh: In his third season, Raleigh has blossomed into among the finest slugging catchers within the league, hitting 28 dwelling runs with 69 RBIs.
- Starting pitcher Luis Castillo: Acquired from Cincinnati ultimately 12 months’s commerce deadline to assist the playoff push, Castillo has been as marketed as a top-of-the-line starter in his first full season in Seattle, going 13-7 with a 3.08 ERA.
X-factor: Orioles followers may bear in mind beginning pitcher George Kirby for his dazzling efficiency in a 1-0 loss to Baltimore on Aug. 12, when he allowed simply three hits and struck out seven in 9 scoreless innings. The 25-year-old right-hander (10-10, 3.57 ERA) has allowed two or fewer runs in 15 of his 28 begins this season.
Close ties: In among the finest trades in Orioles historical past, middle fielder Adam Jones, beginning pitcher Chris Tillman and three different gamers have been acquired from Seattle in 2008 in change for starter Erik Bedard. Jones turned a franchise icon in Baltimore, incomes 5 All-Star nods and 4 Gold Glove awards because the staff ended a 14-year playoff drought in 2012 and reached the ALCS two years later.
Minnesota Twins
2023 report: 79-71
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 3.4%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 2-4
Players to look at:
- Shortstop Carlos Correa: A former Astros star as soon as linked to Baltimore in free company, Correa has largely struggled in his second season in Minnesota, batting a career-low .231. He’s a a lot completely different participant within the postseason, nonetheless, the place he’s posted a .849 OPS with 18 dwelling runs and 59 RBIs.
- Starting pitcher Sonny Gray: The 33-year-old right-hander earned his third All-Star nod this season, going 7-7 with a 2.96 ERA. He’s allowed simply seven dwelling runs in 167 innings.
- Infielder Royce Lewis: The 24-year-old rookie has been a revelation, hitting .311 with 14 dwelling runs and 51 RBIs. He’s additionally extremely clutch, setting the Twins’ single-season report with 4 grand slams.
X-factor: Closer Jhoan Duran touches 100 mph along with his fastball and has struck out 32.8% of the batters he’s confronted this season whereas recording 26 saves in 31 alternatives.
Close ties: The Orioles’ bullpen has been among the finest in baseball this season, and it has Minnesota to thank. Baltimore acquired breakout star Yennier Cano from the Twins within the Jorge López commerce ultimately 12 months’s deadline and bought Danny Coulombe, the staff’s finest left-handed reliever, from Minnesota three days earlier than opening day.
Houston Astros
2023 report: 84-66
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 14.9%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 2-1 (with 3 to play)
Players to look at:
- Right fielder Kyle Tucker: On a staff stuffed with stars, Tucker could be the very best. The 26-year-old two-time All-Star is batting .283 with 27 dwelling runs and an AL-leading 105 RBIs. He left his mark in Baltimore earlier this season, hitting a game-winning grand slam off Orioles nearer Félix Bautista within the ninth inning of a 7-6 win Aug. 8.
- Third baseman Alex Bregman: Although he hasn’t made an All-Star staff since 2019, Bregman continues to be an elite participant, hitting .270 with 23 dwelling runs and 95 RBIs. He’s been a part of the staff’s championship core since debuting in 2016.
- Starting pitcher Framber Valdez: The 29-year-old right-hander has emerged as one of many league’s finest starters, going 11-10 with a 3.32 ERA and two shutouts. He has the very best wins above substitute (3.9) of any pitcher on the workers.
X-factor: Second baseman Jose Altuve shouldn’t be the MVP-caliber participant he as soon as was, however he’s nonetheless going robust at age 33 with an impressive .932 OPS. The eight-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion ranks second all-time with 23 postseason dwelling runs.
Close ties: Before becoming a member of the Orioles in 2019 to guide their rebuild, common supervisor Mike Elias and assistant GM Sig Mejdal have been a part of a entrance workplace in Houston that turned one of many league’s worst groups right into a constant World Series contender.
Toronto Blue Jays
2023 report: 83-67
FanGraphs’ World Series odds: 3.9%
2023 report vs. Orioles: 3-10
Players to look at:
- Shortstop Bo Bichette: The 25-year-old two-time All-Star is probably the very best younger shortstop within the league. He’s had a down season by his lofty requirements, partially due to accidents, however he nonetheless leads the staff in WAR whereas batting .305.
- First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: The three-time All-Star and son of a former Oriole has not reached the heights of his 2021 season, when he completed second in AL MVP voting, however he’s nonetheless one of many sport’s most feared sluggers. He’s batting .267 with 24 dwelling runs with 90 RBIs.
- Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman: The 2012 Orioles first-round choose has loved a late-career renaissance, incomes his second All-Star look at age 32. He’s 11-9 with a 3.40 ERA and leads the AL with 222 strikeouts.
X-factor: Right fielder George Springer has dominated Orioles pitching throughout his profession. In 75 video games in opposition to Baltimore, the four-time All-Star is batting .309 with 19 dwelling runs, 19 doubles and 51 RBIs. He’s additionally a giant postseason performer, successful World Series MVP with the Astros in 2017.
Close ties: The final time the Orioles made the postseason, they confronted the Blue Jays in a winner-take-all, one-game playoff within the wild-card spherical. It was memorable, with a Toronto fan throwing a beer can towards left fielder Hyun Soo Kim as he made a catch and Buck Showalter making the controversial choice to maintain dominant nearer Zack Britton within the bullpen as Ubaldo Jiménez allowed a three-run walk-off dwelling run to Edwin Encarnación within the eleventh inning.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com