It was a rollercoaster week for the Baltimore Orioles as they saw their 106 series sweep-less streak come to an end in St. Louis before heading into Chicago to sweep the White Sox in a 4-game series. The streak, dating back to Adley Rutschman’s debut back in May 2022, was tied for the second-longest streak in MLB history, only behind the 1942-44 Cardinals. The Orioles did not go down to the St. Louis Cardinals without a fight, however, some offensive struggles paired with poor pitching at times and brutal defensive mistakes cost the O’s their streak.
However, the birds did bounce back in a big way as they went into Chicago and swept the White Sox in a 4-game series. We saw some of the most intense games of the year and the craziest finishes yet this season during this 4-game series. Ultimately, the bats were able to get going and bail out the Orioles bullpen, which looked a bit shaky. Let’s take a look at this week’s who’s hot and who’s not:
Batting
Who’s Hot: Adley Rutschman
It was yet another great week for the best catcher in baseball, Adley Rutschman. Although he only batted .240 this week, he came up big in clutch moments, including a game-winning 2-run single in the 8th inning as a pinch hitter against the White Sox Friday night. Adley also blasted a massive 2-run home run Sunday to give the O’s the lead in what would turn out to be a 4-game sweep of the White Sox.
I think it is undisputed that Adley Rutschman is the best catcher in all of baseball. He continues to prove this week in and week out. Expect him to remain hot this upcoming week in some massive matchups for the Orioles.
Weekly Stats: .240 Avg / 1 HR / 7 RBI / 2 BB / 5 K / 0 2B / 0 3B / 9 Total Bases / 0 SB
Who’s Not: Cedric Mullins
The struggles continue for Cedric Mullins. The former All-Star simply cannot get it going offensively. He collected just 3 total bases this past week, while striking out 4 times. The only bright side offensively for Cedric was the fact that he did steal 2 bases.
The Orioles have some tough decisions to make with Mullins, who does have minor league options available. If he continues to struggle to the level he has been recently, there may be no choice but to give someone else an opportunity while he resets himself. With the depth this team has, and the tough stretch of games coming up, there may not be a huge role for Cedric Mullins in the near term, despite his fielding abilities, unless he can turn things around quickly
Weekly Stats: .188 Avg / 0 HR / 0 RBI / 1 BB / 4 K / 0 2B / 0 3B / 3 Total Bases / 2 SB
Pitching
Who’s Hot: Kyle Bradish
The Orioles ace from a season ago has come back from injury fully prepared to prove that he is still a Cy Young candidate pitcher. Kyle Bradish has been fantastic this season thus far coming off an elbow injury that concerned many fans and pundits alike. Bradish had two stellar starts this week, including having a no-hitter through 7 innings pitched Sunday against the White Sox. If it were not for Bradish being over 100 pitches, we may have seen manager Brandon Hyde keep him in to try and close out the no-hitter, which was ultimately lost on a solo home run in the 8th inning off of Danny Coulombe.
Arguably even more impressive than not allowing a hit in 7 innings, was Bradish throwing 11 strike outs in Sunday’s game, which tied a career-high. Overall, he struck out 17 between his two starts this week and proved that his elbow is in great condition. If Bradish, who has a 1.75 ERA in 25.2 innings pitcher so far this season, can keep performing at this level, it will be tough for teams to beat a team with Corbin Burnes, Grayson Rodriguez, and Kyle Bradish. The goal will be to keep all three guys healthy down the stretch.
Weekly Stats: 12 IP / 4 H / 5 BB / 0.75 ERA / 17 K / 1-0
Who’s Not: Keegan Akin
It has been an up-and-down season for the Orioles bullpen. That is no surprise. However, one of the bright spots has been Keegan Akin, who has performed well in big moments so far this season. However, this past week, we saw Akin struggle a bit as he yielded a 7.06 ERA in 5.1 innings pitched.
Akin gave up a 2-run home run in Tuesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals (which was finished on Wednesday due to inclement weather), which ultimately handed the O’s the loss. He then allowed 3 runs on 3 hits and 3 walks in Saturday’s outing against the White Sox, which allowed the Sox to jump out to a 3-0 lead. Lucky for Akin, the offense was able to get going and pull off a comeback victory. If the Orioles are to be successful down the stretch this year, they will need to get more consistent pitching out of the bullpen. It is a positive sign to see Craig Kimbrel get back to form, but this needs to be a collective effort. This will be something to watch as the O’s continue a brutal stretch of games against some tough opponents.
Weekly Stats: 5.1 IP / 4 H / 3 BB / 7.06 ERA / 5 K / 0-0 / 0 Hold / 0 Blown
The post Who’s Hot, Who’s Not: May 20th – May 26th appeared first on Marylandsportsblog.com.