The Orioles needed someone, literally anyone, to revive them.
It’s been a rough month, a rough two months really, for a team that once was on pace to win 107 games. The Orioles entered Friday riding a three-game losing streak, 9-11 in August and 21-24 since the start of July.
They were on track to add to the loss column again Friday. They had just three hits when they entered the eighth inning and were down 5-2 to the Astros, the crowd silenced as the energy drained.
But the Orioles brought energy back into the stadium, and, more importantly, their dugout. They loaded the bases, Colton Cowser and Adley Rutschman hitting singles and Gunnar Henderson reaching on a fielder’s choice. With no outs, Anthony Santander stepped to the plate. This was exactly the guy they wanted in this situation. And, boy, did he deliver.
Santander was looking for a high fastball, and he got exactly what he wanted from Bryan Abreu. He connected on it and sent it deep into right center.
The crowd knew before it cleared the wall, erupting into cheers. Santander let out a scream as he started to round the bases.
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It was a grand slam, and it could not have come at a better time. The dugout let out a deep breath — it’s been a hard stretch, and this moment could be the turning point for the Orioles.
“I haven’t seen our team react like that in a long time,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “It was just a big exhale, it seemed like, in our dugout. It really was so exciting, and the stadium, that was as loud as it’s been this year, I think. It was a great atmosphere, and Santander comes through once again at a time when we really have been scuffling.”
The Orioles took a 6-5 lead from that, then extended it as Ramón Urías hit an RBI triple. Seranthony Domínguez, who allowed two walk-off home runs earlier in the week, got the save in the 7-5 win.
The Orioles, falling behind in the American League East race, stayed just 1.5 games behind the Yankees with the win.
“We’ve been struggling a little bit the last couple weeks, and that’s a big key right there,” Santander said. “That is a reminder of who we are as a team. We always stay focused the whole game. We compete for 27 outs.”
This burst could be a season-changing moment, even as they add another possible injury. Cedric Mullins, who made a spectacular catch in the second inning, left the game after the fifth inning with left quadriceps tightness. Hyde said he hopes he is just day to day.
The Orioles have been decimated by injuries, part of the reason for their decline, but that’s also given opportunities to guys like Cade Povich, their No. 5 prospect. He got the start Friday because of Zach Eflin, who went on the injured list Tuesday with right shoulder inflammation.
Friday’s start was grittier than Povich’s last time out, when his alter ego, Slim, powered him through a career-high 6 1/3 innings, allowing just two runs. Slim made an appearance in the first inning, when he hit Jose Altuve to open the game but got out of the inning on only five pitches, but not again. He gave up five runs, two of which came on home runs.
The Orioles bullpen took it from there, pitching four scoreless innings. Burch Smith took the sixth and seventh, with Craig Kimbrel taking the eighth and Domínguez the ninth.
“Really happy with our bullpen tonight,” Hyde said. “Burch Smith coming in at that spot. Those are the innings that we’ve struggled in, honestly, to keep the score. That’s what we were really good at the last couple of years, keeping the score there for us to have the ability to come back, and Burch did that, and Craig got through his inning to allow us to get that rally there and win the game.”
Prior to the eighth inning, the Orioles’ only hits came from Colton Cowser, who had a solo home run in the third, and Santander and Ryan O’Hearn, who both hit singles, as Astros starter Hunter Brown gave them a tough time.
That all changed once the eighth started. Cowser started the rally, advanced to third on the Rutschman single, then was called safe on Henderson’s fielder’s choice, making a heads-up baserunning decision to go back to third instead of trying for home.
That set Santander up beautifully. He’s been their guy all season, leading the team in homers and ranking third in MLB behind only Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani.
So, of course, when they needed it most, it was Santander once again who came through.
“That was a playoff atmosphere,” Santander said. “So happy that the fans stayed in that kind of game to support us all the way to the ninth inning. And then we got a win, that’s the most important, and I’m so happy for that.”
This story was updated to reflect the Orioles’ record since the start of July and their record in August before Friday night’s game.
