CHICAGO—What happened? The Orioles had just three hits in seven innings and were trailing the Chicago White Sox, who have the worst record in the major leagues, by three runs.
In the eighth, the Orioles hit three home runs and scored five runs. Ryan O’Hearn and Anthony Santander had two-run homers and Jordan Westburg also hit one in a 5-3 win on Saturday.
“That was a fun inning,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “That game offensively sucked for us for seven. We didn’t do anything offensively.”
O’Hearn fouled off five pitches before he homered.
“That might be the at-bat of the year,” Hyde said. “We waited around a little bit, but it was great to see us swing the bat that inning.”
“There are some pitches I wish I wouldn’t have fouled off,” O’Hearn said. “To be able to finish off an at-bat like that with a homer … we hadn’t had much going on all day. To be able to get some runs on the board to kind of get the ball rolling there is awesome.”
The Orioles are 5-13 when they trail after seven innings.
“Finally, to be break through. We know we have a good offense and what we’re capable of,” O’Hearn said. “We also know we can put up runs fast, get a couple of guys on base, get a couple of homers, like how it happened today.”
How important was Dillon Tate and the bullpen? Tate retired each of the seven batters he faced after Keegan Akin allowed three runs in the fifth in relief of Albert Suárez.
“That won us the game on the mound,” said Hyde about Tate, who rejoined the team on Friday. “That’s 2 1/3 of really efficient pitching, really good stuff, getting guys to swing early, let his stuff work on the plate and gave us a chance.”
Three left-handed hitters reached against Akin. Gilman grad Gavin Sheets’ three-run triple was the big hit. Akin allowed a two-run homer to Nolan Gorman in the resumption of Tuesday’s suspended game.
“That was a struggle, for sure,” Hyde said. “That’s twice now he’s missed middle-middle with lefties in big spots. That can’t happen at the major league level.”
Yennier Cano, Danny Coulombe and Craig Kimbrel had each pitched in two straight games and were unavailable. Cionel Pérez pitched a perfect ninth for his first save of the season.
“Cionel, he’s been in there before, and it was great to see him throw the ball the way he did in the ninth inning,” Hyde said. “That was lights-out stuff.”
How well did Suárez pitch? Suárez started on one day’s notice after Dean Kremer landed on the 15-day injured list with a strained right triceps.
Suárez allowed two hits in four scoreless innings.
“I was just going until they tell me not to,” Suárez said.
“Incredible outing by him,” Hyde said.
Suárez may be in the rotation while Kremer is on the IL, and he’s proven to be a valuable member of the staff as a starter and reliever.
“It feels good to be able to help the team [in] any way,” said the 34-year-old Suárez. “If I’m in the bullpen, I’m going to be ready to come in at any time. If I’m a starter, I’ll do my best to help the team. That’s what I think all the time.”
Suárez enjoyed watching the Orioles’ offense finally come to life with the three homers in the eighth, long after he had left the game.
“We trust that someone is going to get the job done,” Suárez said. “When you watch us play, that’s what usually happens. It might not happen in the beginning of the game, but I’m sure it’s going to happen at the end.”
What’s the word? “Get that come-from-behind win gives you all the confidence in the world, knowing how good our offense is, how fast we can put up runs.”-O’Hearn on the Orioles’ win
What about the trade? The Orioles acquired 31-year-old right-hander Thyago Vieira and minor league right-hander Aneuris Rodriguez, 19, from Milwaukee in exchange for minor league right-hander Garrett Stallings.
Vieira had a 5.64 earned-run average in 16 games with the Brewers before he was designated for assignment on May 20th. He was placed on the Orioles’ 40-man roster, which is now full. Rodriguez had a 3.86 ERA in three games for the Arizona Complex League Brewers. He’ll be assigned to the Florida Complex League Orioles.
Stallings was 0-1 with a 5.67 ERA in 11 games for Triple-A Norfolk.
What does it mean? Vieira will join the Orioles either Sunday or Monday, and while he doesn’t have options, he can provide another experienced right-handed arm.
What’s the stat of the day? Vieira, who’s just one of five Brazilians to play major league baseball, will become the first native of Brazil to play for the Orioles.
What’s going on in the minor leagues? Centerfielder Daniel Johnson went 4-for-4 and drove in three runs and designated hitter Connor Norby drove in three runs as Triple-A Norfolk beat Worcester 9-5.
Catcher Blake Hunt, who was acquired from Seattle in the Mike Baumann trade, homered in his first game for the Tides.
Starter Cade Povich allowed three runs on five hits in six innings.
Cameron Weston and Ryan Long held Richmond to four hits, but Double-Bowie lost 2-0. First baseman Dylan Beavers had two hits.
Edgar Portes (3-0) threw six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits as High-A Aberdeen beat Jersey Shore 7-5. Rightfielder Elio Prado hit his third home run.
Rightfielder Jake Cunningham and first baseman Anderson De Los Santos homered in Single-A Delmarva’s 10-8 loss to Columbia.
What’s next? Kyle Bradish (0-0, 2.41) will face Chicago’s Garrett Crochet (5-4, 3.75) in the final game of the series on Sunday at 2:10 p.m.
Time change: The Orioles-Tigers game in Detroit on September 15th will begin at 12:10 p.m. instead of 1:40 p.m.
Call for questions: Each weekday, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles’ question. Please send yours to: [email protected]