Concern about Bradish’s elbow overshadows Orioles’ tough loss to Phillies, 5-3, in 11 innings

BALTIMORE—What happened? The Orioles have lost two pitchers this season, John Means and Tyler Wells, to season-ending elbow injuries. They’re missing a third, reliever Danny Coulombe.

And, on Friday night, they may have lost a fourth, starter Kyle Bradish.

Means had his second Tommy John surgery on June 3^rd. Wells also will have surgery, and Coulombe was placed on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation on Tuesday, the severity unclear.

Bradish, whose season was delayed because of a sprain to his right ulnar collateral ligament, was pulled after five innings and 74 pitches in the Orioles’ 5-3 loss in 11 innings to the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.

“After the fifth inning he came to us and said his elbow was bothering him,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “We’re going to get further tests on that and nothing really else to say … He had to come out of the game after that inning.”

What’s the latest on Bradish? Bradish, who threw six scoreless innings, allowing just one hit in his previous start on June 8^th at Tampa Bay, allowed two runs on three hits in five innings.

The 27-year-old right-hander was not available for comment after the game.

“It’s really tough. I’m going to say a lot of prayers tonight,” outfielder Austin Hays said. “Just get it looked at and kind of go from there. Anytime you know a guy has battled back from an injury, when they have to come out of the game, that’s really tough.”

In 2022 and 2023, the Orioles were one of the healthiest teams in baseball. That hasn’t been the case this year. Hays missed time earlier this season with a strained left calf muscle.

“It’s really hard,” Hays said. “We’ve been together for a while now. These are our brothers in here. When you see your brother get hurt, it’s tough. I’ve gone through a lot of injuries in my career. I’ve gone through surgeries. I know everything that comes with that.

“You just always pray for the best that it’s not going to come down to that.”

How wild was the game? In front of a sellout crowd of 43,987, many of whom were rooting for Philadelphia, the Orioles tied it, 2-2, in the bottom of the eighth on Anthony Santander’s home run.

Bradish gave up a leadoff home run to Kyle Schwarber in the first and a fifth-inning homer to Rafael Marchán.

The Phillies took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 10^th inning on an RBI single by Schwarber. Johan Rojas was out at the plate trying to score after Edmundo Sosa did. Santander charged Schwarber’s single and made a strong throw home to catcher James McCann to get the out and keep it to a one-run game.

“It was a heck of a game, really well pitched,” Hyde said. “That was pretty good baseball. We just didn’t get the big hit.”

Cedric Mullins tied it at 3-3 in the bottom of the 10^th when he scored on a wild pitch by Orion Kerkering. The ball ricocheted off the backstop back to Marchán, but Mullins got his left hand on the plate before the tag, a call that was reversed after a replay review.

“I just couldn’t believe the carom,” Hyde said. “It would have been nice to get a kick to the side. You saw the carom come directly back to him, thinking the worst, but Ced with an incredible, incredible slide to keep the game going.”

Mullins knew he was safe but had to wait for the review. Hays greeted him as he came back to the dugout.

“That’s what Ced does,” Hays said. “That’s why it’s so important that he’s on the field because he’s just a game-changer. He can do it in any facet. He can do it with his legs, with his glove. It was just an incredible slide. The ball bounced right back to the catcher, and he still found a way to get in there and make himself safe.

“It’s fun to watch. It’s fun to be standing there in the dugout and watch him get around the slide.”

As Oriole fans celebrated the reversal that extended the game to the 11th, rain began to fall.  After a 71-minute delay, Alec Bohm lined a two-run double off Jacob Webb that Hays wasn’t able to run down despite an all-out effort.

“I have to make that catch,” Hays said. “I was there. The route was there. My glove was there. I didn’t make the catch. I have to make that catch. I expect that out of myself. I know the team expects that out of me. I’m going to lose sleep over that tonight because I know that’s a catch I can make. I’ve got to make that catch for Webby.”

What was Camden Yards like? In addition to Friday night’s sellout, the Orioles announced last Friday that Saturday and Sunday’s games were sellouts.

“The energy in the stadium was unbelievable,” Hays said. “Everything was riding on every pitch for both sides … It was loud. You dream of the games like that. We play 162, but they’re not all like that. There’s only a handful of games in the regular season where the energy in the stadium was like it was tonight.

“I wish we could have came out on top for the fans, but it was a fun game to be a part of, for sure.”

What about the excitement of the series?  “It’s another series. It’s a really good team,” Hyde said. “This is a great team. They’ve played so well this year. They’re really balanced offensively, speed, power, left and right. They have a great rotation and a bullpen that throws 100, nearly every single guy. It’s another series in the big leagues, a tough test.”

After this series, the Orioles will face the American League East leading New York Yankees beginning on Tuesday, but Hyde doesn’t think he’ll need to tell players not to overemphasize June

“I don’t think players think like that,” Hyde said. “I don’t think anybody’s looking ahead … We know that the Yankees series is next, but let’s try to take care of what we can takes care of this series and play well this weekend. It’s going to be a great environment. There are going to be a ton of people here.”

What does it mean? If Bradish is out for an extended time, that could really change the Orioles’ strategy at the trade deadline. They’ve gotten unexpected production from Albert Suárez and Cade Povich, and they may need to have other unlikely heroes.

What’s the word? “This is three games of 162 against a really good club and 90-plus games to go. Your roster can change, and so many things can happen in the next four months.”­–Hyde on the series.

What’s the stat of the day? 1-for-13. The Orioles were 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position.

“That was the telling stat,” Hyde said.

What’s going on in the minor leagues: Jackson Holliday was placed on Triple-A Norfolk’s injured list with right elbow inflammation. The Orioles do not view the injury as serious and as an opportunity to rest.

Oriole starter Dean Kremer, who has a right triceps strain, will have a rehab start for Norfolk on Sunday. He’s expected to throw about four innings.

The Tides beat Memphis, 9-2. Rightfielder Heston Kjerstad, first baseman Billy Cook and centerfielder Daniel Johnson each drove in two runs. Cook and Johnson homered. Brandon Young (1-0) threw five scoreless innings, allowing one hit, striking out four. Infielder Anthony Servideo was promoted from Double-A Bowie to Norfolk to replace Holliday and catcher Connor Pavolony returned to Bowie.

Second baseman Collin Burns homered for the Baysox’s only run in their 2-1 loss to Harrisburg in 10 innings.

In the second game of his rehab assignment, Coby Mayo homered and doubled in High-A Aberdeen’s 6-4 win over Hickory. Centerfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. hit his second home run and catcher Adam Retzbach also homered.

Second baseman Angel Tejada singled in the ninth inning, Single-A Delmarva’s only hit in their 3-1 loss to Kannapolis.

What’s next? Grayson Rodriguez (7-2, 3.27) will face Taijuan Walker (3-1, 5.40) on Saturday at 4:05 p.m. The game is sold out.

Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com