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This just in Birdland – the Orioles are a good team. They’ve had three straight winning seasons and back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since 1996 and 1997.
Should they make the playoffs this year, it will be just the second time in Baltimore Orioles history. The first was when they won 109 games in 1969, 108 in 1970 and 101 in 1971. That was the greatest run of winning ever for the Orioles’ franchise.
The 2025 club could make it twice in club history. Yes, we should put an asterisk here perhaps. In that earlier great run that included three straight World Series appearances, only four of 24 MLB teams (or 16.7 percent) made the postseason. Now, 12 of 30 (40.0 percent) make it.
But the Orioles are still the American League’s winningest team since 2023 and are third in the majors in this two-year span.
The combined best records for 2023 & 2024:
.611 – Los Angeles Dodgers (198-126)
.596 – Atlanta Braves (193-131)
.593 – Baltimore Orioles (192-132)
.570 – Milwaukee and Philadelphia (185-139)
The Rays are sixth with 179 wins, the Yankees eighth with 176, Toronto is 18th with 163 and Boston 19th with 159 . So, the Orioles have at least 13 more wins in this stretch than all AL East teams.
Winning 101 and 91 the last two years has put this group in good company.
What will it take for another playoff run? Here are three things that could go right and three that could go wrong:
• The pitchers stay healthy: We detailed in an earlier post that keeping their starters healthy in 2023 (three pitched 168 or more innings) was big for that division-winning club. It didn’t hurt having a closer that saved 33 with an ERA of 1.48. Félix Bautista, The Mountain, is back, and they need to keep him and their top rotation pitchers on the field.
• The young bucks take steps forward: We’re looking at Jackson Holliday here plus Heston Kjerstad and if he gets his chance, Coby Mayo. Especially the first two. Holliday and Kjerstad are slated for big roles on this club. If they take steps forward, it will be significant.
• The stars play like stars: We’re looking at players such as Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, Jordan Westburg, Zach Eflin and Grayson Rodriguez. This could be the O’s All-Star contingent in July, and the O’s will look to this group of five to carry a heavy load. If they handle such weight and deliver big performances, it likely means this team will have a big year.
But things don’t always go right:
• Injuries: The 2024 Orioles had an ace pitcher in Corbin Burnes, yet won 10 fewer games than the year before. Injuries were a factor. Bautista pitched in zero games while Kyle Bradish, John Means and Tyler Wells made a combined 15 starts. Rodriguez made 20, but none after July 31st. Westburg missed time, so did Ryan Mountcastle, Ramon Urias and Austin Hays. Reliever Danny Coulombe was limited to 33 games. It added up to a challenging second half and a club that did make the playoffs but wasn’t at its best when it got there.
• Did other teams pass the Orioles?: The Yankees, even in losing Juan Soto, had a strong offseason. They can now start their rotation with Gerrit Cole and Max Fried, an All-Star 1-2 punch the Orioles likely can’t match. Since 2020, Fried has a 2.81 ERA and ERA+ of 151 – the best among any pitcher with 500 or more innings. Beyond that duo, the Yankees traded for Brewers closer Devin Williams, who has a 1.66 ERA since 2022. Their lineup added Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger. While some projection systems still see the Orioles as essentially New York’s equal, Baltimore is going to have to prove it on the field. The AL East also saw Boston deal for Garret Crochet and add Walker Buehler and Alex Bregman, and Toronto added Anthony Santander, Andres Gimenez and pitcher Max Scherzer.
• A hangover on offense: On July 31st last year the Orioles were 21 games over .500 and scoring 5.07 runs per game. But from August 1st on, they were 26-27 (.491), tied for 16th in MLB win percentage. In that time frame, they scored 4.40 runs per game (13th) with a .702 OPS (16th). A middle-of-the pack record and offense. As the new season begins, will their offense be as good as it was for the first four months of 2024, or will they have to deal again with the struggles of the second half?