The Baltimore Orioles began their three-game series against the Minnesota Twins (59-61) with a 9-5 loss on Monday. The loss came with a two-fold significance. First and foremost, it was a loss to one of the four teams that the O’s must leap-frog to get an AL Wild Card spot. Secondly, it was a loss to a player, Dean Kremer (2-4), that the Orioles traded to the Twins on August 1st.
Kremer limited his former team to 1 run on 1 hit with a walk while striking out 7 Baltimore batters. The lone run allowed came in the fourth inning when Gunnar Henderson scored before Jackson Holliday (2 for 4, R) was tagged out to end the inning; Holliday was on first with one out when Tyler O’Neill struck out. Holliday got caught in a rundown while trying to steal second and stayed in the rundown long enough for Henderson to score.
On the contrary, Trevor Rogers (7-8) struggled to get through 4.0 innings. He threw 79 pitches (45 K’s) while allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, which included an Austin Martin homerun in the third inning. Rogers hit two batters as well.
Rico Garcia entered the game in relief of Rogers and allowed 4 runs on 3 hits and a walk without recording an out. Three of the runs came on a Josh Bell homerun.
Grant Wolfram was next and he immediately gave up the Bell homerun before allowing 3 runs on 6 hits with 3 strikeouts over 1.2 innings.
Josh Walker recorded the final out for the Orioles.
Baltimore did put up a fight with a pair of runs in both the eighth and ninth innings. Coby Mayo (2 for 4, R, 3 RBI) knocked in a eun in the 8th and both runs in the ninth.
Monday’s performance looked like one an already defeated team would put forth. Perhaps the trade of Adley Rutschman has taken the wind out of the team’s sails.
2026 Record: 57-62
Next Game: Tues. 8/11 @ 7:40 pm @ Minnesota Twins
