The Orioles got the win they needed Monday night. Now comes the harder part of its three-game series in Detroit.
Baltimore beat the Tigers 8-5 in the series opener, chasing Keider Montero after 4⅓ innings and getting home runs from Coby Mayo, Leody Taveras, and Tyler O'Neill (and Taveras also helped chase a squirrel off the field). Jackson Holliday went 4-for-5. The bullpen was spotless. It was exactly the kind of offensive night the Orioles needed from a team that had dropped two of three to Atlanta over the weekend and entered Detroit two games back of the third wild-card spot.
Coby Mayo summed up the feeling in the clubhouse afterward: "If we can play games like that more consistently, especially on the offensive side, we're going to win a lot of games."
Game two is harder (and the finale on Wednesday pits Trevor Rogers against Detroit's Tarik Skubal in what will be a big-time matchup).
Tonight, Troy Melton takes the mound for the Tigers, and the 25-year-old right-hander has been one of the American League's best stories this summer.
The Matchup
Dean Kremer starts for Baltimore. He's 1-3 with a 5.06 ERA in six starts this season — he missed time earlier in the year with a right quad strain and has been inconsistent since returning. The right-hander has a 29:7 K:BB ratio over 26 innings, which suggests the underlying stuff is fine, but the ERA tells the real story. Kremer will need his best to keep the Orioles in it.
On the other side, Troy Melton has a 1.80 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 23% strikeout rate, and 7% walk rate in 49.1 innings — genuinely excellent numbers.Since Melton debuted on May 24, the Tigers have gone 26-20, the third-best record in the American League in that stretch. He missed the start of the season with right elbow inflammation and still only has 49 innings on his arm — the Tigers have been careful with his workload. He's 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, 25 years old, and generating weak contact: opponents are posting a .247 average exit velocity and a 5.5% barrel rate against him.
Melton is a legitimate ace in the making, which is timely given that Detroit might deal Skull, on an expiring contract before the August 3 trade deadline.
First pitch is at 6:40 PM ET at Comerica Park. Temperature is forecast at 81°F and clear — good baseball weather, no excuses.
What's at Stake
Baltimore (52-55) is two games back of the third and final AL wild-card spot heading into tonight. The AL wild card race is tight enough that winning this series — or even taking two of three — materially changes the picture. The trade deadline is six days away, and every game between now and August 3 is a referendum on whether the Orioles are buyers, sellers, or something in between.
Detroit (50-57) has dropped two straight and needs a win just as badly. The Tigers have built around pitching all year and Melton is their best argument for staying in the race.
The Catcher Situation
Adley Rutschman (left wrist) and Samuel Basallo (right shoulder) remain on the IL. Orioles catchers have gone a combined 1-for-29 since Basallo went down July 19. Yohel Pozo, recalled Monday after the DFA of Sam Huff, gets his first real shot to contribute. Ryan Mountcastle (foot) and Chris Bassitt (back) both begin rehab assignments today at Triple-A Norfolk — their timelines will be worth watching as the deadline approaches.
Probable Starters
Detroit Tigers: RHP Troy Melton (5-1, 1.80 ERA)
Baltimore Orioles: RHP Dean Kremer (1-3, 5.06 ERA)
Where to Watch/Listen
First pitch: 6:40 PM ET at Comerica Park, Detroit
Weather: 81°F, Clear
TV: MASN
Radio: 98 Rock (97.9 FM) and WBAL NewsRadio (AM 1090 / FM 101.5)
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