TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays evened up their three-game series in Baltimore at a game apiece last night, winning by a final score of 3-1…Have won an MLB-best 13 games when scoring three or fewer runs this season (2nd: BAL – 11G). Toronto has gone 9-4 over its last 13 games and 12-6 over the last 18…Can improve to 5-2 in rubber games with a win this afternoon, matching its total wins in such games from last season (5-6)…A win today moves its record in series play this year to 14-8-0 (7-5-0 on the road).
BERRÍ, BERRÍ GOOD: José Berríos took a no-hitter into the 7th inning last night before allowing a leadoff single to Adley Rutschman…Marked the longest no-hit bid by a Blue Jay since Ross Stripling also tossed 6.0 hitless innings on Aug. 17, 2022 vs. BAL…Finished the game with a season-high 7.2 innings of shutout ball, scattering three hits, a walk, and a hit batter with five strikeouts on 90 pitches (62 strikes)…Improved to a perfect 10-0 lifetime against the O’s (13 starts), joining Jon Lester (14-0) and Red Faber (12-0) as the only pitchers in MLB history to win each of his first 10 career decisions against Orioles/Browns franchise. The 29-year old has recorded eight quality starts this season, five of which have come in his last six games…Has now allowed two runs or fewer in seven of his last eight outings…Over his last 12 starts, has gone 7-2 with a 2.27 ERA (19 ER/75.1 IP) and a 1.08 WHIP…His ERA over that span (since April 14) ranks 3rd among AL pitchers.
SPRINGER DINGER: George Springer opened the scoring on Wednesday, sending a solo shot 437 feet to the seats in left center field in the top of the 6th inning…Was his 10th home run of the year, reaching double-digit jacks in all 10 of his Major League seasons. Since May 19th, the Connecticut native has gone 31-for-95 (.326) with eight doubles, a triple, five home runs, 11 RBI, and 11 walks during his 25 contests… Over that span, ranks T-3rd among AL hitters in times on base (43), 4th in total bases (56), 5th in OPS (.991), and 8th in OBP (.402).
THREE-HIT WHIT: Whit Merrifield singled twice and doubled last night, finishing the game 3-for-4 with an RBI and a stolen base…Marked his 3rd three-hit game of the season… Over his last 25 games, is hitting .379 (33-for-87) with five doubles, a homer, 10 RBI, and seven walks (.438 OBP, .909 OPS)…Ranks 3rd in the AL in batting average (.308) and T-4th in stolen bases (18).
BO KNOWS BASE HITS: Bo Bichette laced an RBI double to the wall in center on Wednesday, putting Toronto ahead, 3-0…Finished the night 2-for-4, his AL-leading 27th multi-hit game of the year…Leads all MLB hitters with 94 hits (2nd: Ronald Acuña Jr. – 92)…His .319 batting average
also ranks 1st in the AL (4th in MLB), while he is currently 2nd in total bases (150), 7th in SLG (.508), T-8th in home runs (14), 6th in OPS (.858), T-9th in RBI (44), and T-17th in XBH (27).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Blue Jays are off on a three-city, nine-day road trip (1-1 so far)…Own a 19-18 road record this season for a .514 win% (6th in the AL)…After this trio of games against the O’s, will head out for three contests each against the Rangers (42-25) and Marlins 38-31). Blue Jays hitters lead the Majors in road AVG (.268) and road hits (353)…Rank 2nd among AL clubs in road OBP (.334), 2nd in road SLG (.439), and 2nd in road OPS (.773)…The pitching staff ranks 11th in the AL in road ERA (4.42), 12th in road opponents’ average (.259), and 13th in road WHIP (1.36).
ROMANO-MATIC: Jordan Romano locked down his 19th save of the year on Wednesday night (1.0IP, 3H, ER, K)…Has picked up a save in each of his last nine appearances (2 ER/9.0 IP)…The 19 saves are 2nd most in the Majors, trailing only Cleveland’s Emmanuel Clase (20). With his next save, the Markham, ON, native can become the only pitcher in franchise history with multiple seasons of 20+ saves before the All-Star break (20 in 2022)…The club’s record for most saves before the All-Star break is 24, set by B.J. Ryan in 2006.
LAYING OFF THE DONUTS: The Blue Jays have notched 635 hits this season, behind only Texas (640) for the most in the Majors… Are currently 2nd in the AL in team AVG (.265), 3rd in OBP (.334), 4th in OPS (.757), 6th in SLG (.422), and 6th in extra-base hits (211). The Blue Jays are one of two MLB teams to have scored in every game this season (also: ARI)…Have gone 87 straight games without being shut out, the longest
active streak in the Majors (2nd: ARI – 69G)…Is their 3rd-longest such streak in franchise history, and their longest since scoring in 93 consecutive games from April 13-July 15, 1986.
DIVISIONAL DOWNTURN: The Blue Jays have gone 7-16 against divisional opponents this season (5th among AL East clubs)… Went 43-33 (.566%) in divisional play in 2022, the 2nd-best winning percentage within the division and the club’s best since registering a .581 win% in 2006. (43-31).
VS. THE ORIOLES: All-Time: 385-325
2023: 1-4 Road: 172-181
Road: 1-1 Camden Yards: 133-123
The Blue Jays were swept by the Orioles in their three-game set at Rogers Centre last month, losing the last two contests in extra innings…Have gone 18-8 over their last 26 visits to Camden Yards, averaging 7.1 runs per game with a +53 run differential….Haven’t lost a series of at least three games in Baltimore since being swept in a three-gamer from Aug. 27-29, 2018. Bo Bichette notched four hits and an RBI in the earlier three-game series vs. BAL this year (4-for-14)…Over 51 career games against the O’s, has batted .325 (69-for-212) with 13 doubles, 10 homers, 36 RBI, and 21 multi-hit efforts (.896 OPS). George Springer has hit safely in each of the five games against Baltimore this year, going 9-for-21 (.429) with two doubles, two home runs, and four RBI…Has met the O’s 68 times in his career, hitting .329 (91-for-277) with 19 doubles, 19 homers, and 49 RBI for a .603 SLG% and a .991 OPS. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is a career .318 hitter (88-for277) in 68 games vs. BAL, notching 13 doubles, 22 homers, and 54 RBI (.603 SLG, .975 OPS)…His 44 hits at Camden Yards are his 2nd most in a road park in his career (Fenway Park – 49).
STARTING PITCHER – Yusei Kikuchi, LHP #16
TODAY’S GAME:
Making his 14th start of the season and his 8th on the road…Allowed 2 runs over 5.0 innings his last time out, on 6/9 vs. MIN, giving up 4 hits and a walk with 4 strikeouts…Has pitching into the 5th inning in all 13 outings this season.
2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Took a no-decision on 6/4 at NYM, giving up 2 runs over 5.0 innings with 4 hits, a walk, and 8 strikeouts…Induced a season-high 19 swing-and-misses. Improved to 6-2 on 5/30 vs. MIL, giving up 2 runs on 3 hits and a season-high 5 walks over 5.0 frames with 4 strikeouts…Punched out Joey Wiemer in the 4th inning for the 500th strikeout of his career…Became the 9th Japanese-born player to record 500 strikeouts and 500.0 innings pitched in the Majors. Shouldered the loss on 5/24 at TB, giving up 5 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks over 5.0 frames with 5 strikeouts…The outing was his 100th career start, becoming the 11th Japanese-born player to reach the century mark. Improved to 5-0 on 5/7 at PIT, tossing 6.1 shutout frames with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts…Marked his longest outing as a Blue Jay, and his 3rd quality start this season. Improved to 4-0 on 4/26 vs. CWS, throwing 5.2 frames of shutout ball while scattering four singles and a walk along with eight strikeouts…Has allowed one run or fewer in four of his five starts this year while the Blue Jays have won all five of his outings. Earned his 3rd win of the year on 4/21 at NYY, tossing 6.0 frames of one-run ball with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts…Has back-to-back starts of 6.0+ innings and 0-or-1 runs allowed for the first time since 6/18-25 of his 2021 All-Star campaign. Improved to 2-0 on 4/15 vs. TB, throwing 6.0 innings of one-run ball with 4 hits, a walk, and a season-high 9 strikeouts…Marked his most punchouts in a single game as a Blue Jay…Completed 6.0 frames for the 1st time since 6/30/22 vs. TB. Took a no-decision on 4/9 at LAA, giving up 6 runs on 9 hits and a walk over 4.1 innings with 6 strikeouts…Threw 99 pitches (59 strikes) on the day, his most pitches in a single outing since 7/28/21 vs. HOU (101). Picked up the win in his season debut on 4/4 at KC, tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball with 3 hits, a walk, and 2 strikeouts…Was his 1st start since 8/15/22 vs. BAL, and his 1st win as a starter since 7/28/22 vs. DET.
BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:
YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Orioles fell to the Blue Jays last night, 3-1, in the second game of the three-game series…Had their five-game winning streak snapped; marked their second-longest winning streak of the season behind a seven-game streak from April 16- 24…The O’s did not record an extra-base hit in a game for the third time this year, along with June 7 at Milwaukee and April 8 vs. New York-AL…Orioles pitchers struck but just one batter, second-fewest in a game in 2023 (0, 5/3 at KC).
Kyle Bradish suffered the loss despite tossing a season-high 7.0 innings; allowed one run on four hits (1 HR), no walks, and one hit by pitch with one strikeout…Marked the fifth time this season he’s pitched at least 6.0 innings and allowed one or fewer runs (last: 5/28 vs. TEX); entering last night, the O’s had gone 4-0 in such games.
Adley Rutschman singled to lead off the seventh inning, breaking up José Bérrios’ no-hit bid.
BURNING RUBBER: The O’s and Jays square off in a rubber game in today’s series finale… The Birds have gone 6-4 in rubber matches this season after going 11-11 in such games in 2022.
HOME COOKING: The Orioles began a six-game, seven-day homestand with a three-game sweep of Kansas City over the weekend…The Birds will wrap up a three-game series against the Blue Jays today before embarking on a five-game road trip at Chicago-NL from June 16-18 and at Tampa Bay from June 20-21.
AGAINST THE JAYS: The Orioles have gone 4-1 against the Jays to start the season… Baltimore is now 13-11 (.542) against Toronto since the start of 2022 after going 20-47 (.299) against them from 2018-21…Baltimore swept a three-game set at Rogers Centre from May 19-21, the first sweep of an AL East opponent since taking two games against the Blue Jays at Oriole Park from August 8-9, 2022, and first three-game sweep against the division since sweeping the Red Sox at Fenway Park from April 2-4, 2021…It was the first sweep of at least three games by the Orioles against the Jays since August 27-29, 2018 at Oriole Park, and first road sweep of the Blue Jays since sweeping a three-game series at Rogers Centre from April 22-24, 2005…The O’s will travel to Toronto again for four games from July 31 to August 3 and will host them once more for three games from August 22-24.
STAR-STUDDED: Major League Baseball announced the first balloting update for the 2023 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard on Monday…The 2023 Scotts MLB All-Star Ballot, which is available exclusively online and via mobile devices at MLB.com/vote, all 30 Club web sites, the MLB App, and the MLB Ballpark App, will be accessible until the voting period for Phase 1 concludes at 12 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 22.
Adley Rutschman leads AL catchers with 460,496 votes; he would become the third O’s backstop to start an All-Star Game, along with Gus Triandos in 1958 and 1959, and Terry Kennedy in 1987.
WHAT’S TRENDING: The O’s have won 33 of their last 51 games, 36 of 55, and 38 of 58…The 42-25 (.627) overall record is tied for second-best in MLB (see box at right)…Baltimore is 90-60 (.600) since July 3, 2022, the fifth-best record in MLB during that time…This season marks the eighth time in Orioles history (since 1954) that the team has won 42 of the first 67 games and only the second time in the last 44 seasons, joining 1997 (46-21).
STRIKE A POSE: Baltimore pitchers rank tied for seventh in MLB with 614 strikeouts…The team is on pace to strike out nearly 1,500 batters (9.2/G), which would shatter the club record of 1,248 strikeouts (7.7/G) set in 2016 and matched in 2019.
O’s relievers rank third in MLB with 292 strikeouts, trailing Kansas City (298) and San Francisco (294).
HOT HICKS: Aaron Hicks is slashing .351/.467/.622 (13-for-37) with two doubles, a triple, two home runs, 10 runs, six RBI, eight walks, and one stolen base in his first 12 games with the O’s since May 31…He’s reached safely in all 12 games, his longest on-base streak since another 12-gamer from September 5-18, 2020 with New York-AL…It’s also the longest to start a stint with the Orioles since Jorge Mateo reached safely in his first 14 games from August 6-20, 2021.
His 21 times on base (13 H, 8 BB) through his first 12 games with the O’s are the most since Tim Beckham reached 28 times in his first 12 games from August 1-12, 2017.
He has five extra-base hits (2-2B, 3B, 2 HR) since joining the Orioles after recording three (2-2B, HR) in 28 games with the Yankees this year.
BROHEARN: Ryan O’Hearn has slashed .367/.404/.776 (18-for-49) with five doubles, five homers, 11 runs, 13 RBI, and three walks in his last 15 games (14 GS) since May 16…Among players with at least 50 plate appearances during that time, he ranks second in slugging, third in OPS (1.179), and fourth in batting average…Has homered in back-to-back games twice this season: June 11-13 and May 16-20.
YOUNG GUNN: Gunnar Henderson is slashing .274/.349/.566 (31-for-113) with five doubles, two triples, eight home runs, 20 runs scored, 21 RBI, 13 walks, and three stolen bases in 36 games (31 GS) since May 1…Henderson homered in three straight games from June 10-13, becoming the first O’s rookie to do so since Ryan Mountcastle from June 2-5, 2021…He scored a run in five consecutive games from June 8-13, one shy of his career high set earlier this year from April 11-16…His five home runs in June are tied for second in MLB; he also ranks among AL leaders for the month in total bases (3rd, 30) and RBI (4th, 11).
He earned his first AL Player of the Week honor last week; he’s the first Oriole to win the award since Mountcastle in June 2021.
Ranks among AL rookies in triples (T-1st, 2), home runs (2nd, 10), runs (2nd, 35), slugging percentage (2nd, .465), walks (3rd, 30), on-base percentage (4th, .349), OPS (4th, .814), extra-base hits (4th, 20), and total bases (4th, 87).
Henderson has raised his slugging percentage 161 points since May 9, going from .304 to .465 entering play today.
BIG TIME RUTSCH: Adley Rutschman is tied for first in the AL with 46 walks and ranks tied for second in the AL with 113 times on base (67 H, 46 BB)…He’s also fifth in the AL with a .388 on-base percentage.
STARTING PITCHER – #68 TYLER WELLS RHP
QUICK HITS: Scheduled to make his 14th appearance (13th start) of the season, eighth start at home, and and ninth career appearance (third start) against Toronto today…Went 7-7 with a 4.25 ERA (49 ER/103.2 IP) in 23 starts for the O’s in 2022…Made his first career start on April 10, 2022 at Tampa Bay; dealt the loss after allowing four runs on three hits (1 HR) with two walks and two strikeouts in 1.2 innings…Did not walk a batter in five consecutive starts from April 21 to May 15, 2022, becoming the only Oriole starting pitcher in franchise history (since 1954) to not walk a batter in five consecutive games…Allowed three earned runs-orfewer in 17 straight starts from April 16 to July 15, 2022…Ended the 2022 season on the 15-day Injured List with right shoulder inflammation…Also spent time on the Injured List with lower left side discomfort in 2022…Originally selected by Minnesota in the 15th round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of Cal State, San Bernardino before being taken by the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft on December 10, 2020.
LAST TIME OUT: Earned the win in his last start on June 9 vs. Kansas City, allowing two runs on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts in 6.2 innings…Left with three runners on, one of which later scored…Marked his fourth quality start of the season…Threw 92 pitches, 58 strikes.
WATCH ME WHIP: Wells enters play today leading MLB with a 0.85 WHIP…Also ranks among qualified pitchers in opponent on-base percentage (1st, 225), batting average (2nd, .181), H/9 (2nd, 5.88), OPS (4th, .598), and BB/9 (8th, 1.80)…Has allowed 65 baserunners (49 H, 15 BB, 1 HBP) across 13 appearances (75.0 IP) this season, the fewest in MLB (min. 70.0 IP)…His 49 hits surrendered this season are the second-fewest among qualified pitchers, while his 15 walks are tied for the fifth-fewest…He posted a 0.72 WHIP in April, tied for the seventh-lowest mark by an O’s pitcher in a calendar month in club history (since 1954) and lowest since Scott McGregor recorded a franchise-record 0.61 WHIP in May 1978…Wells issued just three walks and allowed 18 hits in 29.0 innings through his first five appearances (four starts) in April.
RACKING UP STRIKEOUTS: Wells has recorded 74 strikeouts this season, the most by an O’s pitcher through his first 13 games of the season since Kevin Gausman also tallied 74 punchouts through his first 13 outings in 2018…Needs three strikeouts to surpass his season total from 2022 (76), which was a careerhigh.
PACKING A PUNCH: Wells struck out at least seven batters in five straight starts from May 13 to June 4, tied with Erik Bedard (2007) for the second-longest streak by an Orioles pitcher since the franchise moved to Baltimore in 1954, trailing only an eight-game streak by Connie Johnson in 1957.
LOVING LEFTIES: Opposing left-handed batters are slashing .190/.228/.340 (71-for-374) against Wells through his first 80 career games (35 starts)…He has recorded more career strikeouts against lefties (107) than hits allowed (71)… Ranks among qualified pitchers in opponent on-base percentage (3rd, .228), OPS (7th, .567), and batting average (T-8th, .190) against lefties in MLB since he debuted in 2021 (min. 300 BFP).
CAREER AGAINST THE BLUE JAYS: Making his ninth career appearance (third start) against Toronto…Owns a 2-1 record with a 6.14 ERA (10 ER/14.2 IP) in eight career appearances (two starts) against the Blue Jays…Did not factor into the decision in his last start against the division rival on on September 7, 2022 at Oriole Park…Allowed one run on two hits with two walks and one strikeout in 2.0 innings…Threw 34 pitches, 20 strikes.
CAREER AGAINST THE AL EAST: Making his 36th career appearance (15th start) against the AL East…Owns a 4-7 record with a 5.15 ERA (54 ER/94.1 IP) and one save through 35 career outings against the division…Did not factor in the decision in his last start against the AL East on May 24 at New York-AL…Allowed a career-high-tying five runs (3x, last: 9/19/22 vs. DET) on five hits (3 HR) with two walks and seven strikeouts in 5.0 innings…Threw 95 pitches, 60 strikes.
