BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:
YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Orioles fell to the Yankees last night, 6-5 in 10 innings, in the first game of the three-game set in the Bronx…Marked their first loss in a series opener on the road (now 8-1).
Gunnar Henderson slugged his fifth home run of the season with a solo shot in the fourth inning; at 21 years, 328 days old, became the youngest Oriole to homer on the road against the Yankees in the regular season since Eddie Murray (21-153) on July 27, 1977; Manny Machado did so at 20 years, 96 days old in Game 3 of the 2012 ALDS on October 10, 2012.
Cedric Mullins hit a solo homer in the third inning, his eighth long ball of the year; six of his last nine hits have gone for extra bases (4-2B, 2 HR).
EXTRA, EXTRA!: The O’s have tied the club record since moving to Baltimore in 1954 by playing three extra-inning games in a row, their first time doing so since June 23 (G1)-25, 1991; the St. Louis Browns played four extra-inning games in a row from May 1-5, 1910 and May 31 (G1) to June 2 (G2), 1943…The Birds are the first MLB team to play three straight extra-inning games since the Yankees from July 13-15, 2022…The last MLB team to play four consecutive extra-inning games was the Padres from May 26- 29, 2021…The MLB record since at least 1901 is five extra-inning games in a row by the Tigers from September 9-13, 1908.
CLOSE CALL: Of Baltimore’s 48 games this season, 44 have been decided by four or fewer runs, the most in MLB…The O’s have gone 28-16 in those games, the most wins in MLB and tied for the best winning percentage (.636) with Tampa Bay (21-12).
STEADY CEDDY: Cedric Mullins has hit safely in six straight games, slashing .435/.500/.870 (10-for-23) with four doubles, two home runs, four runs scored, six RBI, three walks, and a stolen base in that span…Has hit safely in 14 of his last 16 starts and 20 of his last 24…Entering today’s games, he ranks tied for fourth in the AL (see box at right) and tied for fifth in MLB with 39 RBI…According to FanGraphs’ ZiPS update, he is on pace for 96 RBI, which would surpass his previous career high of 64 in 2022 and be the most by an O’s batter since Trey Mancini had 97 in 2019; the last O’s batter with 100+ RBI in a single season was Jonathan Schoop in 2017 (105 RBI).
Went 5-for-6 with two doubles, a run scored, three RBI, and a stolen base in Sunday’s win, his third career five-hit game and first since June 5, 2021 vs. Cleveland; two of Mullins’ five hits came in extra innings, making him the first O’s player with multiple hits in extra innings since Chris Davis and Stevie Wilkerson each had two knocks in extras on September 23, 2019 at Toronto (15 innings), per the Elias Sports Bureau.
HE GETS ON BASE: Adam Frazier owns a 16-game on-base streak since May 6, the longest by an O’s batter this season and the second-longest such streak of his career behind a 17-gamer from August 20 to September 7, 2019 with the Pirates…It is the fourth-longest active streak in the AL and the eighth-longest active streak in MLB… Frazier is slashing .281/.349/.474 (16-for-57) with three doubles, one triple, two home runs, six runs scored, 10 RBI, five walks, and a stolen base during his current streak.
WHAT’S TRENDING: The O’s have won 22 of their last 32 games, 25 of 36, and 27 of 39… The 31-17 overall record ranks second in MLB to start the season (see box at right)… The Rays (35-15), Dodgers (31-19), Yankees (30-20), and Rangers (30-18) are the only other teams with 30 wins this season through May 23.
The Orioles are 93-66 since June 1, 2022, a 95-win pace; the .585 winning percentage during that time is the second-best in the AL and fourth-best in MLB, trailing the Braves (.669, 107-53), Dodgers (.669, 109-54), and Astros (.638, 102-58).
AGAINST THE YANKEES: The O’s and Yankees began a three-game set at Yankee Stadium last night, the second meeting between the two teams this season; the O’s dropped two of three to the Yankees in their season-opening homestand from April 7-9, but won their Home Opener on April 7…The Orioles will travel to the Bronx again for four games from July 3-6 and will host the Yanks in Baltimore for three games from July 28-30…The O’s went 7-12 against the Yankees in 2022, 4-6 at home and 3-6 at Yankee Stadium.
ROAD TRIPPIN’: The Orioles began their seven-day, six-game road trip with a three-game sweep of the Jays in Toronto over the weekend…After an off day Monday, the Birds began a three-game set against the Yankees in the Bronx last night…The O’s are off to a 16-9 start on the road…Baltimore currently owns the best road winning percentage (.640) in the AL and second-best in MLB, behind Atlanta (.708, 17-7).
LOOKING AHEAD: After the current road trip, the O’s return to Baltimore for a six-game homestand with three games against the Rangers from May 26-28 and three against the Guardians from May 29-31.
WHAT A RELIEF: The Baltimore bullpen owns a 3.00 ERA (61 ER/183.0 IP), second-best in MLB behind the Yankees (2.80)…O’s relievers have 14 wins this season, tied with Cincinnati, Los Angeles-AL, and Miami for third-most in the majors, trailing Arizona and New York-AL (15)…The O’s are second in MLB with 220 strikeouts from the ‘pen, trailing Kansas City (229).
THE CANO SHOW: Yennier Cano has allowed one earned run in 25.2 innings (0.35 ERA); opened the year with 21.2 scoreless innings over 17 appearances…Opponents are slashing .120/.131/.157 (10-for-83) against him, all of which lead MLB pitchers with at least 20.0 innings pitched.
Has faced 84 batters without issuing a free pass; is the only pitcher to face at least 60 batters without allowing a walk this season and one of two with at least 50 batters faced and no walks allowed, along with Philadelphia’s José Alvarado (52 batters faced).
His streak of 20 straight games without a walk to start the season is the second-longest in O’s history, behind a 22-game streak by Jamie Walker to open the 2009 campaign; Cano has worked 25.2 innings while Walker only threw 12.1 during his streak.
He leads all Major League relievers with 1.5 fWAR, per FanGraphs.
His sinker is worth -11 Run Value, the best pitch by an Oriole and tied for the fourth-best pitch in MLB, per Statcast.
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – #68 TYLER WELLS – RHP
QUICK HITS: Scheduled to make his 10th appearance (ninth start) of the season, fifth road start, and 12th career appearance (sixth start) against the Yankees tonight…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-or-fewer 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: Did not factor in the decision after allowing three runs on six hits (2 HR) with one walk and seven strikeouts in 5.0 innings…Has thrown at least 5.0 innings in all nine appearances (eight starts) to begin the season; had 12 career games of 5.0+ innings (all in 2022) entering 2023… Threw 95 pitches, 59 strikes.
WATCH ME WHIP: Wells enters play today leading MLB with a 0.79 WHIP… Also ranks among qualified pitchers in opponent on-base percentage (1st, .214), batting average (2nd, .168), H/9 (2nd, 5.37), OPS (T-3rd, .560), and BB/9 (T-9th, 1.73)…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.
CAREER AGAINST THE YANKEES: Making his 12th career appearance (sixth start) against the Yankees…Owns an 0-4 record with a 4.68 ERA (17 ER/32.2 IP) and one save through his first 11 appearances against New York-AL… Dealt the loss after allowing four runs on six hits (2 HR) with six strikeouts and a balk on April 9 vs. the Yankees…Threw 89 pitches, 61 strikes…Tied his career high at the time with 6.0 innings pitched…Marked the fourth time that Wells has recorded six-or-more strikeouts in a game in his career and the first since July 15, 2022, at Tampa Bay.
CAREER AGAINST THE AL EAST: Making his 35th career appearance (14th start) against the AL East tonight…Owns a 4-7 record with a 4.94 ERA (49
ER/89.1 IP) and one save through his first 34 career outings against the division…Opposing batters slashed .228/.275/.438 (77-for-338) in those games…Last time out, earned the win on April 26 vs. Boston after allowing two runs on four hits (1 HR) with one walk and a then-career-high-tying seven strikeouts…Struck out the side in order for the second time in his career in the top of the fourth inning (also T4, 5/18/21 vs. TB)…Threw a career-high 102 pitches, 68 strikes.
ROAD WARRIOR: In 35 career road appearances (15 starts), Wells has gone 6-5 with a 3.10 ERA (35 ER/101.2 IP) and two saves…Has made four road appearances (three starts) this season, going 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA (8 ER/21.1 IP)…Made 12 starts away from home in 2022, sporting a 5-5 record with a 3.81 ERA (24 ER/56.2 IP) and 41 strikeouts.
NEW YORK YANKEES NOTES:
AT A GLANCE: The Yankees continue their six-game homestand tonight with the second game of a three-game set vs. Baltimore (1-0 thus far)…will also host San Diego for a three-game series this weekend (Fri.-Sun.)…went 6-1 on their seven-game road trip after winning three-of-four games at Toronto and sweeping a three-game series at Cincinnati.
At 30-20 (.600), have the fourth-best record in the AL and the sixth-best record in the Majors.
Have won a season-high five straight games…marks their longest winning streak since a seven-game streak from 9/18-25/22.
Are a season-high 10 games over .500.
Have won seven of their last eight games, nine of their last 11 games and 12 of their last 15 games.
Are 15-5 (.750) in their last 20 games (since 5/2), the best record in the Majors in that span.
Have won or split each of their last four completed series (since 5/8), five of their last six completed series (since 5/1) and 11 of their 15 completed series this season (going 9-4-2).
Each of their last three wins and nine of their last 15 wins have been come-from-behind wins.
Are in a stretch of playing 14-of-20 games (5/5-25) against the AL East…are 7-5 so far.
YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Yankees recorded their fourth “walkoff” win of the season with a 6-5 victory over the Orioles in 10 innings on Tuesday…RHP Gerrit Cole (5.0IP, 6H, 5ER, 3BB, 2K, 2HR) started and did not record a decision…struck out Jorge Mateo (swinging) in the second inning for his 2,000th career strikeout…SS Anthony Volpe (0-for-4, 1RBI, 1SF) recorded a “walk-off” sac fly in the 10th inning…RF Aaron Judge (1-for-4, 1R, 1HR, 1RBI, 1BB) hit a game-tying solo HR in the ninth inning…CF Harrison Bader (2-for-4, 1R, 1HR, 2RBI) recorded a solo HR in the fourth inning and a game-tying sac fly in the fifth inning…3B DJ LeMahieu (1-for-5, 1RBI) recorded an RBI single in the fifth inning, his 600th career RBI…1B Anthony Rizzo (3-for-5, 1R, 1 double, 1RBI) matched his season high with 3H…also collected an RBI double in the fifth inning…2B Gleyber Torres (2-for-4, 1R, 1BB) reached base three times…PH Jake Bauers (1-for-1, 1 double) hit a pinch-hit double in the eighth inning…RHP Ron Marinaccio (2.0IP, 1H, 1BB, 2K) and LHP Wandy Peralta (1.0IP, 1K) were both scoreless in relief…RHP Michael King (2.0IP, 1BB, 3K) earned his first win of the season after tossing 2.0 scoreless innings.
Marked their first win this season when trailing after the eighth inning.
NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: SS Anthony Volpe recorded a “walkoff” sac fly in the 10th inning on Tuesday…marked his first career “walk-off” plate appearance…according to Elias, was the fourth-youngest Yankee to record a “walk-off” RBI in the Expansion Era (since 1961)…trails only Gleyber Torres (21 years, 144 days with a “walk-off” three-run HR on 5/16/18 vs. Cleveland; 21 years, 167 days with a “walk-off” RBI single on 5/29/18 vs. Houston) and Melky Cabrera (21 years, 341 days with a “walk-off” solo HR on 7/18/06 vs. Seattle).
Has 311RBI in his last 13 games (since 5/10).
BRONX BOMBERS: The Yankees have hit 75HR this season, the second-most home runs in the AL and the fourth-most in the Majors.
Have hit multiple HR in 10 of their last 11 games (since 5/12), 14 of their last 16 games (since 5/7) and 16 of their last 20 games (since 5/2).
Have had a Major League-high 16 different players homer this season.
Have hit 24HR in their last 11G and 33HR in their last 15G.
Have scored 99R in their last 16 games (since 5/7), averaging 6.19 runs per game in that span…scored 133R in their first 34 games of the season from 3/30-5/6 and averaged 3.91 runs per game over that span.
Have scored at least 6R in 12 of their last 16 games (since 5/7).
FOUR SCORE: The Yankees are 26-5 this season when scoring at least 4R…are 25-6 when they hold their opponent to 4R-or-fewer.
GLEYBER DAY: INF Gleyber Torres has batted .306 (11-for-36) with 6R, 1HR, 3RBI, 3BB and 1SF in his last nine games (since 5/14)…has multiple hits in four of his last seven games.
WHAT A RELIEF: Yankees relievers have posted a 2.80 ERA (196.0IP, 61ER) this season, the lowest bullpen ERA in the Majors…also rank second in opponents’ BA (.216, first in AL), third in opponents’ SLG (.342, second in AL) and fourth in opponents’ OPS (.650, third in AL).
Own a 22.1 scoreless inning streak over their last five games (since 5/18)…have held opponents to a .085 BA (6-for71) with 24K…according to Elias, marks their second-longest scoreless streak in the last four seasons (since 2020), trailing only a 23.2 scoreless inning streak from 4/29-5/8/22.
DARTH BADER: OF Harrison Bader hit a solo home run in the fourth inning and recorded a game-tying sac fly in the fifth on Tuesday…his 5HR in 20 games this season already match his 2022 home run total (5HR in 86 games in 2022)…including the postseason, has 10HR in his last 29 games (since 2022 ALDS Game 1 on 10/11/22).
Has homered in consecutive games for the eighth time in his career (first time since a three-game streak from 9/24-G2-26/21).
Has reached base in 16-of-19 games with a PA this season.
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: LHP NESTOR CORTES (4-2, 5.21 ERA)
LHP Nestor Cortes will make his 10th start of the season tonight vs. Baltimore…the 28-year-old will make the start on extended five days’ rest due to the team’s off day on Monday…made his last start on Thursday at Toronto, earning his fourth win of the season after allowing just 2ER over 6.0IP (5H, 1BB, 6K, 1HR)…marked his second outing this season allowing 2R-or-fewer over 6.0IP-or-more…according to Elias, his 2.44 ERA in 2022 was the third-lowest by a Yankees pitcher in a single season in the Divisional Era since 1969 (min. 25 games started), trailing only Ron Guidry’s 1.74 ERA in 1978 and Steve Jack Kline’s 2.40 ERA in 1972…was signed by the Yankees as a minor league free agent on 12/10/20…was originally selected by the Yankees in the 36th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft…was selected by the Baltimore Orioles from the Yankees in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft and returned to the Yankees on 4/13/18…was acquired by the Seattle Mariners from the Yankees in exchange for international bonus pool money on 11/25/19…over parts of five Major League seasons, has played with Baltimore (2018), the Yankees (2019, ’21-22) and Seattle (2020).
LAST TIME OUT: Made his last start on Thursday at Toronto, earning his fourth win of the season after allowing just 2ER over 6.0IP (5H, 1BB, 6K, 1HR)…surrendered a solo HR in the first inning to Bo Bichette…retired 16 of his next 21 batters faced…left the game with a runner on base in the seventh inning that would eventually score.
Has surrendered at least 1BB in six consecutive outings after walking his final batter faced in the seventh inning…his streak of at least 1BB allowed matches his career high (6G from 8/30-9/22/19).
IN A GROOVE: Has tossed at least 5.0IP with 2R-or-fewer allowed in five of his nine starts this season.
Has allowed 2R-or-fewer in 11 of his last 15 starts (since 8/21/22), going 7-2 with a 3.64 ERA (81.2IP, 33ER) and 83K over that stretch.
Has tossed at least 5.0IP with 2R-or-fewer allowed in nine of his last 13 starts (since 9/14/22)…the Yankees are 10-3 in those starts.
Has recorded six-or-more strikeouts in five of his nine starts this season.
Allowed 3ER-or-fewer in 17 consecutive starts from 7/14/22-4/25/23…his 17 start streak was tied with Spud Chandler (17GS from 7/7/43-4/22/44) and Bob Shawkey (17GS from 6/15-9/18/1917) for the fourth-longest by a Yankees pitcher since 1913 (when ER became an official stat)…over his last 21 starts (since 7/14/22), has gone 9-3 with a 3.36 ERA (118.0IP, 44ER) in that span…has allowed 3R-or-fewer in 18 of those starts, 2R-or-fewer in 15 of those starts and 1R-or-fewer in eight of those starts… has tossed at least 7.0IP in four of those starts and 6.0IP-or-more in 10 of those starts.
NASTY NESTOR: Has allowed 3R-or-fewer in 44-of-51 starts since the beginning of 2021 and 2R-or-fewer in 37 of those starts…in 59 appearances (51 starts) since the beginning of 2021, has gone 18-9 with a 3.03 ERA (299.2IP, 101ER), 314K and a .209 (231-for-1,103) opponents’ BA…his 3.03 ERA in that span is the ninth-lowest in the AL (min. 200.0IP)…his 1.03 WHIP in that span is the sixth-lowest in the AL.
Allowed 2R-or-fewer in nine consecutive starts from 8/21/22-4/14/23…matched the longest such streak by a Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history (excludes Chad Green’s 12-start streak as an opener from 6/11/17-8/12/19-G2)…in addition to Cortes’ other nine-start streak from 9/25/21-5/15/22, Luis Severino (9/12/18-4/20/22), Michael Pineda (4/5-9/5/14) and Art Ditmar (7/26-9/9/59) also recorded nine-start streaks…was 5-0 with a 1.78 ERA (50.2IP, 10ER) in that span.
In 52 career starts as a Yankee, is 18-9 with a 3.12 ERA (282.1IP, 98ER) and 288K…his 3.12 ERA as a starter the lowest ERA by a Yankees starting pitcher (min. 50GS) in the last 49 years (since 1975).
Allowed 3R-or-fewer in 16 straight starts from 7/14/22-4/20/23, tied with Luis Severino (16GS from 4/16-7/7/18) for the third-longest such streak in franchise history… trailed only Russ Ford (20GS from 8/9/1910-G2-5/27/1911-G2) and his own 19-start streak (8/15/21-6/2/22-G1)…went 8-1 with a 2.32 ERA (93.0IP, 24ER) in that span… tossed at least 7.0IP in four of those starts and 6.0IP-or-more in nine of those starts.
Allowed 3ER-or-fewer in 17 consecutive starts (7/14/22-4/25/23), tied with Spud Chandler (17GS from 7/7/43-4/22/44) and Bob Shawkey (17GS from 6/15-9/18/1917) for the fourth-longest by a Yankees pitcher since 1913 (when ER became an official stat).
Since the beginning of 2022, has gone 16-6 with a 3.09 ERA (206.2IP, 71ER) and 211K…among Major League pitchers in that span, ranks ninth in opponents’ OBP (.260, sixth in AL)…also ranks sixth in the AL in WHIP (1.01), seventh in opponents’ OPS (.607) and eighth in opponents’ BA (.206).
Over his last 46 starts since 8/15/21, has gone 18-8 with a 3.09 ERA (256.1IP, 88ER), 268K and a .210 (198-for-945) opponents’ BA…has allowed 3R-or-fewer in 40 of those 46 starts, including 2R-or-fewer in 33 of those starts…his 3.09 ERA over that span is the ninth-lowest in the AL (min. 200.0IP).
VS. BALTIMORE: Is 4-0 with a 1.37 ERA (39.1IP, 6ER) and 56K in eight career appearances (six starts) vs. the Orioles…has made one start vs. Baltimore this season, earning the win after tossing 5.1IP (4H, 2ER, 2BB, 5K) at Camden Yards on 4/9.
As a starter, is 3-0 with a 1.01 ERA (35.2IP, 4ER) and 54K against Baltimore.
Has allowed 2R-or-fewer in each of his outings vs. Baltimore, including 1R-or-fewer in six of those outings and four have been scoreless.
Three of his five career double-digit strikeout games have come against Baltimore, including both his career-high totals (12K on 10/1/22 and 4/17/22).
As a Yankee, has made three career appearances (two starts) vs. Baltimore at home, going 1-0 with a 1.88 ERA (14.1IP, 3ER) and 20K.
Was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the first round (ninth overall) of the 2017 Rule 5 Draft…saw his first Major League action with Baltimore in 2018, posting a 7.71 ERA (4.2IP, 10H, 4ER, 4BB, 3K, 2HR) in four relief appearances…was returned to the Yankees on 4/13/18.
HOME SWEET HOME: In 27 career starts at Yankee Stadium, is 9-2 with a 2.74 ERA (151.0IP, 46ER), 150K and a .201 opponents’ BA (109-for-542)…has allowed 3R-or-fewer in 26 of his 27 starts at home as a Yankee…allowed 6R in his last home start, snapping a 26-start streak of allowing 3R-or-fewer from 7/4/21-G2-5/8/23…marked the longest such streak by a Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history (next: Domingo Germán – 16GS from 4/1/19-6/6/21)…was the longest streak in the Majors (excluding openers) since Lance McCullers Jr. recorded a 27-start streak from 5/18/15-6/30/17 (Ryne Stanek had a 30-start streak from 5/26/18-7/3/19)…has allowed 2R-or-fewer in 21 of those 27starts and has tossed at least 5.0IP with 3R-or-fewer in seven of his last eight home starts.
Has gone 9-2 with a 2.57 ERA (161.1IP, 46ER), 166K and a .196 (113-for-576) opponents’ BA in 32 home games (27 starts) since 2021…his 2.57 ERA at Yankee Stadium is the 10th-lowest in the Majors among any pitcher at a single ballpark since 2021 (min. 100.0IP).
LEFT OUT TO DRY: Left-handed batters are hitting .200/.250/.333 (6-for-30) against him this season.
Lefties hit just .110/.180/.159 (9-for-82) against him in 2022…among left-handed pitchers vs. left-handed batters (min. 65BF), owned the lowest OPS (.338), ranked second in opponents’ batting average (second in AL), OBP (first in AL) and third in opponents’ SLG (second in AL).
Has retired 24-of-32 left-handed batters faced this season (6H, 2BB, 7K).
2023: Is 4-2 with a 5.21 ERA (48.1IP, 48H, 29R/28ER, 14BB, 48K, 8HR, 3HP) in nine starts this season.
Has allowed 3R-or-fewer in six of his nine starts, including 2R-or-fewer in five of those starts.
Has recorded at least 7K while tossing 6.0IP-or-more in two of his starts this season.
Has gone 2-0 with a 4.61 ERA (27.1IP, 14ER) and 24K in five home starts compared to a 2-2 record with a 6.00 ERA (21.0IP, 14ER) in four road starts this season.
Has posted a .200/.250/.333 (6-for-30) slash line vs. left-handed batters compared to a .269/.331/.474 (42-for-156) slash line vs. right-handed batters.
Has allowed 0HR in four of his nine starts.
Has received 3R-or-fewer of run support in each of his last five starts.
