CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
GUARDS PLATE 5 AGAIN, FALL TO ORIOLES
The Guardians followed Monday’s 5-0 Memorial Day shutout with an 8-5 loss to the Orioles on Tuesday night at Camden Yards, evening the series at one win apiece…club enters today’s finale seeking back-to-back series wins for first time since March 30-April 5 after taking first two series of the season in Seattle & Oakland.
The Guardians made a late push to get back into the contest, but were ultimately unable to overcome an early offensive surge by the Orioles, who plated all 8 of their tallies against starter CAL QUANTRILL (4.1IP, 8H, 8R-ER, 2BB, 3SO, WP, HB, 85 pitches)… Quantrill surrendered a 2-run double to Gunnar Henderson in the 1st that was preceded by a single, walk and wild pitch…the Orioles put together a mammoth 5-run rally in the 2nd that began with a hit batter to start the frame and included a pair of singles, a bases-loaded walk, a 3-run triple by Anthony Santander and a sac fly by Austin Hays…Santander also doubled to lead off the 5th and scored on Henderson’s RBI-single…JOSH BELL put Cleveland on the board with an RBI-single in the 4th and added a sac fly just ahead of an RBI-double from ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ in the 6th…
JOSH NAYLOR also delivered a 2-out, 2-run single in the 7th…O’s right-hander Kyle Gibson fell one out shy of a quality start to notch his 7th win (5.2IP, 7H, 3R-ER, BB, 3SO, 95 pitches).
Cleveland (24-30) sits in 3rd place in AL Central standings, 3.5 games behind 1st-place Minnesota (28-27) and 1.5 games behind 2nd-place Detroit (-2.0G, 25-28)…despite winning 3 of 5 and 4 of last 8 games, Guardians have dropped 24 of last 39 overall since starting year 9-6…Cleveland is 1-1 to begin a 7-game road trip through Baltimore (1-1, one-to-play) & Minnesota (4G); club has dropped 4 of 5 and 10 of last 13 road games (12-15 overall).
RUBBER MATCH WEDNESDAY
The Guards enter today 8-4 in their last 12 games against Baltimore and 1,149-872 (.569) all-time against the O’s with a run differential of +1,211…the club has won 4 of its last 9 road series against the Orioles since 2013, but are looking to win a series in Baltimore in consecutive seasons (2022, 2-1), last done in 2017-18 (3-1 from 6/19-6/22/2017 & 3-1 from 8/17-8/19/2018)…the Guards hold a 4-5 record in rubber matches this season, going 1-2 on the road…last season, Cleveland finished 8-6 in rubber matches with a 4-4 record in road contests.
BELIEVE IN THE BULLPEN
In 2023, the Guardians bullpen ranks highly in several categories…among all MLB clubs, they lead the league with 20 saves, a 1.17 WHIP and a .292 OBP allowed…the ‘pen also ranks 2nd behind New York-AL with a 3.04 ERA, 7.22 H/9 and a .218 average against…the bullpen has performed effectively since May 22 by allowing only one earned run across 27.1 innings pitched, giving them a league-leading 0.33 ERA during that span…San Francisco is the next closest team with a 0.44 ERA (2ER/40.2IP)… Cleveland trails only San Francisco among league-leading bullpens in WHIP (0.80), OBP (.216), H/9 (4.28) and average against (.140) since May 22…since 2022, the Guards bullpen ranks 1st in saves (71) average against (.211), H/9 (6.95), BR/9 (10.48), OBP (.286) and BABIP (.266)…they also rank 2nd in WHIP (1.13), P/IP (16.0), hits allowed (566), 3rd in ERA (3.02), inherited runner score rate (26.7%) and OPS (.630),
EMMANUEL CLASE has 17 saves in 2023 and 59 saves since 2022, leading all MLB relievers…his 27 appearances this year rank T2nd in MLB behind Miami’s Andrew Nardi (28) and his 104 games since 2022 lead all MLB relievers…his 13.4 P/IP ranks 1st, .230 OBP ranks 3rd, 7.94 BR/9 ranks 4th and 0.87 WHIP ranks 5th among MLB relievers since 2022…NICK SANDLIN’s 0.78 WHIP, .214 OBP and 6.98 BR/9 all rank 5th among 2023 AL relievers… his .203 BABIP since 2022 ranks 5th and his .140 BABIP ranks 6th among 2023 MLB relievers…Sandlin’s 12.5% (2-for-16) inherited runner score rate ranks 5th among AL relievers this season, one spot behind ENYEL DE LOS SANTOS (1-for-11, 9.1%).
TITO TERRIFIC
Terry Francona currently owns a career record of 1,898-1,616, putting him at 16th all-time in manager wins (Elias)…with two more victories, he will pass Hall-of-Famer Bill McKechnie (1,899-1,724) for 15th-most wins in MLB history and become the 15th manager to reach 1,500 wins…with 4 more victories, he will pass Gene Mauch (1,901-2,037) for 14th-most wins…among active managers, he ranks 3rd, behind TEX’s Bruce Bochy (2,038-2,048) and HOU’s Dusty Baker (2,125-1,812).
Francona spent four years in Philadelphia from 1997-2000, going 285-363…he spent eight seasons with Boston, winning 2 World Series and owning a 744-552 record while boasting all but two seasons with 90+ wins…in his 11 years with Cleveland, he has gone 867-699, winning 4 AL Central titles and reaching the World Series in 2016.
THE GUARDIAC KIDS
The Guardians lead MLB with 25 one-run games out of their 54 games played this season, owning an 11-14 record in such contests…the Guards 11 victories rank T2nd in MLB behind Miami’s 15 such wins…Cleveland’s 25 one-run contests are T3rd-most in club history through the first 54 games of a season, the most since 1966 when they went 18-7 over 25 one-run contests…the Guardians are the first MLB team with 25 one-run contests in their first 54 games since the 2015 Chicago Cubs (15-10, .600).
The Guards also lead MLB this season with 36 games decided by 2-runs-or-less, holding an 18-18 record…Cleveland has the most games decided by 2-runs-or-less in the first 54 games of a season since the 2015 Seattle Mariners (17-21)…the Guardians 36 contests decided by 2-runs-or-less are tied for the most through the first 54 games of a season in franchise history.
MOST CLE 2-RUNS-OR-LESS GAMES IN FIRST 52G
YEAR COUNT RECORD (W%)
2023 36 18-18 (.500)
1910 36 18-13-5 (.569)
1968 35 19-15-1 (.557)
1944 35 18-17 (.514)
1943 35 18-17 (.514)
RAMÍREZ RE-WRITING RECORD BOOKS » JOSÉ RAMÍREZ enters today with 536 extra-base hits, the 6th-most in club history…with 3 more extra-base hits, he will pass Ken Keltner (538) for 5th-most by a Cleveland hitter…since 2018, Ramírez leads all MLB hitters with 347 extra-base hits…he has 198 career home runs as a Clevelander, and is 3 homers away from passing Travis Hafner (200) for 9th-most in franchise history…he is also tied with Carlos Baerga (170) for 10th-most go-ahead RBI in franchise history
TODAY’S STARTER – 57 SHANE BIEBER RHP
BIEBER’S MLB CAREER
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 4-3 3.04 11 11 71.0 68 25 24 19 49
Career 58-29 3.16 124 122 774.0 686 292 272 172 880
BIEBER ON THE ROAD
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 1-2 3.35 7 7 45.2 47 18 17 7 30
Career 35-13 2.84 69 68 444.1 367 150 140 89 506
TODAY’S START
The 2020 Cy Young winner is scheduled to make his 12th start of the season, eighth on the road, in the rubber match of this 3-game set with Baltimore…the right-hander is making today’s start on his 28th birthday…is making this appearance on 4 days rest after his last outing on Friday at St. Louis; is 31-13 with a 3.27 ERA (144ER/396.2IP) in his career on 4 days rest…Cleveland has a 79-43 record in Bieber’s 122 career starts but is 4-7 in 2023.
ME? I’M JUST AN OLD SCHOOL GEMINI
Bieber is making today’s start on his 28th birthday…his only other start on his birthday was his Major League debut on his 23rd birthday in 2018, a 9-8 victory at Minnesota…he did not factor into the decision after working 5.2 innings, allowing 4 runs (earned) on 8 hits with 6 strikeouts and one walk…Cleveland is 24-24-1 when a starter pitches on their birthday…the last starter to earn a win on their birthday was Derek Lowe (W, 6.2IP, 5H, 1R/ER, 1BB, 2SO) on June 1, 2012 vs. Minnesota.
LAST TIME OUT
Bieber earned his first win since May 9 on Friday in a 4-3 victory against the Cardinals, allowing 2 runs (earned) on 5 hits with 2 strikeouts and 4 walks across 6.2 innings…he worked through the 5th inning without giving up a run, despite allowing a baserunner in every frame but the 2nd…the Cards managed their first run after Lars Nootbaar and Paul Goldschmidt singled to start the 6th frame…Nootbaar would score off a sacrifice fly from Nolan Arenado…Brenden Donovan singled to lead off the seventh and reach third base following a wild pitch from Bieber…Alec Burleson would produce a sacrifice fly of his own, scoring Donovan, Bieber’s second mark of the day…Bieber would walk the next two batters before being pulled, both batters did not score…he’s now had a quality start in 9 of his 11 outings this season and his 4 walks tied a season-high (also April 22 vs. MIA).
OMAR’S COMING!
Is making his fifth career start against Baltimore…boasts a 3-1 record with a 1.45 ERA (5ER/31.0IP) and 48 strikeouts against 3 walks and a 16:1 SO/BB ratio…it’s his lowest ERA against any opponent he’s made multiple starts against…suffered the loss in his last outing against the O’s on September 1, 2022 at Progressive Field (L, 7.0IP, 6H 3R/ER, 3HR, 1BB, 11SO).
Twirled his first career complete-game shutout against Baltimore on May 19, 2019, striking out 15 and walking none…became the third Cleveland pitcher to accomplish the feat…Luis Tiant (July 3, 1968, 10.0IP, 19 SO) and Sam McDowell (May 1, 1968, 9.0IP, 16SO) both threw 15+ strikeout complete game shutouts in 1968… only 17 different pitchers have ever achieved such a statline…has 4 straight quality starts against Baltimore, the 2nd-longest active streak behind TOR’s José Berríos (5) and BAL’s own, Kyle Gibson (5)…has worked 7.0+ innings and struck out 11+ batters in every career start against Baltimore.
The right-hander is 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA (6ER/22.0IP) in 3 starts against the AL East this season, holding opposing hitters to a .195 (15-for-77) average…is 13-8 in 26 appearances (25 starts) with a 3.69 ERA (68ER/165.2IP) in his career against the AL East.
HIGH QUALITY
After beginning the season with quality starts in 9 of his first 11 outings, Bieber has a made quality start in 20 of his last 24 starts, including an 11 start-streak from July 29-September 22, 2022…he ranks 2nd in both MLB and the AL with 32 quality starts since 2022, trailing Houston’s Framber Valdez (35)
BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:
BACK IN THE WIN COLUMN: The Orioles defeated the Guardians yesterday, 8-5, in the second game of the three-game set at Oriole Park…Have gone 11-4 against the AL Central this season, their best winning percentage and tied for their most wins against a single division in 2023 (11-7 vs. AL East)…Tallied five runs in the bottom of the second, their ninth time this season scoring at least five runs in an inning and first since plating a season-high eight runs in the top of the seventh on May 24 at New York-AL.
BURNING RUBBER: The O’s and Guardians square off in a rubber game in today’s series finale…The Birds have gone 5-3 in rubber matches this season and have won their last two, on May 10 vs. Tampa Bay and May 25 at New York-AL; went 11-11 in such games in 2022.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: Of Baltimore’s 55 games this season, 49 have been decided by four or fewer runs, tied with Los Angeles-AL for the most in MLB…The O’s have gone 32-17 in those games, the most wins and best winning percentage (.653) in MLB…The O’s are 23-13 in games decided by three or fewer runs, the most wins and best winning percentage (.639) in MLB.
APRIL SHOWERS BRING MAY POWER: Anthony Santander is slashing .344/.432/.625 (33-for-96) with seven doubles, one triple, six home runs, 17 runs scored, 20 RBI, and 13 walks in 26 games in May after slashing .213/.280/.362 (20-for-94) with eight doubles, two home runs, eight runs scored, 11 RBI, and 10 walks in 25 games in March/ April; has reached base safely in 23 of 26 games this month and has a hit in 19 of those games, including 11 multi-hit efforts…His 1.057 OPS in May is second in the AL and fifth in MLB (see box at right)…For the month, he also ranks fourth in the AL and sixth in MLB in on-base percentage, tied for fourth in the AL in RBI and extra-base hits (14), fifth in the AL and 10th in MLB in slugging percentage and total bases (60), tied for fifth in the AL in hits, sixth in the AL in batting average, and tied for sixth in the AL in home runs…On the season, he leads switch hitters with an .853 OPS.
Went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple, two runs scored, and three RBI last night; has recorded at least three hits in back-to-back games for the second time in his career (also: 8/24-25/21).
His three extra-base hits last night tied his career high for the fifth time (last: 9/27/22 at BOS).
Knocked a three-RBI triple in the second inning last night, the fourth triple of his career (last: 8/6/20 vs. MIA); became the first O’s batter to hit a bases-loaded triple since Jace Peterson on May 2, 2018 at Los Angeles-AL in the top of the ninth inning.
FEELS GOOD TO BE HOME: The O’s wrap up a six-game homestand today…The homestand began this past weekend with three games against the Rangers (1-2) before a three-game set against the Guardians (1-1)…The Birds are 17-11 (.607) in Baltimore and own the fourth-best home winning percentage in the AL and fifth-best in MLB…Their 17 home wins are third in the AL and tied for fourth in MLB.
AGAINST THE GUARDIANS: The O’s are facing the Guardians for the third of seven games this season…The Birds will travel to Cleveland for four games at Progressive Field from September 21-24…Baltimore went 3-3 against Cleveland in 2022, 1-2 at Oriole Park and 2-1 at Progressive Field…The O’s have not won a season series against the Guardians since 2016 (5-1).
WHAT’S TRENDING: The O’s have won 26 of their last 39 games, 29 of 43, and 31 of 46… The 35-20 overall record ranks third in MLB to start the season (see box at right)… Entering today, the Rays (39-18) and Rangers (35-19) are the only other teams with 35 wins this season, as well as the only other teams with 20 or fewer losses.
Last season, the Birds did not collect their 35th win until their 75th game on June 27 (35-40); they did not reach 36 wins until their 80th game on July 3 (36-44), which was the start of their 10-game winning streak.
THE SKIPPER: Manager Brandon Hyde managed his 600th career game with the Orioles on Monday, becoming the sixth skipper to manage 600 games for the Orioles, along with Earl Weaver (2,541), Buck Showalter (1,353), Paul Richards (1,063), Hank Bauer (726), and Mike Hargrove (649)…Managed his 600th overall game on Sunday; served one game as Miami’s interim manager on June 19, 2011 against Tampa Bay, following the resignation of manager Edwin Rodriguez…Hyde is currently in his fifth season as manager of the Orioles after being named the 20th manager in club history on December 14, 2018…In 2022, he led the O’s to an 83-79 record, his first winning season as manager and the club’s first winning campaign since 2016…He was named the Baseball America MLB Manager of the Year and was voted the Sporting News American League Manager of the Year by fellow AL managers…He finished second in voting for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) American League Manager of the Year award.
BIG TIME RUTSCH: Adley Rutschman leads the AL and ranks second in MLB with 43 walks…He ranks fourth in the AL and ninth in MLB with a .402 on-base percentage… He leads all primary catchers and all switch hitters in on-base percentage…He leads the AL and ranks tied for fourth in MLB with 97 times reaching base safely this season (54 H, 43 BB)…He has reached base safely at least three times in 15 games this year, the most in the AL and fifth-most in MLB.
MOUNT UP: Ryan Mountcastle ranks fifth in MLB with 28 Barrels, per Statcast, trailing only New York-AL’s Aaron Judge (33), Toronto’s Matt Chapman (31), Atlanta’s Matt Olson (30), and New York-NL’s Pete Alonso (29)…He ranks tied for seventh in the AL and 13th in MLB with 80 Hard-Hit Balls…His 38 RBI rank tied for ninth in the AL and tied for 15th in MLB; they rank fourth among primary first basemen, trailing only New YorkNL’s Pete Alonso (46), Atlanta’s Matt Olson (42), and Los Angeles-NL’s Max Muncy (39).
SOLID CONTACT: The Orioles rank tied with the Rangers and Yankees for fourth in MLB with an 89.9 mph average exit velocity, per Statcast, trailing the Braves (91.2 mph), Rays (90.3 mph), and Angels (90.1 mph)…Baltimore’s 15.0 degree average launch angle on batted balls is the second-highest in the majors, trailing only the Dodgers (15.4)…Baltimore’s 588 Hard-Hit Balls rank sixth in the AL and ninth in MLB.
WHAT A RELIEF: The Baltimore bullpen owns a 3.15 ERA (72 ER/206.0 IP), the fourth-best in MLB behind the Yankees (2.90), Guardians (3.03), and Astros (3.07)…O’s relievers have 16 wins this season, tied with the Yankees for the most in the majors… The O’s are second in MLB with 237 strikeouts from the ‘pen, trailing the Royals (252).
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – #51 AUSTIN VOTH RHP
QUICK HITS: Slated to make his 19th appearance of the season, 12th at home, and second career appearance against the Guardians this afternoon behind opener Keegan Akin…Claimed off waivers by the O’s from Washington on June 7, 2022; designated for assignment by the Nationals on May 31, 2022… Originally selected in the fifth round of the 2013 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Washington.
LAST TIME OUT: Did not factor into the decision in his last outing on May 26 vs. Texas…Allowed one run on two hits with two walks, a hit batter, and one strikeout in a career-high 3.2 innings of relief…Has pitched to a 1.96 ERA (4 ER/18.1 IP) with 18 strikeouts in 13 appearances since April 16; had a 9.00 ERA (8 ER/8.0 IP) in his first five games of the year…Threw a season-high 62 pitches, 42 strikes.
CAREER AGAINST THE GUARDIANS: Making his second career appearance against the Guardians today…Earned the win in his only outing against Cleveland with Washington on September 27, 2019 at Nationals Park…Made the start and allowed two runs on two hits with five strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work…Threw 73 pitches, 43 strikes.
CAREER AGAINST THE AL CENTRAL: Making his 11th career appearance against the AL Central…Owns a 3-1 record with a 4.05 ERA (15 ER/33.1 IP) and two holds through his first 10 appearances (six starts) against the division.
HOME COOKING: Making his 12th home appearance of the 2023 campaign this afternoon…Has pitched to a 4.32 ERA (8 ER/16.2 IP) and one hold through his first 11 appearances at Oriole Park this season…Owns a 4-1 record with a 3.78 ERA (28 ER/66.2 IP) through his first 23 appearances (11 starts) at Oriole Park with the O’s and the Nationals.
DAY ‘N’ NITE: Sports a 1-1 record with a 3.55 ERA (5 ER/12.2 IP) in 10 day appearances compared to an 0-0 record with a 4.61 ERA (7 ER/13.2 IP) in eight night outings this season…Allowed an unearned run on two hits with a season-high-tying three strikeouts (also: 4/5 at TEX) in his last day appearance on May 21 at Toronto…Threw 38 pitches, 24 strikes…Made 10 day appearances (eight starts) with the O’s in 2022, pitching to a 1-3 record with a 1.99 ERA (9 ER/40.2 IP) and two quality starts in those games…Posted a 2.28 ERA (12 ER/47.1 IP) in 17 day appearances (eight starts) between the O’s and the Nationals in 2022; ranked 12th-best in MLB (min. 47.0 IP).
