The surging Baltimore Orioles are out of postseason contention, but they still can influence a division race Friday night when they visit the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Orioles (69-77) have won nine of their past 11 games and are 8-1 in September entering the three-game series with the leaders of the American League East.
The Blue Jays (84-62) will be wary of the Orioles after dropping three of four at Baltimore the last time the teams met July 28-30, a series that included a doubleheader. The Orioles lead the season series 6-4.
Both teams are coming off series wins at home. The Orioles completed a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 3-2 victory on Thursday.
The Blue Jays won the rubber match of their three-game set against the Houston Astros 6-0 Thursday behind a two-hit shutout by Kevin Gausman.
The Orioles are scheduled to start left-hander Trevor Rogers (8-2, 1.51 ERA) in the series opener. He is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in two career starts against the Blue Jays.
Right-hander Chris Bassitt (11-8, 3.97) is Toronto’s expected starter. He is 5-4 with a 5.40 ERA in 10 career starts against the Orioles, including a 1-1 mark and a 7.56 ERA in 2025.
Baltimore rookie Dylan Beavers had the go-ahead RBI single on Thursday after delivering his first walk-off hit in the 10th inning on Wednesday in a 2-1 victory. It was the Orioles’ fourth walk-off win in the past five games.
A big reason for Baltimore’s recent success is the team’s major league-leading 2.36 ERA in September with three saves in four opportunities. The staff has allowed 64 hits in 84 innings.
“The pitching,” Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “Obviously, the hitters have to score the runs at the end to walk them off, but if you are giving up five by the third inning every night, it is hard to get back in those games.”
The Orioles dealt away some key relievers by the trade deadline, including Seranthony Dominguez to the Blue Jays.
“Once we traded away the bullpen at the deadline … not panic, but just a lot of unknown for me on Aug. 1,” Mansolino said. “A month, a month and a half into it, and to see these guys kind of formulating a competitive bullpen in the big leagues in the AL East, I think we are incredibly proud of these guys.”
Toronto heads into the weekend with a three-game lead in the division over the New York Yankees.
The Blue Jays are close to officially clinching a postseason spot, and Gausman is making a strong case to be the starting pitcher to open their first series. He needed only 100 pitches (79 strikes) to record his second career shutout and the fourth career complete game on Thursday. He walked one and struck out nine. He is 3-2 with a 2.02 ERA over his past seven starts.
“He seems to be peaking at the right time,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “He has been on a good roll for a good bit now. It is nice to have that presence.”
The Orioles may not be going to the postseason, but they can expect a playoff-like atmosphere for the weekend set.
“I feel like every home game we’ve played for a while now has felt like a postseason game,” Gausman said. “It’s just the atmosphere, the energy in the building.”
–Field Level Media
