Peter Schmuck: Maybe all the O’s needed was for someone to tell them they weren’t good enough

It was nice that Orioles president of baseball ops Mike Elias said Monday that he still believed in his team even though he had just jettisoned several of its best players, but it was what he didn’t have to say that may turn out to be the motivation this group needs to get over the hump.

The players, the manager, the front office and even the media have spent the first four months of this disappointing season repeating the same mantra – that the Orioles are a talented team that eventually will wake up and play like one.

Except for one glorious seven-game stretch, they have done the opposite and proven that they are an accurate reflection of their sub-.500 record. So Elias, though he would never admit it, decided it was time for all of us to stop fooling ourselves and for him to take some practical – albeit unpopular – action to assure that 2026 would not be a total loss.

What was not said – and didn’t have to be after Adley Rutschman, Taylor Ward and Tyler Wells were sent packing – was a challenge to every player still on the roster:

If you’re really better than this, now is the time to prove it.

The mini-teardown was clearly a shock to the system and left some players emotionally bereft, but business is business and it is now their business to figure out a way to get to the playoffs and show – despite recent appearances – that they really are a resilient bunch, not just a team that can occasionally bounce back from a particularly frustrating defeat.

There have been a lot of those for a variety of reasons, none of which were solved by the roster reshuffle. Everybody knows that you can’t build momentum when the top of your lineup spends so many games producing nothing through the first five innings. It’s tough to take full advantage of a very talented starting rotation with so little support and such an undependable defense.

What the O’s need now (other than love, sweet love) is a recommitment to the little things that win games and exploit strong pitching performances. The hitters need to know when to extend at-bats and wear down opposing starters. They need to be less, not more aggressive in the most promising situations with multiple runners in scoring position and allow the pressure to build on the mound. Knowing when to “pass the baton” is more than just a cliche.

Oh, and one other thing. Maybe abandon the contact play at third base. It isn’t working.

Things already are looking up. The Orioles are on the verge of sweeping the woeful Angels and inching closer to that third wild-card position, but they remain chronically inconsistent at the plate and there is far more formidable competition dead ahead.

We’ll probably have a much better idea of their postseason viability in a couple of weeks. For now, we’ll have to hope that the best way to get them to the playoffs is to tell them they can’t.