Orioles manager Brandon Hyde is enjoying his job despite the losses

BALTIMORE—The Orioles’ season is halfway over. With a record of 23-58 and 13 losses in their last 15 games, it hasn’t been the managerial debut Brandon Hyde had hoped for, but he’s still glad he took the job.

“I’m enjoying it,” Hyde said before he got to enjoy Friday night’s 13-0 blowout of the Cleveland Indians. “It’s been challenging, there’s no doubt. I knew going in this wasn’t going to be easy.

“I knew what our expectations were. Me and Mike [general manager Mike Elias] have a lot of very honest conversations …  about how we see the organization and what our plan is, what Mike’s vision is, and we’re really aligned in that.”

A year ago, the Orioles lost a franchise record 115 games, and they’re on pace to lose even more. They also used a record 56 players in 2018, and they’ve already used 44 this year.

“It’s never easy to lose,” Hyde said. “There’s no doubt about it. It’s really, really challenging. You’re looking for positives … you’re looking for positive things that happen up here. We just don’t have the wins that you would like.

“The first couple of months, I felt really good about how our team was playing. We weren’t winning games, but we were in almost every game and very, very competitive … these last couple of weeks has been really, really hard.”

The Orioles have allowed 10 or more runs in 16 games—one in every five, but in the last 17 games, they’ve done it six times.

“You want to see our guys play in those close games,” Hyde said. “You want to see guys come through. You want to see guys have success. It hasn’t been easy.”

The Orioles are 6-11 in one-run games, but they’re 4-25 in games decided by five runs or more. Before Friday night’s decisive victory, they hadn’t won a game by more than five runs since April 23.

“They play hard,” Hyde said. “I’ve had no issues. In my first year, it’s going to be a memorable one for a lot of reasons, but I have had a really good time.”

The Orioles haven’t won a series since April 22-24, 18 consecutive series. They’ve been swept eight times and haven’t won two straight games since May 4-6. They’ll have a chance to end those streaks this weekend.

“I have no idea what our record is,” Hyde said. “I don’t even want to look at it.

“It’s developing these guys and how we play and eventually I’m going to be looking at the standings, and it’s going to be about wins and losses. That’s what the big leagues is about. Right now in our situation, it’s about playing the game the right way. It’s about giving guys opportunity. It’s about trying to win every single night. We just haven’t done that very well.”

Hyde was with the Chicago Cubs when they turned the direction of their franchise around, and he expects to see the Orioles do the same thing.

“It’s going to take time. It’s a process,” Hyde said. “There are some tough, lean years. That’s not easy to go through, but when you come through it, there’s nothing more rewarding. I’m looking forward to that day.”

Minor honors: Delmarva right-hander Grayson Rodriguez and Frederick left-hander DL Hall were named to the American League team in the Futures Game.

Rodriguez, who is 7-1 with a 2.21 ERA for the Shorebirds, and Hall, 2-3 with a 4.25 ERA for the Keys, will travel to Cleveland for the July 7 game.

Rodriguez also started in the June 18 South Atlantic League All-Star Game. He was one of eight Shorebirds named. Hall was not named to the Carolina League All-Star team.

On Thursday, Norfolk first baseman Ryan Mountcastle and left-handed pitcher Keegan Akin were named to the International League team for the Triple-A All-Star game on July 10 in El Paso, Texas.

“There’s a lot of good things happening in our minor league system right now,” Hyde said. “Especially at the lower levels. We’re pitching really well and striking a lot of guys out. I think there’s excitement about that.

“It’s not right around the corner, I think. Anytime … you have guys in our organization that are performing well, being recognized, the Futures Game, that’s a big deal. That’s going to be awesome. It’s on national TV. Those kind of things are great.

“You want to see a healthy organization. Mike’s talked about getting more talent in the organization. We talked about the waves of talent that come through. It sounds like some pitching in our lower levels is doing fantastic. That’s great news for us.”

Rogers’ second opinion set: Pitcher Josh Rogers will visit Dr. Keith Meisner on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas for a second opinion on his left elbow. Roberts, who has a sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament, is on the 10-day injured list.

Rogers had Tommy John surgery in 2013.

Josh Lucas, who is on the IL with a strained right shoulder, threw his first bullpen session since he’s been sidelined.

Gilmartin to Norfolk: Left-handed pitcher Sean Gilmartin, who was designated for assignment on June 25, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Norfolk.