CHICAGO—What happened? The first seven innings were frustrating for the Orioles. Playing in bitter cold, with the temperature at game time 36 degrees, they wasted numerous scoring opportunities against the Chicago White Sox and seemed as if they’d waste another strong start from Trevor Rogers.
Their frustration started early when not one of their first 11 batters put the ball in play. It was further illustrated by the pitching line of Chicago starter Shane Smith, who threw 99 pitches in 3 2/3 innings and didn’t give up a run.
But in the eighth, Blaze Alexander and Taylor Ward doubled against Jordan Hicks, and Gunnar Henderson ripped a two-run home run in the Orioles’ 4-2 win over the Chicago White Sox before 10,750 brave souls at Rate Field on Tuesday.
It was Henderson’s fourth home run, his second in as many games. He hit it against left-hander Chris Murphy. Two of his four home runs this season are against lefties. Last year, he hit just three.
Henderson had a trying moment in the second inning when the Orioles loaded the bases with two outs, and he struck out on the 12th pitch of the at-bat against Smith.
“I felt like I was seeing the ball pretty well and just had nothing to show for it, and then was able to get one and didn’t miss it,” Henderson said.
The White Sox decided to move up the game’s start by 4 ½ hours, but it was still extraordinarily cold.
“It was very difficult,” Rogers said. “It was next to impossible just to stay warm or stay loose out there. I think at one point my fastball was at 89 [mph], so it’s just one of those days where [there were] no excuses to be had, we knew what the weather was gonna be coming into this series. I just tried to stay as loose as I could and execute the pitches to the best of my ability and let my defense work.”
The Orioles had chances against Smith, who had a 19.29 ERA in his first two starts. Smith walked two in the first inning, two more along with a hit batsman in the second. Still, the Orioles couldn’t push home a run.
After Alexander reached on an error and Ward walked with two outs in the third, Smith was lifted. He walked five and struck out eight with his 99 piches.
The Orioles were 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position and left 14 runners on base.
Rogers, who allowed two runs on nine hits in 13 innings in his first two starts, retired the first eight White Sox batters before he allowed three straight hits, yielding two runs. He wasn’t helped by his outfield defense.
Chase Meidroth dropped a ball in front of Ward in left field that resulted in a double because the leftfielder stumbled as he closed on the ball, allowing the ball to hit off his shoulder. The hit scored Derek Hill from first. Lenyn Sosa hit another soft single to center that scored Meidroth to give the White Sox a 2-0 lead.
Rogers gave up two runs on six hits in six innings, striking out six without walking a batter. One of his strikeouts was against Andrew Benintendi, who swung at an inside fastball that hit him on the shoulder.
The Orioles finally scored in the fifth against Sean Newcomb when Samuel Basallo walked. Tyler O’Neill singled, and Basallo scored on Ryan Mountcastle’s infield out.
Yennier Cano (1-1) pitched a perfect eighth. Grant Wolfram, Anthony Nunez and Ryan Helsley combined for two hitless innings.
Helsley converted his fourth save, though he’s yet to pitch a clean inning. Dustin Harris walked before Helsley struck out Tristan Peters and Munetaka Murakami, and Hill flied to center.
After losing three straight in Pittsburgh, the Orioles (5-6) have won the first two against Chicago (4-7).
“We haven’t started the season the way we wanted to, but we’re going to go for the sweep tomorrow, even our record back up,” Alexander said. “We’re back home, back home ready to rock, try to win two more series there, then we’re rolling. That’s how things get started.”
What does Henderson mean to the Orioles? Albernaz has quickly learned how important Henderson is to his team.
“Gunnar, he was pretty frustrated with some at-bats, but we talk about Gunnar all the time, like, I love when he gets frustrated but also he’s never out of it,” Albernaz said. “He’s never out of the game. He’s always in the at-bat, and for him to come through, it was awesome.”
He hadn’t seen him that excited.
“No. No. I mean, he’s shown flashes of it, but I think that one, obviously, go-ahead homer off a lefty, late in the game, yeah, he deserves to be excited. I love seeing that,” Albernaz said.
Alexander has only been his teammate for a short time, but he appreciates Henderson’s work.
“That’s it. We’re down runs. You’ve got your best player at the plate, and that’s what happens, man,” Alexander said. “He’s going to be better than most, if not every pitcher. I want that guy up, and he was up in that situation, and bang, ballgame.”
Rogers is also a Henderson fan.
“We know what type of team this team can be,” he said. “Everyone in this clubhouse has that belief. We are 11 games in, and we got off to a slow start, but every guy still has the belief.
“We all know what this team can look like, what this team can be, and Gunnar’s the guy for us. The fact that he came up in that spot and pulled through, that’s why he is who he is. He’s the man. So it was huge for him to come up in that spot and pull us ahead in that spot.”
How did Rogers pitch? If the Orioles had converted on some of those early scoring chances, Rogers would have gotten his third win, even though he was critical of his start.
“That was definitely, in terms of stuff, probably the worst one of the year,” Rogers said. “It was one that I had to bear down after that third inning on, I had to bear down, just grind through it and try to make pitches the best I could and keep my team in it. I was able to do that.”
Albernaz appreciated the effort.
“It wasn’t his best, but he just keeps on competing, and he was filling up the strike zone,” Albernaz said. “He was landing his offspeed stuff. He got a little out of whack that one inning, but he kept on going and he gave us six, you know. And that sixth inning, we were kind of going back and forth about if to take him out, when to take him out, but he was efficient and he kept on throwing strikes, he kept on forcing the hitters to make decisions, kept on forcing weak contact, so that was awesome for him to give us six.”
What does it mean? Alexander revealed that Henderson isn’t shy about calling out opponents trying to steal signs.
“Gunnar’s one of the biggest, and I’ve only been here for a little bit, one of the biggest competitors that I’ve played with,” Alexander said.
“He’s not afraid to speak his mind. You know, certain guys out in the field, trying to steal pitches, relay signs, and he’ll straightforward tell someone to their face, knock it off. That’s what you want, and he’s a leader in this ballclub. He’s one of the best players in the world, and I’m fortunate to be on this team, man. He’s the man.”
What’s the stat of the day? 1-for-23. Pete Alonso has one hit in his last 23 at-bats.
What’s going on in the minor leagues? Ike Irish had three hits and drove in two runs in High-A Frederick’s 7-6 loss to Winston-Salem in 10 innings. Victor Figueroa homered.
What’s the word? “I feel like I’m very close to getting back to where I want to be and making good swing decisions and giving myself plenty of chances to get the job done.”-Henderson on his at-bats.
What’s next? Kyle Bradish (0-2, 6.23) will start against Sean Burke (0-1, 3.60) on Wednesday at 2:10 p.m.
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