ANAHEIM–What happened? Twice, the Orioles seemed as if they were about to win the final game of their West Coast swing and secure a winning road trip.
In the eighth inning, the Orioles surrendered a three-run lead with two outs as the Los Angeles Angels tied it, 5-5.
In the 10th, after Pete Alonso’s RBI single gave the Orioles a 6-5 lead, Keegan Akin recorded the first two outs.
Nolan Schanuel grounded to second base, and instead of celebrating a hard-fought win, Akin dropped second baseman Jeremiah Jackson’s low toss, allowing automatic runner Oswald Peraza to score from second as Schanuel raced to third. Akin arrived at the bag the same time as the ball after first baseman Pete Alonso broke to his right, forcing Akin to cover first on a play that should have been Alonso’s.
Logan O’Hoppe then topped a ball just in front of home plate, and catcher Samuel Basallo retrieved it and tried to tag Schanuel, but the runner eluded him, and the Orioles lost, 7-6, before 27,585 at Angel Stadium on Wednesday. Basallo had a better chance to throw to first for the final out of the inning but elected to go for the runner and missed badly.
The Orioles, who lost two of three in Seattle and beat the Dodgers in two of three, nearly had a winning road trip until the two wild plays.
It seemed that either Akin or Alonso could have made the play at first base.
“The first one off the end of the bat kind of in the four hole, looks like Pete took the initial step to go get it and realized JJ was there,” manager Craig Albernaz said. “Akin did a good job of getting off the mound, but it looked like as Akin was closing to the bag, Pete was closing to the bag as well. So Akin looked like he slowed up a little bit, not knowing who was going to be there. Then obviously he missed the ball, and Schanuel kicked it down there [into foul territory]. Then the last one, the swinging bunt, Sammy thought he could tag the guy and he didn’t, he went around him.”
Basallo could have thrown to first base to get O’Hoppe, which would have preserved the tie and sent the game to the 11th.
“That was an instinct play there,” Basallo said through a team translator. “That was my instinct to go for the tag there. Sometimes, you’re going to mess up, and I think I messed up on that play. I don’t think the game should have gotten to that point. I think that’s a game we should have won easily. It was a mental error. But it was a game we should have won earlier. It shouldn’t have gotten to that point.”
Akin (0-1) acknowledged that he could have done a better job on the final two plays, but it was his error that stood out.
“I probably should have covered the base a little bit better, got there a little bit earlier,” he said. “So I guess that one’s on me. I’ll take that, for sure. But, yeah, just kind of fell apart on us there and got away from us.
“J.J. put a good throw, just put it over the base, and I knew Pete was coming. I knew the runner was coming. It was a little low, but I mean, it was catchable, for sure. And that’s kind of why I went down, just to almost protect myself, really.
“I think three people colliding right there at first base probably wouldn’t have been any fun, and I think I was the smallest one out of the three of them, so that’s kind of why I went down on that. Honestly, I thought I caught it. I looked in my glove and the ball wasn’t there. So, close.”
On the final play, Akin said he needed to be more verbal.
“Just a ball that had some spin on it,” he said. “Sammy came out, grabbed it. I probably could have been a lot more helpful than I was. I watched. I probably should have told him, ‘First base.’ I’m not going to disagree with what he did.
“I thought it was the right play until the guy went up and looped out around him. So, just a tough play. I don’t think he could have honestly rolled that ball better, put in a little bit harder spot. I definitely knew I wasn’t going to get to it. Probably should have been a little more verbal there to help out Sammy.”
Alonso explained his positioning.
“In that instance of the game, you’re playing a big infield, you’ve got to do whatever you can to keep the ball in the infield there,” he said. “Yeah, I thought, I took this really hard step and a half into the hole because I thought he hit it a little bit better than he did. And then it was kind of like a softly hit ground ball, and by the time I committed to the ground ball, I was like, ‘Oh, that’s not hit as hard as I initially thought.’ That’s why I wasn’t able to get there.”
How did the game get to extra innings? The Orioles led, 5-2, in the third. Basallo hit a pair of two-run home runs and Alonso had an RBI double.
Trey Gibson started and was pulled after throwing 66 pitches through four innings. Jorge Soler hit a two-run home run in the first, which came after another poor play. With two out, Wade Meckler hit a ground ball to short that Gunnar Henderson waited on, and then spiked a throw to first that Alonso couldn’t handle. Meckler was generously given a hit. Soler then homered.
That was all Gibson allowed, but with seven rested relievers and a day off on Thursday, Albernaz decided to use his bullpen liberally. It didn’t work out.
Grant Wolfram, Tyler Wells and Yennier Cano combined for 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Rico Garcia entered the game with runners on first and second in the seventh and got Christian Moore on a fly out to right.
Garcia was charged with three runs in the eighth as pinch-hitter Vaughn Grissom’s RBI single and Meckler’s two-run single tied it, 5-5. In addition to their shoddy defense, which also included errors by Henderson and Blaze Alexander, the Orioles walked seven batters.
Taylor Ward led off the 10th with a single, sending Alexander, the automatic runner, to third. Alexander tried to score on Gunnar Henderson’s soft grounder, but he was out at the plate on a fabulous catch and flip by Angels reliever Chase Silseth. After Leody Taveras flied to left, Alonso singled to give the Orioles a 6-5 lead.
What’s wrong with Orioles defense? The Orioles poor defense cost them an important win. It also betrayed them last Friday, when they dropped the first game of the three-game series to the Dodgers.
“It’s a constant improvement,” Albernaz said. “Like today, we didn’t help ourselves at all, three errors on the day. We also had seven walks. That’s not a good recipe to win a baseball game.”
What does it mean? The Orioles continue to frustrate their fans with losses like this. Unless the defense improves, they won’t play in the postseason.
What’s the stat of the day? 9.00. Garcia has a 9.00 ERA in June after allowing just two earned runs through May 31st.
What’s the word? “As a group, we just need to execute. That’s it. Execute, play simple — do the simple things well. That’s really it. We have to execute. We can’t let the game get away from us. We just have to execute. Simple as that.”-Alonso on the need for Orioles to improve their defense.
What’s going on in the minor leagues? Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. was removed from Norfolk’s 6-4 loss to Durham in the first game of a doubleheader with left leg discomfort. The Orioles say the move is precautionary.
Dylan Beavers, who’s on the injured list with a strained right oblique, was hitless in three at-bats.
What’s next? After Thursday’s offday, the Orioles will open a three-game series against the Washington Nationals. Trevor Rogers (4-7, 5.30 will start for the Orioles. Washington has yet to name its starter.
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