CLEVELAND — How the Orioles would line up against left-handed starting pitchers was one of the biggest unanswered questions coming out of the trade deadline.
Baltimore’s game against Guardians southpaw Joey Cantillo on Saturday night was the club’s first against a lefty since July 21 — and its first since losing right-handed bats Austin Hays and Jordan Westburg to trade and injury, respectively. The Orioles are considerably worse against left-handed starters this season, winning only two of their past 10 games in those matchups.
Manager Brandon Hyde ran out an unconventional lineup against the 24-year-old Cantillo with two trade deadline acquisitions, both right-handed hitters, batting in the top six. Austin Slater was a surprise in the leadoff spot instead of Colton Cowser and Eloy Jiménez was batting sixth in the duo’s first start since joining the Orioles two days ago.
The makeshift lineup worked.
Slater and Jiménez delivered with a combined four hits and Hyde’s maneuvering in a four-run eighth paid dividends, leading the Orioles to a 7-4 win over the MLB-best Guardians to evade a third straight loss. Baltimore tallied 15 hits — four doubles, one triple and 10 singles — for the first time since July 6 and the first time in a victory since June 20.
“Austin Slater is a real pro and … Eloy with really good at-bats,” Hyde said. “This was one of our better offensive games in a long time. Just the quality of the at-bat, how hard we hit the baseball, using the whole field. We just did a lot of really good things offensively tonight up and down the order.”
Slater doubled and reached on a bunt single, Jiménez went 2-for-3 with an RBI single and Hyde’s pinch hitters came through clutch in the eighth to provide needed insurance. Adley Rutschman, hitting for Jiménez, ripped a two-run triple — greatly aided by poor defense from Guardians right fielder Jhonkensy Noel — and Ryan O’Hearn, replacing newcomer Coby Mayo, lined a double down the right field line.
“Well, when they get hits, it works out great,” Hyde quipped about his pinch hitters. “When they pop up or punch out, not so much.”
When the Orioles traded Hays to the Philadelphia Phillies, it left a hole in their lineups against left-handed starters, which they entered hitting .237 against with an OPS nearly 60 points worse than righties. The picture became even more bleak when Westburg went down with a fractured right hand. Baltimore entered 49-33 against right-handed starters and 16-13 versus southpaws.
But, for at least one game, Slater and Jiménez stepped up to fill their shoes.
“Austin is going to give you a good at-bat against a left hander,” Hyde said. “Eloy is just a professional hitter, against left and right. Eloy won a Silver Slugger so he can flat out hit.”
The additions of Slater and Jiménez were ones that cost the Orioles little given their struggles this season. Slater was hitting just .185 with a .530 OPS, while the oft-injured Jiménez was hitting .240 with a .642 OPS.
“It was definitely a huge vote of confidence and believing in my track record,” Slater said of Hyde putting him in the leadoff spot for his first start as an Oriole. “Just believing that it’s been a rough stretch and that it’s about time to turn it around, and hopefully I can keep building off tonight.”
Also a trade deadline acquisition, starting pitcher Zach Eflin overcame a two-run homer from Angel Martínez in the third to pitch 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball for a second straight quality start to begin his Orioles career. Eflin surrendered only five hits and walked one while striking out three. Baltimore is 2-0 in games he’s started since the club acquired him from the Tampa Bay Rays, both caught by veteran catcher James McCann.
“This is exactly what we’ve seen him to do us,” Hyde said of Eflin. “He’s really tough to hit.”
Cionel Pérez, Seranthony Domínguez and Yennier Cano covered the game’s final 2 2/3 innings, with Domínguez allowing a two-run homer to José Ramírez in the eighth to cut Baltimore’s advantage to three. Cano — not closer Craig Kimbrel — was tasked to slam the door in the ninth, retiring the side in order for his fifth save.
Baltimore improved to 66-46 to remain tied atop the American League East with the New York Yankees (66-46), who won for the sixth time in seven games Saturday.
Slater kickstarted the club’s impressive offensive display with a leadoff double. The eight-year veteran has extensive leadoff experience as a platoon player with the San Francisco Giants, and the 31-year-old said he’s already been working on swing changes with the Orioles to break out of his slump.
“I know the results really haven’t been there, at least so far this season, but really excited to work with this new hitting staff and getting my swing going,” he said. “I’ve already seen the early results from some swing changes and hopefully the confidence keeps growing and I can keep contributing like that tonight.”
Jiménez’s RBI single in the fourth put the Orioles on the board, while Cowser’s single tied the game and extended his hitting streak to 16 games, one short of Baltimore’s rookie record set by Trey Mancini in 2017. Jackson Holliday’s opposite-field double off the left field wall to lead off the fifth chased Cantillo, who allowed three runs in four innings in his second major league start. The 20-year-old infielder came around to score the go-ahead run on Gunnar Henderson’s single.
Holliday and several of the other young players have enjoyed the “Golden Tee” golf arcade game in the visiting clubhouse at Progressive Field. The top prospect might have found his new good-luck charm.
“I made a hole-in-one on a par 5 today, so I think that was a guaranteed two hits,” he joked. “So I’ll have to try to do that tomorrow as well.”
Henderson doubled and Anthony Santander singled to lead off the eighth to set up Rutschman’s pinch-hit triple. After O’Hearn’s double, Holliday laced an RBI single to cap off the four-run frame for consecutive multihit games after the first of his career in Friday’s loss.
“I’m so happy. One thing we talked about for a couple of years is how we can always get better at tacking on runs, and tonight that was huge obviously because of where they were in their order and just how dangerous they are,” Hyde said. “So to get that four-spot there, with really good at-bats in that inning, a couple guys off the bench with great at-bats, just a really good offensive night.”
The Orioles will attempt to leave Cleveland (67-43) with a split after losing the series’ first two contests before continuing with their 10-game road trip in Toronto and Tampa Bay. To achieve that goal, it helps to have ace Corbin Burnes on the mound.
Orioles at Guardians
Sunday, 1:40 p.m.
TV: MASN
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
