O’s Gaming Blog: Birds try to avoid getting swept in Houston series finale

HOUSTON – After their series win at Yankee Stadium produced such good videos, baseball fought back against the Orioles this weekend in Houston. They were 11 runs behind Friday night and held to one run and four hits Saturday as they lost 14-11 and 5-1.

The Orioles (49-27) were unswept in 106 straight regular-season series, a streak that ended when they were swept last month in St. Louis. A loss today and they will have been swept twice in the last 10 series.

Between the two series, they played very good baseball, going 4-0 in Chicago against the White Sox, 2-1 in each of the two home series against Boston and Tampa Bay, then 2-2 in Toronto and 4-0 at Tampa Bay. . The club then went 2-1 against Atlanta and Philadelphia and in New York against the Yankees.

They are 7-0-1 in eight series since St. Louis, but need a win today to avoid their second 0-3 series of the year.

The Orioles had scored 28 runs in two games, 35 in three and 51 in their last six games until they were stopped by right-hander Ronel Blanco and two relievers on Saturday.

The Orioles have therefore lost two games in a row, three out of five and five out of their last nine games. They have won 10 of 15, 15 of 23 and 20 of their last 29 games.

Jordan Westburg’s solo home run in the second inning was O’s only score Saturday as the team set a club record with a home run in its 21st consecutive game. The Yankees hold the major league record, with a home run in 31 consecutive games in 2019.

Houston (37-40) has won five of six and nine of its last 14 games and is 21-19 at home. They are three games below the .500 mark for the first time since April 8 (4-7).

Houston has won 11 of its last 17 series, going 30-21 over a 51-game streak.

On the mound today for Baltimore will be right-hander Albert Suárez (3-1, 2.05 ERA). Before his debut Tuesday in New York, he had a 1.61 ERA. It had been just 1.08 in his previous nine games.

But he walked a season-high five batters and allowed three runs in 3 2/3 innings in that game in the Bronx.

Suárez, who has never faced Houston, is allowing a .217 batting average and .702 OPS to left-handed hitters, while right-handed hitters are averaging .222/.559 against him.

Left-hander Framber Valdez (5-5, 3.91 ERA) starts for Houston. He finished 11th for the American League Cy Young Award in 2020 and was fifth in 2022 and ninth last year. Over the past two seasons, he has gone a combined 29-17 with a 3.13 ERA, producing an ERA+ of 129.

A two-time All-Star, Valdez allows a .628 OPS against the first time through a batting order, .616 the second time and .833 the third time.

In a start last season against the Orioles, he allowed six runs in seven innings, falling behind 5-0 in the second inning. In that game, he gave up a two-run homer in the first inning to Ryan Mountcastle and a two-run shot in the second to Adley Rutschman.

In four games against the Orioles, he is 0-0 with a 4.98 ERA, allowing a .287 batting average and .831 OPS to Baltimore hitters.

Cedric Mullins went 2-for-3 with a triple on Saturday. He is hitting .378 (14 for 37) in his last 10 games with three doubles, a triple, a home run and three RBIs.

When he walked his first two times Saturday, Rutschman had reached base in 10 consecutive plate appearances up to that point, dating back to Thursday. He was the first Oriole to do this since Cedric Mullins reached 11 consecutive games from June 4-6, 2021.