The Baltimore Orioles picked right up where they left off prior to the All-Star break, and they are eager to keep it going.
Baltimore brings a six-game winning streak into its Saturday night clash with the visiting Miami Marlins. The Orioles opened the three-game series with a 5-2 victory on Friday night.
“Guys want to get back after it,” Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde said.
The Orioles provided a quick power surge, hitting three home runs in the first game of a six-game homestand. Two of those bombs came from second baseman Adam Frazier, who posted the first multi-homer game in his 905-game career. He has a career-high 12 long balls this year.
“Really, the work that I’ve done with the hitting coaches,” he said, describing attempts to put his body in better position to unleash more power. “It felt good. Keep working day by day.”
Miami entered the break with five wins in its previous seven games. The Friday result was a rarity in that it dropped the Marlins to 11-5 this season in American League ballparks.
The key against the Orioles will be to avoid any major deficits. Miami was within 3-2 after the top of the eighth inning, but Baltimore had a pair of relievers at the All-Star Game for a reason.
“They have really good back-end bullpen guys,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “You don’t ever want to get any more (behind than one run).”
Right-hander Kyle Gibson (9-6, 4.60 ERA) gets the call for the Orioles on Saturday. He will aim to be the team’s second pitcher in as many nights to reach the 10-win mark after Dean Kremer did so with six solid innings on Friday.
Gibson ended a personal three-decision losing streak on Sunday at Minnesota. He limited the Twins to two runs in seven innings and racked up 11 strikeouts to match his career high.
Gibson is 2-3 with a 4.61 ERA in seven career starts against Miami. Pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies, he matched up with the Marlins in consecutive starts last September, giving up four runs in five innings during a no-decision and then yielding only one run in six innings of what became his last victory of the season.
The Marlins will counter with left-hander Braxton Garrett (5-2, 3.70 ERA). He has won his past four decisions and hasn’t taken a loss since May 8. Even though he wound up with seven no-decisions during his two-month unbeaten stretch, Miami nearly always wins when he pitches.
The Marlins are 10-1 in Garrett’s last 11 outings and 14-4 this year. He has never faced the Orioles in his four major league seasons, all with the Marlins.
Miami used left-hander Robert Garcia in relief Friday night to face three batters in the seventh inning during his major league debut. He was a bit jittery while allowing a hit and a walk, but Schumaker saw reason to be encouraged.
“Looking forward to seeing him out there again,” the manager said. “He throws strikes, he’s good. He has got deception. It’s tough to pick up his slider. His fastball is 95 (mph).”
–Field Level Media
