This was precisely the scenario for which the Orioles acquired Corbin Burnes’ pitching services.
Father’s Day, sellout crowd at Camden Yards, series rubber match against one of the best starters on one of the best teams in baseball.
It was Burnes, looking for his 10th straight quality start, versus the Philadelphia Phillies’ Zack Wheeler, master of six pitches and one of the most reliable arms in the sport over the past seven seasons.
“It’s a great day for pitching,” Orioles pitching coach Drew French said beforehand. “Anytime Burnes takes the mound, it’s awesome. I’ve seen Zack for a lot of years. This one will be fun.”
A lot more fun for the Orioles (47-24), who rode their patented formula — six tenacious innings from Burnes, four home runs off Wheeler — to a series-clinching 8-3 win Sunday in front of an announced crowd of 44,525.
Orioles vs. Phillies, June 16, 2024 | PHOTOS
A weekend that began with a tortuous extra-innings loss and an ominous elbow injury for pitcher Kyle Bradish ended with a resounding showcase of the Orioles’ strengths against the National League’s top team.
Only a fighter jet roaring over Camden Yards as part of Maryland Fleet Weekmade a louder sound than Baltimore bats.
“That’s two of the best starters in the game,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “Our bats have come a long way. The ability to hit premiere pitching like that is not easy. The at-bats that our young guys threw on him, to be able to drive the baseball like that, it’s really, really impressive.”
As for Burnes, who moved to 8-2 with a 2.14 ERA, the Orioles can practically set their watches to his excellence. He didn’t speak to reporters after the game because he had to attend to a personal matter, but his manager was happy to extol his virtues.
“I thought he was really good again,” Hyde said. “Typical. It’s a really, really good offense. What Grayson [Rodriguez] did last night and what Burnes did today … the cutter and sinker with the curveball combo is some of the best stuff in the game.”
The Phillies put runners on second and third in the top of the first inning, but Burnes wiggled out of trouble, getting Philadelphia second baseman Bryson Stott to ground out to second on a 1-2 curveball.
Wheeler wasn’t so fortunate. The first hitter he faced, Gunnar Henderson, fouled off three straight 3-2 pitches before socking Wheeler’s 96.7 mph sinker 419 feet into the Orioles’ bullpen. It was Henderson’s eighth leadoff home run of the season and 22nd overall, three behind New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge for the MLB lead.
Orioles left-fielder Colton Cowser did Henderson one better in the bottom of the second, hammering a cutter from Wheeler 443 feet — tied with Ryan Mountcastle for the club’s longest home run of the year — to center to push the lead to 3-0. A celebratory eruption of mooing drowned out the disgust of thousands of Phillies fans in attendance.
“Gunnar’s leadoff at-bat honestly gave everyone else a blueprint,” Cowser said. “He was in zone, Gunnar was foling off pitches, and then he got one in the heart and hit it out. I think that’s always a great start, especially when you’re in the dugout watching that.”
Catcher Adley Rutschman joined the party next, sending Wheeler’s first pitch of the third inning 412 feet into the right-center field stands to make it 4-0.
Wheeler had allowed three home runs in a start just one other time in the past three seasons and had not allowed more than one in any previous start this year. But the Orioles weren’t done. Right fielder Anthony Santander continued his splendid weekend with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth. Four pitches later, second baseman Jordan Westburg deposited a cutter from Wheeler just over the wall in right field for a three-run home run, putting an exclamation point on the nightmare afternoon for Philadelphia’s ace, who had never surrendered four long balls in one outing.
The Orioles’ eight earned runs off Wheeler were the most he had allowed since May 2018.
That resounding answer from baseball’s highest scoring offense came after the Phillies (47-24) got to Burnes in the top of the fifth with an RBI groundout from right fielder Nick Castellanos and a sharp RBI single up the middle from third baseman Alec Bohm. He limited the damage by striking out Stott — aided by a generous call from home plate umpire Mike Estabrook — with two on and two out.
Burnes allowed two runs and seven hits over six innings while striking out seven to finish with, yes, another quality start, his 12th in 15 outings this season.
After Burnes exited, the fighter jets provided more drama than the Phillies, shaking the stadium and causing players to pause several times.
Orioles designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn told Hyde he struck out because he was so fired up, he tried too hard to hit a home run as the crowd chanted, “USA, USA.”
“I’ve never felt more American during a baseball game,” Cowser said with a grin, adding that the last three games felt like a playoff series given the quality of the opponent and the presence of so many enemy fans.
The Orioles’ June crucible will continue as they go from hosting the NL’s best to a three-game series in New York against a Yankees juggernaut that has maintained its lead in the AL East in the face of Baltimore’s scorching play. The Yankees (50-23), already the best team in baseball by both record and run differential, could have ace Gerrit Cole on the mound for the first time this season after he battled nerve inflammation in his elbow.
“We get a day off first, which is well deserved,” Hyde said. “We’ve played well through a really tough stretch, and it doesn’t get an easier.”
Around the horn
• Right-hander Dean Kremer pitched the first game of his minor league rehabilitation assignment Sunday for Triple-A Norfolk. Kremer, who has been out since May 24 with a triceps strain, allowed four hits and five runs (two earned) in 3 2/3 innings. He threw 59 pitches.
• The Orioles’ rotation is remaining in turn for their three-game series in New York against the Yankees, with Albert Suárez, Cade Povich and Cole Irvin starting Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Nestor Cortes and Luis Gil will start for the Yankees on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, while New York has yet to announce its starter Wednesday. Cole, the 2023 American League Cy Young Award winner, has made three rehab starts and could be rested enough to start the series’ second game.
• Triple-A Norfolk right-hander Jonathan Heasley, who’s pitched 5 1/3 innings for Baltimore this season, and infielder Errol Robinson were placed on the injured list Sunday with and a left oblique strain, respectively, the Orioles announced.
• Catching prospect Samuel Basallo, who Baseball America ranks as the Orioles’ third-best prospect, wasn’t in Double-A Bowie’s lineup after he was removed from Saturday’s game with a bruised right ankle.
• Infield prospect Coby Mayo has completed his rehab assignment with High-A Aberdeen and will return to Triple-A Norfolk next week, the Orioles announced. Mayo, the sport’s No. 17 overall prospect according to Baseball America, suffered a fractured rib last month when he fell into the third base dugout while trying to catch a popup.
Baltimore Sun reporter Jacob Calvin Meyer contributed to this article.
Orioles at Yankees
Tuesday, 7:05 p.m.
TV: MASN, TBS
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
