BALTIMORE — There couldn’t have been a more ideal place in the batting order for the Orioles to find themselves in. There were so few chances to be had, but Baltimore had the right players at the plate for both opportunities.
Second baseman Rougned Odor and center fielder Ryan McKenna reached base consecutively twice, first in the fifth and again in the seventh, to provide run-scoring opportunities with fewer than two outs. The fifth inning was especially promising, with a McKenna double placing two in scoring position with no outs.
And yet, with a combination of Austin Hays and Trey Mancini — the best hitters on the Orioles — they were left stranded in the fifth. And with Cedric Mullins pinch hitting in the seventh, consecutive popouts from Mullins and Hays squandered that chance to level a one-run deficit and bail out right-hander Dean Kremer, making his first start of the season.
