CLEVELAND — For the first 11 batters of Spenser Watkins’ night, the one run the Orioles scored in the second inning looked as if it might be enough. The right-hander cruised through the Cleveland Guardians order — until he didn’t.
And once he didn’t, Tuesday’s outing unraveled rapidly. First was a single in the fourth to break up the perfect game. Next was a two-run home run to break the shutout. Once Watkins returned for the fifth, three more runs scored in short order, ending Baltimore’s streak of quality starts at five games.
With the way the Orioles’ offense has been hitting of late, even a quality start didn’t ensure they’d be in a position to secure a victory. With five runs against Watkins in 4 2/3 innings, there was even less of a chance of that.
