The Latest Breaking News from Cedric Mullins

BALTIMORE — There won’t be any second-guessing the pitch selection. Félix Bautista, who has been a stout closer for the Orioles this season, was one strike away from sealing a fourth victory for Baltimore. With Kyle Tucker at the plate, Bautista hurled his splitter — a pitch that ranks among…

BALTIMORE — Adley Rutschman did something he never had in the majors Friday night. A 2-1 curveball from Dean Kremer got by the Orioles’ standout rookie catcher, the first passed ball of Rutschman’s career. He entered the game with the Houston Astros with the second-most innings caught without one this…

TORONTO — If there was ever a time for the Orioles to break out of a mold that has been cast for their offense so far in September, it was here, in the ninth inning of what felt like a must-win game against the Toronto Blue Jays. To keep even…

TORONTO — The sharply hit ground ball from Gunnar Henderson seemed almost an inevitable outcome in the third inning, plating two runners with the bases loaded. But in the same vein, the flurry of outs with runners in scoring position from other Orioles hitters felt inescapable Saturday.

WASHINGTON — More so than the speed Gunnar Henderson showed as he rounded the bases, and more so than the ball slipping out of left fielder César Hernández’s grasp on his throw, perhaps the most surprising thing about the play that broke Wednesday night’s game open was that Henderson never…

BALTIMORE -- With two on and one out early in the second game of Monday’s doubleheader, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde brought in rookie Nick Vespi over any of his high-leverage relief trio of Dillon Tate, Cionel Pérez and Félix Bautista. Vespi surrendered a three-run home run, while each of the…

BALTIMORE — The overarching nature of a sleepy Sunday defeat to the Oakland Athletics is one loss in 162 games. But in September, there’s an increased significance on each outing, even when a series victory was already earned with wins on Friday and Saturday.

BALTIMORE — Before opening a series with the worst team in the American League, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde was faced with a series of questions about his lineup. It featured neither Cedric Mullins nor Adley Rutschman, typically the top two hitters in his starting nine, partly for rest and partly…

BALTIMORE — The Orioles have largely avoided these sorts of games, which is why they’re playing meaningful baseball in the middle of August for the first time in years. But with anemic offense coupling with a bullpen that has cracked two days in a row, their playoff aspirations took another…

TORONTO — For all his talents, Adley Rutschman’s greatest strength might just be his ability to discern balls from strikes, a model of the swing decision-based development plan that floods the Orioles’ minor league system. At times, it’s burned him, with his awareness of the strike zone perhaps sharper than…

TORONTO — The fate of the Orioles’ season might well come down to how they perform against the Toronto Blue Jays. If the next two months are anything like the past week, they’ll do well in that regard.