Baltimore Orioles: Biggest Must-Win Series After the All-Star Break

Every week it seems as if critics write the Baltimore Orioles (39-28) off, saying that tomorrow everything will unravel. No one gives them enough credit, which is understandable after losing 14 consecutive seasons.

If the Birds are able to hold on and continue to win two of three series until the All-Star break, they will have a great shot at making a run for the division after the All-Star break.

Nolan Reimold and Nick Markakis should make their respective returns to the lineup before or around mid-July, plus Brian Roberts finally found his name penciled into the lineup. Once they get all their hitters in the order for the first time this year, they will be a team to be reckoned with.

However, they have a rigorous and demanding schedule come the Midsummer Classic.

After the All-Star Break

The Birds will have 74 games on the docket for the remaining two-and-a-half months of the season, and half of those games (37) are against AL East division rivals.

There is no question that the Orioles reside in one of the toughest (if not the toughest) divisions in baseball.

Currently, all teams are at or above the .500 mark (yes, even the struggling Boston Red Sox have battled their way back to an even 33-33).

Their other 37 games break down like this: 22 contests against the AL Central and only 15 matches against the AL West.

As of today, the Birds are 9-3 against AL Central teams, 4-6 versus AL West teams and 17-15 within their own division.

There are three teams that the Birds have not seen this season yet—the Seattle Mariners, the Cleveland Indians and the struggling Detroit Tigers (32-34). The Orioles welcome the Tigers to town immediately following the All-Star break, and they head to Cleveland for the first time on July 20th.

The Birds will make a trip to Seattle July 3-5, so they will get a chance to face the Mariners before the break.

Toughest Must-Win Series After the Break

The first series when the Birds return from the All-Star break is the most prominent must-win series the Orioles have on the docket so far.

Not only because they have not faced this opponent yet, but this series will ignite the spark and momentum the Birds will need if they want to compete down to the wire, as they did in 1997 with the Yankees.

It’s no surprise that, especially in this division, they need to get off to a great start in the second half if they want to hang around with the big boys.

Currently, the Bronx Bombers have won 10 in a row, and it does not seem as if they are slowing down. The Red Sox and Rays are always a threat, and the Jays usually play the Orioles very tough.

The Birds will welcome the disappointing Tigers to town on July 13th, but who knows if they will still be in the middle of the Central by then? They could easily be at the top of the wide-open Central division.

Jim Leyland’s club is underperforming, as they were projected to run away with the division. The Indians have come out of nowhere and, although they have faltered as of late, still find themselves second to the White Sox.

Under first-year manager Robin Ventura and behind hot-slugging Paul Konerko, the Sox have surprised all of baseball.

With the departure of outspoken former manager Ozzie Guillen, critics did not give the Sox the time of day at the beginning of the year. However, they have played very well and look to be the team to beat in the Central.

Tigers Struggles Continue

With the acquisition of home run-pounding first baseman/DH Prince Fielder, the Tigers offense was supposed to take off.

Fielder got off to a slow start with his new team, but has since smashed 10 home runs, driven in 44 RBI and leads the club with a .315 batting average.

Former World Series MVP Miguel Cabrera leads the club with 14 home runs and 54 RBI while hitting .310 on the year. Overall, their offense is hitting .267, which is good for second in the AL and first in their division.

The major problem for them has been their pitching. Other than ace flame-throwing RHP Justin Verlander (6-4, 2.66 ERA), they have struggled as a team. Their ERA sits at 4.13, which ranks them third in their division but 11th overall in the AL.

RHP Rick Porcello and RHP Max Scherzer each feature ERAs above 5.00, while RHP Doug Fister missed a couple of weeks due to a side injury.

Fister made his return on Saturday against the Rockies. However, it is too early to tell if he will be the same pitcher as before.

The Tigers have struggled with their pitching this season and have definitely underperformed overall. They are two games under .500 now, but who knows where they will be come the All-Star break?

Even if they are still struggling a bit at the break, they are always a tough team to beat, and with the rest, their team might come storming out of the gates ready to battle.

Regardless, the Orioles need to get off to a strong start after the Midsummer Classic no matter who they face. Right now, the first series following the break is the most important and a must-win for the Orioles.

The Rest of the Central

The Birds have played very well against the Central for the most part this season.

They were going through a bit of a tough patch when they faced the Royals for the second time toward the end of May, when they lost two of three.

However, in their first match-up, the black and orange swept a short two-game series in which they came from behind and won a couple of close contests in Kansas City in mid-May.

The Birds swept the Twins in the first series of the year, and they took three of four against Ventura’s White Sox at the beginning of the year.

The American League West Division

The only division that the Orioles have struggled with this season has been the West, as they have lost two of the three series played (they sport a 4-6 overall record).

It seems no matter how much the Angels are struggling, they find ways to beat the Orioles.

When these two teams hooked up in April, the Halos were five games under .500 and having trouble finding ways to stay afloat early in the season.

However, the Angels were able to steal a couple of victories in Southern California when the Birds made their first west-coast trip.

They bounced back and took two of three from the third-place Athletics when they visited over the last weekend in April.

One of the biggest challenges of the season to date has been the series against the Rangers. At the time, the Birds were 19-9, tied for the best record in the American League with those pesky Texans.

The team that Showalter had guided and pointed in the right direction landed in Baltimore and took over immediately. They jumped out for 24 runs over the first two games, winning the first two of a four-game set.

The Birds were able to squeeze out one victory, 6-5, behind Wei-Yin Chen’s strong outing in which he tossed 7.2 innings and allowed just two earned runs.

Tough September

Of the 24 series after the break, 18 of those are against teams with better than a .500 record, while six series against sub-.500 teams (one series vs. KC and Minnesota, and two series each against Seattle and Oakland), which equates to about 73 percent of their games against teams over .500.

Note: I considered the Tigers a plus-.500 team because I think they will finish the first half above the .500 mark.

Not to mention, 25 out of 31 of their last games are against AL East teams. It seems as if the East is going to go down to the wire, and there is no other way fitting enough to have the Birds finish most of the month of September against intra-division rivals.

The month of September will be the toughest month of the season for the Birds, whether they stay near the top of the division or not. Regardless, they will have to face each team six times over the final month.

The Orioles have to take each series one by one as they have done for much of the season.

Even though they have a tough September, they need to focus on the Tigers and their first visit to Camden Yards when they return from the All-Star break, because getting off to a strong start in the second half is very important and might play an integral role in determining the AL East division winner this fall.

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