Orioles' Bright Pennant Hopes Turn Sour After Stunning ALCS Sweep by Royals

The 2014 Baltimore Orioles: proof that an opposition’s dominant bullpen and luck can cave in championship hopes.

The Kansas City Royals used both of those weapons to sweep the Baltimore Orioles out of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday, completing an improbable run of eight postseason victories in eight games—a Major League Baseball record to start a single postseason—to get to their first World Series since 1985. The Royals won the four games against Baltimore by a total of six runs.

When you lose like that, there isn’t much the Orioles could have or should have changed in their approach or in-game strategy. Sometimes that’s what baseball does.

"

The Royals have won games in the 2014 postseason by the scores of 9-8, 3-2, 4-1, 8-3, 8-6, 6-4, 2-1 and 2-1. That takes skill and luck.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 15, 2014"

What was more skill than luck was the Royals cutting off Baltimore’s power sources. The home run stroke the Orioles brought into this series was their clear advantage. They led the majors in homers and were facing a team that was last in the majors in the same category.

That part of the series should have been a done deal, but Kansas City’s pitching shut down that attack. The Orioles hit two home runs in the four games, and by the end of Game 4, a long ball to tie the game seemed more like a long-shot prayer than a probability, even with Adam Jones (29 home runs in the regular season) and Nelson Cruz (40) leading off the top of the ninth inning. The Royals hit four homers in the series.

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Jones and Cruz, Nos. 3 and 4 in the lineup, did not get it done. Jones’ postseason struggles continued as he went 4-for-16 with one home run. And Cruz went 4-for-16, including 0-for-7 in the final two games with four men left on base in the finale.

A major reason for that is the Royals bullpen was one of the regular-season assets that actually carried over into this series. The back end of Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland covered 14.2 of the 37 innings the Royals pitched in the ALCS, and the trio allowed one run and struck out 15.

"

#Orioles hit two home runs. HDH threw 14.2 of 37 IP, allowed one run. That's your series. #royals #alcs

— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) October 15, 2014"

Orioles manager Buck Showalter, who was seen as holding the clear managerial advantage over Kansas City’s Ned Yost, was left thinking what he could have changed.

“My emotion is for the players and the organization and the fans,” Showalter told Eduardo Encina of The Baltimore Sun, “because I keep thinking about something I or we could have done differently.”

The truth is not much.

The pitching, which wasn’t a strength during the regular season aside from relievers Zach Britton and Darren O’Day, was not crippling despite none of the starters pitching six innings. As an overall staff, the Orioles allowed 17 earned runs over 35 innings (4.37 ERA) but only three earned runs in the final two games.

But it was some of that Royals magic that has been present the entire postseason that helped do in the Orioles in the final game. With Kansas City runners on second and third in the first inning, Eric Hosmer hit a chopper to first baseman Steve Pearce.

Pearce fired home with a throw to beat lead runner Alcides Escobar, but as catcher Caleb Joseph applied the tag, Escobar’s foot dislodged the ball and sent it toward the backstop. Escobar was safe, and trailing runner Nori Aoki also scored.

That was it. Those were Kansas City’s two runs. The ball never left the infield, and it won the game. Pretty much no matter what Showalter could have done would not have trumped whatever mojo the Royals have had going for them through their eight playoff games.

So now, Baltimore looks to 2015, when Chris Davis will be suspended for Opening Day because of a second positive test for banned amphetamines—he served 24 games of a 25-game punishment this year—and Nelson Cruz may or may not be part of the lineup. Cruz, a free agent after the World Series, has already said he enjoyed his time with the Orioles, and this ALCS run may be enough to lure him back.

"

Nelson Cruz said that this #Orioles run will impact his decision on free agency. Emphasized again how welcomed he felt since Day 1.

— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) October 15, 2014"

Then there will be the in-house “additions” of catcher Matt Wieters and third baseman Manny Machado, two of the team’s young stars who were lost for the season with elbow and knee injuries respectively. Both will again make the Orioles one of the best defensive teams in the American League. Also, a healthy Dylan Bundy could give the rotation a lift whether he breaks camp with the team or comes up later in the year.

As far as adding to an already solid bullpen, signing free agent Andrew Miller would be a great start, although he will be expensive and have many suitors.

Assuming the Orioles can convince Cruz to return, the team has little to do except tinker. Its window will remain open in an uncertain AL East, as Baltimore should be the favorite to again win the division.

Anthony Witrado covers Major League Baseball for Bleacher Report. He spent the previous three seasons as the national baseball columnist at Sporting News and four years before that as the Brewers beat writer for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Follow Anthony on Twitter @awitrado and talk baseball here.