I have a number of thoughts about baseball this week, and as I was sitting there this morning looking over my notes I realized four of them are Baltimore Oriole-related.
This week the Birds played a game against a guy, Josh Hamilton, who hit 4 HR, then put himself into the A.L record books by also banging out a double which, truth be told with a touch more wind and maybe another biscuit or two for breakfast, might have easily turned into a 5th HR.
They played a game against a team in which the other team’s #3 hitter, Carlos Pena, bunted. With two strikes. In the first inning.
And they played a game which not only went 17 innings, but a game in which two position players, Chris Davis and Darnell McDonald, pitched against one another. But that was merely the executive-summary version of events. The real story remains far more interesting, and I’ll share my thoughts on it tomorrow.
But today I’d like to address the fourth of my four Oriole-related items, and how frustrated I got watching the working baseball press – particularly MLB.com – once again bury the lead on yet another terrific baseball story.
On Thursday evening, Colby Lewis of the Rangers gave up three HR to the O’s first three hitters of the game, Ryan Flaherty, J.J. Hardy and Nick Markakis. And that was certainly worthy of some measure of coverage in the baseball press, maybe even a headline.
But for so many in the baseball press that was the most news-worthy thing that happened that night in Camden Yards – which, for a baseball lifer like myself who watched most of the game, was nuts.
Because after Lewis gave up those three consecutive HR, and after he got the next Oriole hitter to fly out to center, do you know what he then did? And why I’m writing this now?
He struck out the next six O’s he faced, and eight of the next ten – each of them swinging.
What’s more, after giving up three HR and a fly ball out, Lewis retired 18 Oriole hitters in a row.
He then, oddly enough, gave up two more HR in the 7th before recording an out.
As a result, in seven innings of work Thursday night, Colby Lewis gave up five hits – every one of them a HR – and struck out a career-high 12.
Sure it’s amazing for a team to lead off the game with three straight HR. But for my money not nearly as amazing as a journeyman pitcher giving up 5 HR to 5 different hitters and no singles, doubles or triples in a game, while somehow still displaying the kind stuff that would result in 12 hitters striking out – every last one of them swinging.
