I know the Orioles players are trying their best right now. But man, these games are just not a lot of fun lately. That is especially true when then Orioles are at the plate. They have not scored more than three runs in a game since last Wednesday, when they beat the Phillies 5-1. Last night they were especially bad, managing just two at-bats with a runner in scoring position all night. Shockingly, they didn’t came through in either and got shut out by George Kirby and the Mariners.

Now, it’s not all bad. Dean Kremer was really, really good last night. He has turned into the Orioles’ innings eater since May, but he is pairing it with quality as well. Here are his ERAs in each of the last four months, including August: 2.72, 3.30, 4.30, 3.21. He’s not the flashiest arm in the organization, but he is a nice piece to have going into 2026.

And the O’s had a decent defensive night. They turned a pair of double plays. Ryan Noda had an outfield assist. And Adley Rutschman caught one of two base stealers on the evening. The gloves have not always been smooth this season, so we will take the bright spots where we see them.

As is obvious at this point, the outcomes of the games from here on out do not matter much. But the individual performances do. The Orioles need to see more from their “core” players in order to feel good going into next season. Lately, they have to be a bit worried. Jackson Holliday is slumping, but did have a hit last night. There is little power on display throughout the lineup. And guys keep getting hurt.

A part of me wants to say just end the season now. But that isn’t happening, and the Orioles shouldn’t want it to. They need to build some sort of momentum before the end of this nightmarish campaign.

Injuries keep piling up for Orioles | Roch Kubatko
It’s been a bad season for a number of reasons, but the healthy of the team’s best players may be right at the top of it. How does that get fixed? Is it a training staff issue? They had better hope it doesn’t pop up again in 2026.

Felix Bautista, Zach Eflin Done For The Season | MLB Trade Rumors
This was a sad development on Tuesday, although not a surprising one. There had not been much news on these two for a while, and as the season’s end draws near that usually means curtains are closing. We should all expect the worst with regards to Félix Bautista, whenever they decide to announce the actual injury.

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

This day in O’s history

1969 – Jim Palmer no-hits the Oakland Athletics to lead the Orioles to an 8-0 win. The Orioles are now 14.5 games up in the division.

1978 – Orioles manager Earl Weaver stalls the game against the Yankees and encourages the Baltimore groundskeepers to slow down during heavy rains at Memorial Stadium. Why? Well, the Yankees had just scored five times in the top of the seventh to take a 5-3 lead over the Orioles. But the soaked state of the field forces the umpires to call the game, which reverts to score back to the last completed inning. The Orioles win 3-0, and MLB changes the rules for rain-shortened games in 1980.