{"id":202738,"date":"2025-07-25T22:33:42","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T22:33:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/202738\/"},"modified":"2025-07-25T22:33:42","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T22:33:42","slug":"why-tomoyuki-sugano-believes-orioles-can-still-make-mlb-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/202738\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Tomoyuki Sugano believes Orioles can still make MLB playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The post Why Tomoyuki Sugano believes Orioles can still make MLB playoffs<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Despite a disastrous start to the 2025 season, Baltimore Orioles<\/a> pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano isn\u2019t ready to give up on October baseball \u2014 and his belief may say more about Baltimore\u2019s recent surge than the standings do<\/a>. As the Orioles pitching staff steadies and the team\u2019s bats heat up, Sugano\u2019s confidence is helping lead the clubhouse through a crucial stretch.<\/p>\n

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By late May, Baltimore\u2019s season appeared all but lost. The Orioles\u2019 playoff chances had plummeted as the team fell to 21-36, sitting 15 games below .500. Key starters like Kyle Bradish (Tommy John surgery) and Tyler Wells (UCL injury) were already sidelined, while offensive catalysts Colton Cowser and Jordan Westburg also missed time. Trade speculation surrounding the 35-year-old Japanese pitcher intensified, and some analysts had already written the club off entirely.<\/p>\n

As of Thursday, the Orioles sit at 42-50, 11.5 games back in the AL East but trending upward with a 7-3 record in their last 10 games. While still last in the division, they\u2019re closing the gap thanks to a 24-16 stretch over their last 40 games. Only four teams \u2014 the Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, and Detroit Tigers, have posted a better record than the O\u2019s over the last 40 games, with Baltimore going 24-16 over that stretch.<\/p>\n

That recent success is part of why Sugano\u2019s voice carries so much weight. The 35-year-old Japanese right-hander, in his first MLB season after a decorated career in NPB, has been a reliable piece of the rotation. Sugano owns a 7-5 record with a 4.44 ERA and 59 strikeouts, providing steady innings for a staff that\u2019s battled injuries and inconsistency. While trade rumors continue to swirl, Sugano remains locked in on helping this group compete down the stretch \u2014 not planning an exit.<\/p>\n

In a quote shared by Jacob Meyer of The Baltimore Sun on X (formerly Twitter), Sugano expressed his unwavering belief<\/a> in the team.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIn the past month or so, we\u2019ve been playing really well. I still believe strongly that this team has a shot.\u201d<\/p>\n

That conviction matters. With years of postseason experience overseas and a quiet leadership style, Sugano<\/a> has emerged as both an anchor on the mound and a steadying presence in the dugout. His faith in this team reflects more than optimism \u2014 it reflects the reality of the Orioles\u2019 revival.<\/p>\n

To reach the postseason, the Orioles will need to keep building on their recent momentum \u2014 and perhaps get even hotter down the stretch. The return of key arms, improved lineup production, and a favorable schedule ahead all work in their favor. The Orioles playoff chances are far from dead \u2014 and Sugano\u2019s belief might just be the spark that helps turn the momentum into a legitimate run.<\/p>\n

Related: Orioles manager gives quote of the year after Mets sweep<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Orioles\u2019 Tony Mansolino sounds off on premature \u2018obituary\u2019 after doubleheader Mets sweep<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The post Why Tomoyuki Sugano believes Orioles can still make MLB playoffs appeared first on ClutchPoints. Despite a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":202739,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2288],"tags":[47,5,1125,53,54,581,1510,2328,2304,59,4,2305,2303,35973,1362,775,70,1275],"class_list":{"0":"post-202738","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mlb-postseason","8":"tag-baltimore-orioles","9":"tag-baseball","10":"tag-colton-cowser","11":"tag-detroit-tigers","12":"tag-houston-astros","13":"tag-jordan-westburg","14":"tag-kyle-bradish","15":"tag-major-league-baseball-playoffs","16":"tag-major-league-baseball-postseason","17":"tag-milwaukee-brewers","18":"tag-mlb","19":"tag-mlb-playoffs","20":"tag-mlb-postseason","21":"tag-playoff-chances","22":"tag-the-orioles","23":"tag-tomoyuki-sugano","24":"tag-toronto-blue-jays","25":"tag-tyler-wells"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/114916255595688979","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202738\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}