“It?s called a winning streak. It has happened before.” Those are the inspirational words of fictional manager Lou Brown in the film Major League II ? filmed primarily at Oriole Park at Camden Yards ? in a clubhouse address to his Cleveland Indians.
But as the Orioles begin the second half of the season, they are not heading toward a Hollywood ending.
Recommended Stories
It looks bleak. When the Orioles (38-49) take the field tonight against the visiting Chicago White Sox (39-47) to open a four-game series, they will be 15 games behind American League East Division-leading Boston. The Orioles are also 13.5 games behind the Cleveland Indians in the wild card standings.
However, the Orioles ? currently in fourth place in the division-have a favorable schedule that could enable them to contend for a spot in the postseason. The Orioles would qualify for the postseason by winning their division or posting the best record of any second-place team in the American League.
“I think primarily what I?d like to see most is what I would consider is the continued escalation of the effort and energy that I?ve seen over the last few weeks since [interim manager] Dave Trembley has taken the helm,” Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said.
Trembley, whose status as interim manager will be scrutinized during the next few weeks, has a chance to show management he can make the Orioles competitive in the division. Of the Orioles? 75 games after the break, 47, including the unfinished game against the Yankees, are against teams within the division. They have 13 games against Boston, 13 against the Yankees, 12 with the last-place Devil Rays and nine against Toronto. Overall, only 28 of the final 75 games are against teams with winning records.
Though its unlikely the Orioles will undergo a tremendous reversal, several teams in the past 20 years have qualified for the postseason by overcoming large deficits ? just not as big as the Orioles?.
At the start of the second half of the 2005 season, the Houston Astros were 44-43 and 11.5 games behind the National League Central Division-leading St. Louis Cardinals. Houston earned the wild card, and eventually fell to the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. In 1995, Seattle trailed American League West Division-leading Anaheim by 11 1/2 games in late August before rallying to win the division before falling in the American League Championship Series. In 1991, the Atlanta Braves were 9.5 games behind the Dodgers at midseason, but recovered to win the West Division before losing the World Series in seven games to the Minnesota Twins.
However, the Orioles? recent history suggests they are heading towards their 10th straight losing season. In 2005, the Orioles entered the second half of the season 47-40, just two games behind the defending World Champion Red Sox. But instead of pushing forward, the Orioles regressed and cost then-manager Lee Mazzilli his job by going 27-48 during their final 75 games to finish in fourth place, 21 games behind the Yankees and Red Sox.
Though several national baseball analysts like the composition of this year?s team, they feel the Orioles are not good enough to make a history-making run to the postseason.
“When [Jeremy] Guthrie and [Erik] Bedard are on the mound, they?re a good team,” FOXSports.com senior writer Ken Rosenthal said. “They have a chance to do some things. But I don?t expect a dramatic run.”
What do you expect from the Orioles during the remainder of the season? Respond below in our comment section.
