Who stood out in the Orioles’ 6-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night?
In the spirit of hockey’s “three stars” system with the addition of home plate for honorable mentions and other notes, we go around the bases after the fourth game of the 2016 season.
1st — Matt Wieters didn’t homer like four of his teammates, but the veteran catcher drove in two runs with a pair of singles, the first concluding a 10-pitch battle with Rays ace Chris Archer to give the Orioles a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth. That lengthy at-bat was a precursor to the Orioles hammering Archer in a four-run fifth that included three solo home runs and was capped off with Wieters hitting a liner off the pitcher for an infield hit and another RBI. He now has an 11-game hitting streak dating back to last season, which is a career high. Wieters also did commendable work behind the plate as three Orioles pitchers combined to retire 21 of the last 23 Tampa Bay hitters they faced.
2nd — Chris Tillman wasn’t carrying the electric stuff he displayed in two flawless innings on Opening Day before a rain delay cut his outing short, but the right-hander overcame shaky command in the early going to toss five strong innings on 83 pitches. The 27-year-old retired the final nine hitters he faced, striking out four over that stretch. In all, Tillman gave up a solo homer to Evan Longoria in the first inning and gave up just three other hits and two walks while striking out five.
3rd — Chris Davis hit a 406-foot homer to center in the bottom of the second inning and walked twice, eventually scoring on each of Wieters’ RBI singles. It’s that combination of power and patience that the Orioles hope to continue to see after giving their first baseman a $161 million contract this winter.
Home — T.J. McFarland gave manager Buck Showalter exactly what he was looking for after he decided not to push Tillman too hard after coming back to pitch a day early. The lefty sinkerballer retired nine of the 10 hitters he faced, which included a stretch of six straight grounders. … Jonathan Schoop, Nolan Reimold, and Manny Machado all hit solo homers off Archer in the bottom of the fifth. The Orioles are a remarkable 27-4 in games in which Schoop hits a long ball. … Rookie Joey Rickard continued a memorable opening week with two more hits and is now hitting .467 in his first four games in the majors. … Baltimore has seven home runs in four games, all of them solo shots. … The Orioles have gone 4-0 to begin a season for the eighth time in club history. Their best start came in 1970 when they began 5-0 and would win their second World Series that season. … Mike Wright is scheduled to make his 2016 debut against Drew Smyly on Saturday night, but a not-so-promising weather forecast may force a postponement.
