The Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies haven’t had much to worry about this season.
However, both teams are probably anxious to wipe away the results from their most recent series finales.
They will get that chance as two of the majors’ top three winningest teams begin a three-game series Friday night in Baltimore.
The Phillies have dropped three of their past four games, including a 9-3 loss at Boston on Thursday. That matches the fourth-largest margin of defeat for Philadelphia this year — and the team’s most lopsided loss since April 23.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson isn’t prone to panic. He said starting pitcher Aaron Nola’s rough outing in the finale against the Red Sox was just part of “one of those days.”
The Phillies will want to take Nola’s approach.
“I’m going to flush this one pretty quick,” he said.
The Orioles saw their season-best, six-game winning streak end Thursday afternoon in a 6-3 setback to visiting the Atlanta Braves.
“We’ll be fine,” Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde said.
The defeat was just a blip in a strong stretch for Baltimore, which lost for only the fifth time in the past 21 games.
“We have high belief in ourselves in this clubhouse,” outfielder Kyle Stowers said. “We feel like we can compete with anyone. We all play hard, pull for each other.”
This will be the first time the Phillies and Orioles play at Camden Yards while both teams have winning records.
The Orioles’ task Friday night will include solving Phillies left-hander Ranger Suarez (10-1, 1.81 ERA). On Saturday, Suarez held the New York Mets to two runs on eight hits in 5 2/3 innings with six strikeouts and a walk.
In two career starts vs. Baltimore, Suarez is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA.
After the Phillies allowed a total of 17 runs across their previous two games, they will hope Suarez can reverse the trend. He has yielded more than two runs just once in his past six starts.
Right-hander Kyle Bradish (2-0, 2.62 ERA) gets the call for the Orioles. He was the winner while logging six scoreless innings of one-hit ball on Saturday at Tampa Bay.
In his only career outing against the Phillies, Bradish yielded five runs in 6 2/3 innings during a road loss on July 26, 2023.
Stowers hit a three-run homer for Baltimore’s only scoring on Thursday. It was his first long ball since September 2022, as he has spent plenty of time in the minor leagues during that intervening stretch.
“Obviously been awhile for me, so it was good,” Stowers said.
Stowers likes the Orioles’ relentless nature.
“This team doesn’t give up,” he said. “We don’t quit. I’ve spent some time up here since ’22, and every stretch I’ve been here, we find a way to fight.”
The Phillies have lost their past three road series, though their road record is 19-12.
With the Phillies playing in nearby Baltimore, it might be more convenient to make player moves.
Outfielder Brandon Marsh (right hamstring), who went 3-for-5 for Double-A Reading on Thursday to start a rehabilitation assignment, is close to coming off the injured list. Trea Turner (left hamstring) could be back this weekend, too, and Thomson said the shortstop won’t require a rehabilitation assignment.
–Field Level Media