Fastball

Baltimore Orioles' Massive Turnaround One For the Record Books

The Orioles went from baseball's laughing stock to a true World Series contender in just a matter of three years.
Brady Farkas|
Baltimore Orioles' Massive Turnaround One For the Record Books
Baltimore Orioles' Massive Turnaround One For the Record Books

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Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles beat the Tampa Bay Rays in extra-innings on Sunday to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2016.

With the win, the O's split the series with the Rays and now have a 2.0 game lead in the American League East. With the playoff berth already clinched, they are now focusing on the No. 1 overall seed and a first-round bye in the American League playoffs.

It's hard to believe that just a few years ago, the Orioles were the laughing stock of baseball. Now? They are a true World Series contender.

Sarah Langs of MLB.com has more context on the O's turnaround:

the Orioles are the 2nd team in MLB history to go from a 110+ loss season to a playoff berth in a 3-season span, joining the 2013-15 Astros 

[the D-Backs will join this list, too, if they make the postseason!]

The O's were 52-110 in 2021 and also lost 108 games in 2019. They went 25-35 in the pandemic shortened season but had gone 47-115 in 2018. They have truly built this roster from the ground up, acquiring several top prospects, including All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman, through the draft.

They also boast Gunnar Henderson, the likely American League Rookie of the Year.

While the O's have the division lead right now, it's not going to get any easier to clinch the division this week.

They start a big series with the AL West-leading Houston Astros on Monday night.

First pitch is set for 8:10 p.m. ET as John Means (BAL) goes up against Justin Verlander.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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