Early Playoff Exit Exposed Baltimore Orioles' Fatal Flaw
The Baltimore Orioles won 101 games this year, which is an accomplishment worth celebrating. The Orioles hadn't won that many games since 1979, so you could make the case that this was Baltimore's best team in decades.
Unfortunately, none of those wins came in the playoffs. The Orioles were swept in the ALDS, losing all three of their games to the Texas Rangers.
That Rangers series should serve as a wake-up call to the front office. Baltimore has a great team, but it still needs to get better if it wants to win its first World Series since 1983.
The main issue for the Orioles during their ALDS collapse was their lack of top-end starting pitching. That was especially apparent after Kyle Bradish lost a pitching duel in Game 1, as there was no one else Baltimore could turn to to shut down Texas. Rookie Grayson Rodriguez got hammered for 5 runs in 1 2/3 innings in Game 2, and Dean Kremer got shelled for 6 runs in 1 2/3 innings in Game 3. In a best-of-five series, you simply can't afford two disastrous starts like that.
The Orioles didn't have a proven, reliable ace to get them over the hump in the playoffs, let alone a strong No. 2 to stop the bleeding. When Bradish lost Game 1, Baltimore was essentially doomed. None of its starting pitchers had appeared in the postseason before, and it showed.
Bradish is a great pitcher, but it's too early to tell if he's a true No. 1. He went 12-7 with a 2.83 ERA this year, but it was only his second season. Lots of pitchers have one good season before the league adjusts to them, so let's see Bradish do it again next year before we start calling him the next Jim Palmer.
Meanwhile, the Rangers won the AL pennant in part because they have a stable of aces. Max Scherzer, Nate Eovaldi and Jordan Montgomery are all established hurlers with considerable playoff experience. That depth helped Texas survive a grueling seven-game series with the Houston Astros in the ALCS.
Fortunately for the Orioles, there will be an abundance of starting pitchers on the free-agent market this offseason. Clayton Kershaw, Aaron Nola, Blake Snell, Sonny Gray, Eduardo Rodriguez and Montgomery are just some of the big names that will be available.
If Baltimore's front office learned anything from this season, it will sign at least one of those guys.
