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Orioles’ offense comes up short in 3-1 loss to Red Sox, dimming already faint wild-card hopes

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Robinson Chirinos could tell early, during the pregame bullpen session, that right-hander Dean Kremer wouldn’ t pitch the way he did last week against the Houston Astros. In that last perform…
Robinson Chirinos could tell early, during the pregame bullpen session, that right-hander Dean Kremer wouldn’t pitch the way he did last week against the Houston Astros. In that last performance, Kremer hurled a shutout, establishing himself as a breakout starter for the Orioles and setting himself up for a place in the 2023 rotation.
But a pitcher won’t have their best stuff every game, and Chirinos knew this was going to be one of those games. So the catcher approached the 26-year-old before Wednesday night’s 3-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox to remind him that these days happen.
“Today’s the day you have to compete and grind and try to give this team a chance to win a game,” Chirinos said.
That’s what Kremer did. But without any offensive support behind him — barring an eighth-inning home run from Chirinos — the loss fell at Kremer’s feet. His command wasn’t there early, as he walked four batters while allowing three runs on six hits in five innings.
Kremer has a competitive streak that doesn’t allow him to see the bright side very often; if an outing isn’t up to his standards, he’s not shy in vocalizing his disappointment. But there had to be credit where it was due for the starting pitcher, who overcame his lack of command to keep Baltimore in the game.
“He battled through the first couple innings without his best command, just giving up minimal damage,” manager Brandon Hyde said.
As the clock ticks down on the Orioles season, there are fewer opportunities to bounce back from performances such as Wednesday night’s.
Left-handed pitchers, such as Red Sox starter Rich Hill, have been a kryptonite of sorts for the Orioles of late, and without Cedric Mullins, Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson in the starting lineup, there was a noticeable lack of production.

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