At the halfway point: O's on 94 win pace and desperate for good starting pitching.

[wildcard]

Mixed feeling at the halfway point.

In the AL:

1st in the East

94 win pace

scoring over 5 run per game

leading the league in homer with 128 (256 homer pace)

tied for the lead in Slugging with a .469 percentage

second in runs scored (415), OBP (332) and OPS (801)

But:

Starting pitching is ranked 14th at 5.15 ERA

Away from home the O's pitching ranks 12th with a 5.05 ERA

Record on the road is 16-21 mainly due to the pitching.

Coming off being swept by the Mariners in four games the O's are desperate for good starting pitching.

Here is the bright side if there is one.

Tillman, Gausman and Gallardo probably start 8 for the next 9 games due to an off day and the All-Star break. As Gallardo getting stretched out from his DL stint he looks more and more in control of his pitches.

Mike Wright is regrouping at AAA and has very good results through 3 starts. O's will probably promote him to start the 4th or 5th game after the All-Star break.

Bottom line: If a team is going to be desperate its always best to be in 1st place and on a 94 win pace when that happens.

[maybenxtyr]

I think they are fortunate to have banked some wins. We need an upgrade on SP. Without some starters I don't think we have a shot.

[thezeroes]

The Orioles are 13 Wins and 24 Losses in games that the pitching has given up 5 or more runs.

The Orioles are 2 wins and 12 losses against Houston (0-3), Seattle (1 -6), Texas (1-3) after 81 Games. These were all on the road except three with Seattle. The Orioles are done with Seattle and have 4 remaining with Houston at home in August and three with Texas at home in the first week of August. These losing records against these two clubs can be corrected. I am glad we are done with Seattle.

[Bahama O's Fan]

I am scared if we have to face Seattle in the playoffs.

[pfhokie]

Even the starting pitching that you are counting on has not been consistent. Tillman seems to be having some mechanical problems and is not the pitcher he was in the first two months of the season. Gausman still needs work on his game. Gallardo is coming back from injury and we are not sure what we are going to get with him.

The O's need to look at starting pitching and I don't think they can look at just one pitcher to solve their immediate issues. I think it has to be two. I don't believe the answer is Bundy because of the imposed innings limit he has. These two pitchers need to come from outside of the organization and that's going to be expensive.

The choice is to try and win now and deplete the farm system of whatever talent there maybe or forget about this year because as Seattle showed, this team can't win on hitting alone. They get shutdown too often by lefties.

[thezeroes]

I was going to start a thread but instead will put it here: fire Wallace? Someone needs to be held accountable for the decline and/or lack of development with this staff. Just horrific.

The answer to your "Fire Wallace" theme is best summed up with Jake Arrieta. Changing your pitching philosophy with a revolving door at that position makes for a dis-connect with your pitchers.

[harp6]

Even the starting pitching that you are counting on has not been consistent. Tillman seems to be having some mechanical problems and is not the pitcher he was in the first two months of the season. Gausman still needs work on his game. Gallardo is coming back from injury and we are not sure what we are going to get with him.

The O's need to look at starting pitching and I don't think they can look at just one pitcher to solve their immediate issues. I think it has to be two. I don't believe the answer is Bundy because of the imposed innings limit he has. These two pitchers need to come from outside of the organization and that's going to be expensive.

The choice is to try and win now and deplete the farm system of whatever talent there maybe or forget about this year because as Seattle showed, this team can't win on hitting alone. They get shutdown too often by lefties.

The O's will not add any quality starters because it is expensive and that is not the O's style. They may add a cheaper option that isn't any good, such as Matt Moore, but that may still be overpaying for a starter.

The O's do not hit as well against lefties as righties, but they are not awful against lefties. They are above league average in scoring runs against lefties and they have a 13-10 record when facing lefty starters, which is best in the division.

[BMann]

The Orioles are 13 Wins and 24 Losses in games that the pitching has given up 5 or more runs.

The Orioles are 2 wins and 12 losses against Houston (0-3), Seattle (1 -6), Texas (1-3) after 81 Games. These were all on the road except three with Seattle. The Orioles are done with Seattle and have 4 remaining with Houston at home in August and three with Texas at home in the first week of August. These losing records against these two clubs can be corrected. I am glad we are done with Seattle.

The good news is that none of those teams are in our division. The Birds are 22-13 vs. the AL East. If they continue to play .629 baseball vs. their division rivals, I like our chances.

Using that formula to secure a division title probably won't mean success in the playoffs, of course. But let's get there first...

After another awful performance by Ubaldo yesterday, I honestly thought we'd see DD deal for a starter before they come home. Not sure if I want him making a panic move like that, though.

[Tx Oriole]

I was going to start a thread but instead will put it here: fire Wallace? Someone needs to be held accountable for the decline and/or lack of development with this staff. Just horrific.

That would not solve the problem. IMO