Red-hot Orioles win 10 straight games for 1st time in 23 years
The red-hot Baltimore Orioles kept rolling Wednesday, earning their 10th consecutive win with a 7-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
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β Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) July 14, 2022
The hot stretch is Baltimore's first double-digit winning streak since claiming 13 straight victories in September 1999, per Stathead.
It's a stunning turn of events for the Orioles, who lost 110 games last season and didn't earn their 45th win of 2021 until Sept. 8. They're now just the third team ever to reel off a 10-game winning streak one season after finishing with the league's worst record, and the first since at least 1990 to do it after starting the campaign with MLB's lowest payroll, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers and ESPN Stats & Info.
The streak has thrust Baltimore directly into a playoff race it was never supposed to be in. Brandon Hyde's club is now just two games back of the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, and Toronto Blue Jays, who are all tied for the final AL wild-card spot.
Since Adley Rutschman debuted May 21, the Orioles are 29-20. An identical record to the Mets' over that span and better than the Padres, Brewers, Cardinals, Phillies, Jays, Rays.
β Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 14, 2022
Only teams superior to Baltimore since May 21: Braves, Astros, Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, Mariners.
"We feel every bit of Birdland. Especially hearing O's chants going on at Wrigley Field, that's pretty cool," Orioles starter Spenser Watkins said postgame, according to Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Sun. "But yeah, this team is coming together as a whole, and it's really, really fun to see."
The Orioles grabbed their 10th straight win just a few hours after the Mariners extended their winning streak to 10 games. Both teams had losing records when their streaks started, and both previously owned the second- and third-longest double-digit win streak droughts in MLB, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
The win also moved Baltimore one game above .500 for the first time since April 8, 2021. It marks the first time since 2012 that all five teams in a single division - in this case, the AL East - are above .500 this late into a season, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com.
Austin Hays went 4-for-5 with a run scored in Wednesday's win, while Anthony Santander drove in two runs. Watkins and four Orioles relievers combined for 10 strikeouts and allowed just six hits.