Anyone old enough to remember the Orioles of the 1960s and 1970s will recall a team that was built around pitching and defense. The current version of the Orioles is all about the long ball. They led the majors with 253 home runs. Three players hit 35 or more, six clouted at least 22 and seven slugged 17 dingers or better.
That power overcame a lot of deficiencies and allowed the Orioles to grab an American League Wild Card playoff berth but will it work two years in a row? Consider Baltimore’s many maladies – the O’s were seventh in the AL in runs scored, ninth in batting average and ninth in on-base percentage. Baltimore’s pitching staff finished 10th in the AL in ERA and strikeouts.
Best Baltimore Orioles Betting Lines
Think you’re ready to bet on the Baltimore Orioles? Check who they play next and take note of the current betting lines to make sure you’re in the know before betting.
With their poor pitching and power-hitting batting order, the Orioles are generally a good bet to go over on the total.
Baltimore Orioles Regular Season Schedule
This is the regular season schedule for the Baltimore Orioles and much like the television listings, things are always subject to change where Orioles games are concerned.
In the tough American League East, there are no easy games and that means knowing who’s hot and who’s not could make a huge difference in the weight of your wallet.
Baltimore Orioles Regular Season Standings
The Baltimore Orioles regular season standings figure to be a mixed bag. This is a team that is capable of making a run for the title again as they did in 2014, or they could be a Wild Card team again like they were in 2016. But it’s just as likely that the Orioles will make a run for the cellar.
For the Orioles to contend in the American League East, they’ll have to make the most of their greatest assets – their long ball power that allowed the Orioles to clout the most home runs in the American League. But Baltimore’s starting rotation earned run average of 4.72 was third-worst in the AL.
Baltimore Orioles betting tips
An issue facing the Baltimore Orioles in their bid to make the American League playoffs again is their questionable starting rotation. In a division filled with shaky pitching staffs, the Orioles are especially thin. Beyond Kevin Gausman and Chris Tillman, there isn't an arm that they can count on with any sense of certainty.
Luckily for the Orioles, manager Buck Showalter is a master of manipulating pitching staffs to get the most out of them. He has a solid bullpen at his disposal. The Orioles’ relievers had a 3.40 ERA last season, the third-best in the majors and first in the AL.
Buck Showalter tends to be a bit of a mad scientist when it comes to his batting order, seldom staying the with the same lineup two games in a row.
There's that old saying about trying to make chicken salad out of chicken you-know-what? That's kind of what Showalter is left to do. As much as he juggles his batting order, the Orioles are still a one-trick pony. They hit the long ball, but they don't put enough men on base and they don't steal bases.
Why should you bet on the Baltimore Orioles?
Well, they can hit home runs.
Baltimore led the majors in homers. Manny Machado has topped 35 homers three years running and Adam Jones has averaged 29 home runs since 2011. Jonathan Schoop clubbed 25 homers last season and it wouldn't be shocking to see Chris Davis or Mark Trumbo make a run at 50 taters.
But as much as the Orioles can hit home runs, can they make hay with those dingers? Baltimore's on-base percentage was a pedestrian .317. If the O's can bump that up 5-10 points, they'll score a ton of runs via their power.
While it might be a one-dimensional offense, that dimension is the one desired most by teams, the ability to hit the baseball over the fence.
Why shouldn't you bet on the Baltimore Orioles?
Pitching depth. Quite simply, it isn't there. The Orioles don't have five legitimate big-league starters, so if injury or an off season should strike down either Kevin Gausman or Chris Tillman, they are doomed.
Baltimore was 12th in WHIP in 2016 and 10th in strikeouts. But if they can get to it, the Orioles' bullpen was stellar, finishing second in the AL with 54 saves.
