The Baltimore Orioles ended a 10-game losing streak vs. the baseball odds on Sunday as they defeated the Boston Red Sox 4-3 in 11 innings. It was the first win vs. the baseball lines for the Orioles with their new manager Juan Samuel. Baseball odds don’t favor Baltimore very often as they are the worst team in the league. The Orioles have the worst record in the league and it really isn’t even close. The Orioles were not expected to be great, but they were not expected to be this bad. They played so poorly that manager Dave Trembley was fired and Samuel was given the job on an interim basis. The Orioles were blown out in his first two games as manager but they finally broke through on Sunday. It won’t get any easier for the Orioles as they host the Yankees this week.
Baltimore got the game winning hit from Nick Markakis who was 0 for 14 in his last 14 at-bats. It was the first win for Baltimore since May 25th. The loss was the first on the road for Boston in quite a while as it broke their seven-game road winning streak. The game was a pitching duel for quite a while as Baltimore starter Brian Matusz allowed just two runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings while Boston starter John Lackey went seven innings and allowed just two runs and seven hits. Matusz pitched well but has not gotten a win since April 18th. The Orioles have the worst record in the league but in extra-inning games they are 5-2 vs. the baseball lines.
Baltimore will get a chance this week to show they do more than just break a long losing streak. They will host the New York Yankees early in the week and then they will host the New York Mets in Interleague action. The Orioles will need to hit the ball better if they expect to compete with the Yankees. The Orioles are last in the league in runs scored per game. Their pitching is not much better but at least they do have a couple of capable starters. Baltimore has also been better at home this season vs. the baseball odds than on the road.