The Orioles came home to Camden Yards on Aug. 6 and ran straight into the kind of opponent that can turn a fresh series into a measuring stick. After an 11-day, 10-game road trip, Baltimore opened against the Yankees with Carlos Rodón set to make his first start since June 28.
That is why Yankees Vs Orioles matters now: the Orioles are back after taking three out of four from the Rays, while the Yankees still sit 8.5 games ahead for the first AL wild card spot despite a lineup that has been missing Aaron Judge since the end of May and Cody Bellinger with a left hamstring strain. New York has stayed in postseason position, but the numbers around the offense are not pretty. The Yankees entered with an AL-worst.229 batting average and a.308 on-base percentage that ranked second-worst in the AL, even though they had 171 home runs, second-most in the majors.
The contrast inside the Yankees is what gives the series its edge. On one side, the pitching staff has carried a 3.26 ERA that leads the majors, and Cam Schlittler has set the pace in the AL with a 2.19 ERA, 152.0 innings pitched and 5.1 WAR. On the other, the lineup has been thin enough that the club went 33-32 during Judge’s absence after opening 36-23 before he suffered a fractured rib at the end of May. George Lombard Jr., called up on Aug. 4, has helped settle the shortstop spot after replacing Anthony Volpe, but the absence of Judge and Bellinger still leaves the middle of the order looking far less imposing than the power totals suggest.
Rodón is the next test in that imbalance. He missed all of April while recovering from offseason elbow surgery, then issued 26 walks in 46.1 innings across nine starts before this turn came up. The Yankees have also had to lean on Brent Headrick and Paul Blackburn as late-inning options ahead of David Bednar, who has gone 27-for-30 in save chances, which only adds to the sense that this team is being held together by different parts at different times. Shane Baz is listed as the opposing starter, and Gunnar Henderson has homered twice in his career against Rodón, a small detail that Baltimore will keep in mind if the game tightens late.
What happens next is simple enough to see: if Rodón can handle a starter’s workload after the elbow issues and the likely pitch count limit, the Yankees get one more layer of balance. If he cannot, the same offense that has already been patched together by injuries will be asked to carry too much again.
