Kremer changes course with scoreless gem

WASHINGTON -- As Dean Kremer stepped off the mound and let out his emotions at the end of the third inning Tuesday night at Nationals Park, it became visible how badly the Orioles right-hander wanted to turn around his tough start to the 2023 season. He would not let the early struggles continue.

Even when the Nationals had runners on second and third with no outs in the third, Kremer regrouped and relied on his plus arsenal to escape a predicament with an impressive sequence.

Lane Thomas struck out looking at a 93.4 mph sinker. Dominic Smith swung through a high 97.4 mph four-seam fastball for strike three. Then, Kremer recorded a third consecutive punchout by getting Joey Meneses to whiff on a 96.1 mph heater. A fired-up Kremer walked off with a celebratory yell.

From there, it was smooth sailing for Kremer, who turned in the best start by a Baltimore pitcher so far this season. The 27-year-old carved through Washington’s lineup for 6 2/3 innings, scattering four singles and striking out six in the O’s 1-0 victory.

Could the third-inning roar have been a product of mounted frustration for Kremer, who entered Tuesday with a 9.49 ERA through three starts?

“Of course, there was frustration,” Kremer said. “Any time you come out on the bottom side and you see your ERA blow up, it kind of hurts. [You try] not to lose faith in where you’re going.”

Over his first three outings, Kremer gave up five home runs in 12 1/3 innings. He completed five frames only once and allowed 13 earned runs -- five to the Red Sox on April 1 and four apiece to the Yankees (on April 7) and A’s (last Wednesday).

Manager Brandon Hyde continued to cite how effective Kremer was down the stretch last season, when he recorded a 2.76 ERA over his final 10 outings. The right-hander had the potential -- and the impressive stuff -- to return to that form.

“I think he did pitch frustrated, honestly,” Hyde said. “I think he was frustrated with his first start in Boston. And then, the start against New York didn’t go his way, and I think that kind of carried into his last start. But I think he did just a great job of separating, moving on -- showed some maturity in that way.”

The only time the Nationals had a runner advance past first base vs. Kremer on Tuesday night was during that brief rally in the third. CJ Abrams opened the inning with a single, then Victor Robles reached on an error by Orioles third baseman Gunnar Henderson, with both runners also moving into scoring position on the play.

At that point, Kremer relied on his high-velocity offerings. He threw only four-seamers and sinkers among the 14 pitches he used to strike out Thomas, Smith and Meneses consecutively.

“It was all dictated based off of swings,” Kremer said. “If they were late to that, throwing anything slower in the zone would be doing them a favor.”

Smith can attest to that. He whiffed on three pitches, swinging and missing at a sinker and two four-seamers.

"[Kremer] pitched well -- throwing his fastballs up in the zone, hitting his spots -- and kept mixing it real well,” Smith said.

Kremer -- who threw 39 four-seamers, 15 sinkers and 14 cutters among his 95 pitches -- retired 11 straight Nats batters from the fourth through the seventh before giving up a two-out single to Stone Garrett that ended his outing. As Kremer departed for the third-base dugout a final time, he received a loud ovation from the many Orioles fans who traveled south to support the team in the “Battle of the Beltways” rivalry series.

It was well-deserved applause for a type of outing not many Baltimore hurlers have constructed early in 2023. Through 17 games, the Orioles have had only four starts of six or more frames. Kremer’s gem ranks as the second longest, behind only a seven-inning outing from Kyle Gibson on April 4 at Texas.

The O’s rotation endured several surprises during its early struggles. Cole Irvin, who was acquired in an offseason trade from the A’s, pitched to a 10.66 ERA in three starts before getting optioned to Triple-A Norfolk. Kyle Bradish has tossed only 1 2/3 innings, hitting the injured list due to a right foot contusion sustained in his season debut.

And Kremer, who opened the season as the club’s No. 2 starter, wasn’t looking like the best version of himself. That may no longer be a concern, however, as he’ll aim to establish momentum coming out of a tremendous turnaround start.

“It definitely helps add to the confidence to kind of continue what I did last year,” Kremer said. “I’m very happy with the results, and it’s definitely something to build off of."