Stowers' first HR gives O's life, sparks magic walk-off

BALTIMORE -- The moment immediately after rookie outfielder Kyle Stowers hit first base, his arms went flying, his helmet almost falling off his head. His emotions, in the best possible way, got the best of him. In a backyard baseball scenario, the Orioles’ No. 9 prospect had just hit the first home run of his career … with two strikes … two outs … down one … off an elite All-Star closer … in the bottom of the ninth inning.

“I kind of blacked out a little bit,” Stowers said.

Stowers has only been around the club in full for six days, but he inundated himself with Oriole Magic on Thursday night, as his first career blast set the stage for a 4-3 walk-off win over the White Sox, coming on Anthony Santander’s game-winning RBI single in the 11th. It was a victory Baltimore snatched from the depths of disappointment, befuddled by Lance Lynn for the bulk of the night, and en route to what would have been a deflating series loss.

All those frustrations -- both internal for Stowers and team-wide for Baltimore -- washed away when the ball found the right-center-field seats and he returned to an amped-up dugout. His blast was merely the first home run that vaunted White Sox closer Liam Hendriks had conceded on an 0-2 count since 2018, and it also made him the first Oriole to have his first career homer be a game-tying blast in the ninth inning or later since Rich Coggins in 1973.

And on top of it all, it was almost never possible. Stowers lofted the first pitch he saw from Hendriks down the left-field line, watching as it popped in and out of the glove of defensive replacement Adam Engel in foul territory. It was ruled an error; had it not unfolded as such, Thursday’s game would have ended right there.

“I just knew I had another chance,” Stowers said. “That's all you can ask for.”

And then he didn’t miss.

“I think he was floating around the bases,” said manager Brandon Hyde.

“The place was about to fall over,” Santander, who homered off Lynn in the first inning, said through team interpreter Brandon Quinones. “The entire time, I was calling it in my head for it to happen.”

Stowers’ blast was not only huge in the micro -- setting up the Orioles’ ninth walk-off win of the season to tie San Diego for second in the Majors -- but just as much in the macro. They had nearly seen two games fall by the wayside after stealing a win against American League Cy Young contender Dylan Cease in the opener. Instead, Thursday’s series victory kept them at pace in the chase for the final Wild Card spot, still 2 1/2 games back of the Mariners but now with an equally large cushion between them and the White Sox and Twins squads that are chasing them.

Now the O's face arguably their biggest challenge of the season, a road swing through two arguable AL favorites in the Astros and the Guardians -- both of whom are positioned well ahead of them in the standings.

But for now, the Orioles can ride the excitement of the series finale, only as sweet as it became because of the frustration that preceded it. Stowers knew that all too well. He started the game 0-for-3, continuing a stretch of going hitless in his prior 13 at-bats with 11 strikeouts before he stepped up to the plate in the ninth.

It’s miraculous how much one swing can do.

“I’m learning a lot, I’m learning every single day,” Stowers said. “It's been really good as far as getting settled in. I always view myself as having room to grow and room to improve. I'm just trying to learn as much as I can and just do whatever I can to help the team win. It’s been a lot of fun to be in this clubhouse. The guys have been so supportive, and [I'm] so grateful for how they’ve treated me.”

“He came in the dugout so fired up, and the team was fired up for him and for us,” Hyde said. “We were so empty offensively for so long in that game, and we finally got a little bit of life there in a timely spot.”

Stowers had gotten a little taste of what was building in Baltimore in June, when he joined the club as a replacement player in Toronto. Since then, he was asked to go back to Triple-A Norfolk and try and master it, watching others get called up around him and watching the club rattle off a litany of improbable comebacks.

Now he’s here, alongside fellow top rookies in Adley Rutschman, Terrin Vavra and Félix Bautista, the latter pitching two perfect innings in extras just two nights removed from a five-out save. Now, the future has arrived. And now, Stowers knows what Oriole Magic is all about.

Said starter Jordan Lyles: “It's a good time to be an Oriole fan.”