Challenge Witt? Burnes, O's have no regrets

BALTIMORE -- As Corbin Burnes regrouped and then stood back atop the rubber of the mound, the Orioles’ ace prepared to face one of MLB’s top hitters in the biggest spot of Tuesday’s American League Wild Card Series Game 1 at Camden Yards.

Burnes doesn’t back down from anybody. Not even Bobby Witt Jr. -- Kansas City’s star shortstop who garnered AL Most Valuable Player consideration this year -- who was up with a runner on third base and two outs in the sixth inning of a scoreless postseason affair.

Two bases open and a player returning from injury on deck? Burnes still wants to attack.

“I'm letting Corbin Burnes, the way he's throwing the baseball right there, determine who he wants to go get,” manager Brandon Hyde said.

Unfortunately for Baltimore, this battle didn’t go in Burnes’ favor. He allowed an RBI single to Witt that resulted in the lone run during the Orioles’ 1-0 loss to the Royals and spoiled an otherwise sensational outing. Now, the O’s are one loss from the end of their season.

In the brief history of the best-of-three Wild Card Series, teams winning Game 1 have gone on to advance 14 out of 16 times. Of the 10 teams to take Game 1 on the road, eight have won the series, including seven via sweep. The Orioles will now need to become the third to overcome an 0-1 deficit at home -- beginning with Game 2 on Wednesday (4:38 p.m. ET, ESPN) -- to advance to the AL Division Series vs. the Yankees.

• AL Wild Card Series Game 2 FAQ

None of that changes the fact that Burnes thought he had the advantage over Witt, as he feels he does against any hitter he faces.

Burnes got Witt to pop out in both the first and fourth innings, painting the bottom of the strike zone with four cutters among the five pitches he threw across those plate appearances. That’s Burnes’ trademark offering, one he threw more than anybody in MLB in 2024.

“I know that's a pitch he's always going to go to,” said Witt, who hit an AL-best .332 with a .977 OPS in the regular season. “That's one of his best pitches, and he has a lot of success with it.”

Because of those early results, Burnes had confidence in attacking Witt again, even though Vinnie Pasquantino (the hitter on deck) was also 0-for-2 -- his only two plate appearances since breaking his right thumb on Aug. 29.

Burnes came directly at Witt with a first-pitch cutter down and away that landed in the strike zone, and Witt tapped an 88.4 mph knock through the left side of Baltimore’s infield that allowed Maikel Garcia to scamper home from third.

“We did a good job the first two ABs against him. Pounded him with that cutter down and away, took some pretty bad swings on it, weak contact,” Burnes said. “It was a pretty good pitch. He didn’t hit it very hard, just found a hole. And that was the difference in the game.”

So there was no thought of intentionally walking Witt -- or, at the least, pitching around him a bit -- and taking a chance against the rusty Pasquantino?

“Not really, no. Not with Burnes,” catcher James McCann said. “He had made pitches early in the game, his first two at-bats. Witt has good hitters behind him. It’s easy to sit here and play Monday morning quarterback, but if that ball goes right at [shortstop] Gunnar [Henderson], we’re not even having this conversation.”

It also wouldn’t be happening had the Orioles offered any support for Burnes, who cruised for eight-plus innings during an 84-pitch, 56-strike gem. He left in the ninth to a standing ovation from an orange-clad crowd that so badly wanted to shower the club’s offense with similar applause.

But Baltimore’s bats couldn’t solve left-hander Cole Ragans or relievers Sam Long, Kris Bubic and Lucas Erceg. The O’s went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and missed multiple prime scoring opportunities.

Cedric Mullins led off the third with a double. There were runners on the corners with one out in the fifth. Two men stood on base with two outs in the eighth. Ryan O’Hearn drew a leadoff walk in the ninth.

No runs scored.

It was reminiscent of many nights throughout the Orioles’ 33-33 second half in which they couldn’t seem to break through, build momentum or play up to the level they showed while storming to a 58-38 record before the All-Star break.

“I don’t think you can take this game and go, ‘Oh, we’re struggling again.’ It’s a playoff game. It’s a whole different thing,” O’Hearn said. “Bottom line is, you’ve got to find a way to score runs. There’s really good pitchers on the mound on both sides, and everyone’s locked in on defense. It’s hard to score runs in the postseason, and that’s our job. We’ve just got to figure out a way to do that tomorrow.”

If not, Baltimore’s season will be over. Its postseason losing streak -- which now sits at nine and dates back to Game 3 of the 2014 ALDS -- will continue. The offseason will be filled with more pain and thoughts of what they could have done differently to avoid a disappointing ending.

“At this point, it’s pretty cookie cutter: You’ve got to win or go home,” Henderson said. “Go out there and play your butt off and do whatever you can to win a game.”

The Orioles remember what it felt like to get swept by the Rangers in the 2023 ALDS. They don’t want to experience that again, and they will work together to try to prevent a repeat.

“There’s no better group I’d rather be with, and I think that’s how everyone feels in this locker room,” Adley Rutschman said. “Everyone’s had each other’s back all year, and nothing changes just because of one game. Guys are going to show up ready to go tomorrow.”