Breaking down the Baltimore Orioles 2024 Schedule

the Orioles should have a great team in 2024 but how about their opponents will the schedule help them or hurt them this season we'll break all that down plus Kyle Stowers with a thre Homer game in spring training on Sunday we'll talk about it all coming up on this episode of the locked on Orioles podcast you are locked on Orioles your daily Baltimore Orioles podcast part of the locked joh podcast Network your team every [Music] day hey there Orioles fans today is Monday March 18th 2024 and welcome back in to the locked on Orioles podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day as always I'm your host Conor Nukem and coming up on today's episode we're going to take a look at the Orioles 2024 schedule we're about in a week and a half away from opening day what do the O's need to do month by month where is it easier where is it tougher where do they need to make sure they pick up some wins so they can end up playing October baseball when it's all said and done I'll break it all down by the projections and who they play and we'll also do a little recap of the weekend the Orioles four spring training games they played since we last talked and what a show some Orioles put on on Sunday Kyle Stowers a thre Homer game Colton cowser crushing the baseball John RH showing out we'll get to it all coming up on this episode of the locked on Orioles podcast which is brought to you by FanDuel make every moment more new customers join today and you'll get $200 in bonus bets if your first bet of $5 or more wins just visit fanduel.com lockon to get started today so we'll kick things off in this one before we get to the schedule with just a little breakdown of what happened over the weekend for the Orioles because we did have you know a little bit of stuff that we could look at Friday game against the Rays was televised there was no stat cast but we did get a broadcast there so got to look at a little bit of that Saturday we had nothing essentially uh the Orioles did walk it off with two runs in the ninth to beat the Red Soxs 5 to four on Saturday that was after losing to the Rays on Friday so that's a cool thing right even a spring training walk-off is still a walk-off and a cool moment for guys and it was Jud Fabian who tied the game with a single Dylan beavers who walked it off with a single to the Orioles top Outfield Prospect so that's always cool to do in the ninth inning but we don't have more past that on Sunday the one game in Sarasota no stat cast no televised Orioles did win that game though and then the Orioles were in Lakeland it was a split squad on Sunday also playing the Tigers that ended in a 44 tie but that one although we didn't get a broadcast we did have the stat cast feed so we have a little bit to break down from the weekend and we got to start with Sunday because the man who stole the show and the the man who is kind of stealing the show in Florida this year is Kyle Stowers who had been great so far this spring for the Orioles continuing to put pressure on Mike Elias and his staff to maybe have to find a spot for Stow well Kyle took it to another level on Sunday a three Homer game for Kyle Stowers on Sunday in Lakeland against the Tigers per Sarah Langs always coming up with unbelievable stats on Twitter the first three Homer game in Spring training since it was Mike zenino in 2011 was the last one to do it and shout out to Mike zenino who just announced his retirement a couple days ago but I mean star just unleashing and here was the interesting thing the big thing we've been talking about star his four previous home runs this spring had all come against left-handed pitching and that was something we' talked about a lot it's like wow stour had had trouble hitting lefties now he's mashing lefties in spring because this be a good thing for him all three homers on Sunday came against right-handed pitching which is honestly good because I believe he was one for 19 against righties this spring coming in so that's a good thing for Kyle Stowers as well he came out of the game didn't get a fourth that bat but second inning home run 97 off the bat to right field we didn't get a distance from stat cast fourth inning wow 104 off the bat 438 feet according to stat cast that ball would have been a home run in all 30 Major League ballparks and then in the seventh inning just for good measure this one the hardest hit 107 off the bat 399 ft would have been a homer in 21 of 30 Big League ballparks some of these spring training Parks a little smaller more wind helping balls carry out but man oh man like Kyle Stowers on top of it the seven homers now for him this spring leads all players in Major League spring training this year every single one of them but here's the issue still there is still not a clear opening for Kyle Stowers to make this ball Club out of spring training it's just the fact of the matter at best at best the Orioles will have five Outfield openings one goes to Austin Hayes one goes to Cedric Mullins one goes to Anthony santand there we know that so there's two spots remaining you have Colton cower hon kirad Ryan McKenna Kyle Stowers basically it's down to those four for maybe two spots but I would argue you have to prioritize Jackson holiday over Kyle Stow now you could say oh star has already been in The Bigs keep him up put holiday in Triple A that's a possibility but I think we all want Jackson holiday on the opening day roster and if he is we know jimo and Ramona rius they're going to be there as well so that leaves you one Outfield spot between cower kirad McKenna and Stowers you'd probably like someone who can play center field and if you're talking about Good Springs I know star has hit seven homers but overall I still think Cower has probably been more impressive in Spring that spot's probably going to go to him and and Kad to me is still above Kyle Stowers in the pecking order like it is an uphill climb for Kyle Stowers right now and even if the Oriol said you know what we're gonna put instead we're gonna put holiday in Triple A there's still an argument to be made that kurur dad deserves it over starers you can't just take stats from spring training to make this decision and the Orioles won't be doing that so here's the question we know the O's aren't just taking straight up spring training stats and that's who makes the team but how how many consecutive homers would starers have to hit it was three straight in this game how many consecutive homers would star have to hit for the oros to just give him an opening day roster spot because they literally just were forced to because of performance I would say 10 if star hits a homer in his next seven spring training at bats you just got to give him a spot let me know in the YouTube comments make sure to like comment and subscribe to the locked on Orioles YouTube page and tell me how many consecutive homers would Kyle Stowers need for the or just say you know what he just he has to get a spot there's no doubt about it it's awesome for starers there's just not playing time there right now there's just simply not he's most likely still going to start the year in Triple A Northfolk and that doesn't mean he won't get to the big leagues with the Orioles at any point this year if he continues to hit like this in games that matter at least a little bit more in Triple A they're going to call him up but the ceiling is still higher for cower it's still higher for kirad I still think those guys can help the Orioles more than starers can and and holidays in this mix as well obviously he's above Kyle Stowers in this pecking order he's just in a tough spot and I said this on Twitter on Sunday like maybe you just trade him if there's a team willing to give you a good Big League reliever because I think the Orioles are still one relief pitcher short and you can make your Bullpen better and all it takes is Kyle Stowers who I mean he's been great but it's not a huge deal if he's in Triple A norfol or on another team I'd pull the trigger on that trick if anyone's willing if anybody sees this spring and really jumps at it maybe a less analytically inclined maybe a bit of a dumber team out there that wants to jump on Kyle Stowers because of a month in Spring make it happen but the other thing is like even if you're thinking that spring training performance carries more weight than it actually does colon cowser still been so incredible that if there is that one Outfield spot it's still going to go to cower over Kad I mean cower had an awesome day Sunday in Lakeland is well he had four at bats did Colton cower all four hard- hit balls first inning ground out 110 off the bat third inning double 106 off the bat traveled 401 feet would have been a homer in six big league ballparks fifth inning fly out 96 off the bat eighth inning fielders Choice 100 miles per hour off the bat he was mashing the baseball and he's continued to do it all spring and he's still my front runner to get that final Outfield spot and it just kind of in terms of the roster it is what it is and and maybe an injury could pop up that would open space I mean Austin Hayes hasn't played since Thursday he's you know Brandon Hyde said he's a little under the weather the more concerning one is Ryan mountcastle he hasn't played since Tuesday Oriel said on Saturday that it was neck stiffness for Mount Castle o are off today so hopefully tomorrow on Tuesday the mount Castle's back in the spring training games I mean if it gets closer and closer to opening day he's still missing tie with next stiffness he could start the year on the iil at that point maybe there's an opening because oarn just gets all of the first base reps and you could carry another hitter and and maybe that's how Kyle Stowers could sneak his way on but it's still it's it's an uphill battle for him so I don't know what he can do to push his way on but let me know how many straight homers what he have to do to push his way on other things just to note from the weekend Dean Kramer and Corbin Burns both pitching into the fifth inning as did Tyler Wells all those guys kind of on a good track building themselves up to get ready to be in that opening day rotation Albert Suarez pitched again on Friday on the broadcasted game fast ball looked good early then he got hit around I just think he's gonna go to norfol it was a cool story but he's gonna go to norfol Let's see we got Dylan tapate Vos looking good quick inning ground balls love to see it he seems to be healthy ready to go Brian Baker probably on the outside looking in but he was 97 and 98 with the fast ball on Sunday in Lakeland that's that that's a good sign for Brian Baker and then I got a shout out JN rhods JN rhods with two late home runs in the game Sunday in Sarasota a two-run homer off of Dylan Lee a Braves Big League reliever that tied the game in the seventh and then hit another two-run Homer in the eighth inning when the O had a six-run eighth on Sunday John rhods interesting Prospect like his tools we'll see him in doua buy and and probably Triple A norfol at some point this year cool moment for him in these big league spring training games though and then the last thing from the weekend is Orioles brought back an old friend who wasn't that long ago that he was one of their friends pton berdick is back on the Orioles they claimed the 27-year-old right-handed hitting outfielder off waivers from the white socks over the weekend now the Orioles had originally acquired him for cash from the Marlins back on Valentine's Day when the Marlins had placed him on waivers berdick been in the big leagues Parts the last couple of Seasons with Miami Big Time power awesome exit velocity numbers awesome hard hit numbers just has a giant hole in his swing and the strikeout numbers are really concerning there's just a part of the strike zone he can't get to at all but when he makes contact it's fun to see and I think the Orioles see something there where you know hey we can go check this out you know back when the Orioles did claim him back the week of Valentine's Day I did an episode kind of breaking down berdick in fo make sure to go back and check that one out if you want more information on Payton berdick but he is back in Big League camp with the Orioles is on the 40 man roster but what they did do because once the Orioles picked him up they then d F him five days later to make room for Caleb ort I believe white sock claimed him white sock kept him in Camp for about a month then the white sock made the dill in CE trade and they needed room on their 40 man for the return and they DFA pton berdick so the orios claim him again and immediately although they keep him on the 40 man they option him down to minor league camp and this is interesting here now this might sound like I'm putting my tinf foil hat on but just hear me out here with berdick going to minor league Camp he is a right-handed hitting outfielder who can play all three Outfield positions including center field I think for pton berdick the ceiling is higher than Ryan McKenna now the floor right now in terms of who you would trust the oros would probably still lean McKenna if it was between the two just because he's been with the O's for three years and although the hitting isn't there he doesn't have as big a hole in his swing I don't think there's similar players berdick just has a higher ceiling I think if the Orioles are gonna have berdick here in Camp he would be in a competition with Ryan McKenna and I think at this point we've seen enough of McKenna they probably View berck in a higher standing especially if they've acquired him now twice they've brought him back now this off season after DFA him there's clearly something they like something they think they can fix in bick's swing to turn him into a true major leager so if the O think berdick is just McKenna with a higher ceiling and the O like him to claim him like him enough to claim him twice but they're not going to give him a chance to make the team right now again you send him down to minor league Camp he's not making the opening day roster that tells me that the Orioles don't feel like they need to fill a spot on the roster right now for that right-handed hitting Center Field playing outfielder they thought at one point they might have needed it but what that tells me is if they they might think berck is better than McKenna and since they're sending berck down they don't need that spot they think Jorge Mato with his ability to play The Outfield now who also played right and left on Sunday can play that role on the team which tells me again connect to all the dots Pepe Silvia style that I just don't think Ryan McKenna is going to make this opening day roster and I know some people were like yeah we already knew that but some people are worried that's going to happen I just think this is another point that mcken is getting DFA before opening day there's just it's not going to be there for him but that's the recap of the Orioles weekend they just continue to win a bunch of spring training games it's kind of funny at this point they are 185 and two in spring training now and a lot of that's Kyle Stowers three home runs on Sunday what a spring this guy is having but these games don't count and that's the big thing here right yeah Corbin Burns gave up a cple CP runs yeah K Towers hit three home runs like it's things on both sides but these games do not count so you're only taking a lot of this stuff to a certain degree it's all with a grain of rice right you're not looking fully into everything that happens surface level because these games literally do not count but the games do start to count in 10 days that is when the ORS kick off the 2024 season and I wanted to run through their schedule in full what are the easy Parts what are the hard Parts when do the O's need to take advantage all you got to do all you got to do is get enough wins to get into the playoffs by the end of the year we saw from the Diamondbacks last year once you get in anybody's got a chance so coming up next I break down the Orioles 2024 schedule but first this episode of the locked on Orioles podcast is brought to you by FanDuel say goodbye to busted brackets because FanDuel lets you bet on every game of the tournament whether you're betting on a big upset or on one seed it's time to go dancing on America's number one sports book and right now new customers can get $200 that's right $200 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins that's 200 bucks to use on point spreads money lines you can even pick who's going to win it all I got Tennessee just visit fanduel.com lockon and bet on college hoops until they cut down the Nets so we're going to dive in here to the Orioles 2024 schedule but before we do that as you know locked on has launched the first ever National Sports 247 streaming Channel locked on sports today and Baseball fans you're going to want to mark your calendars for March 20th that's this Wednesday at 700 PM eastern time for the best MLB season preview coming exclusively to locked on sports today on Wednesday March 20th at 7:00 p.m. eastern time be the first to get local Insight from the MLB local Experts of the locked on podcast Network including yours truly find it on Wednesday March 20th at 7 pm. eastern time on the lockon sports today 247 streaming streaming Channel on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app so we're here breaking down the O's schedule and we did this before last season and some of it kind of came true right the Orioles did capitalize on their weaker parts of the schedule but in general last year the Orioles capitalized on every part of the schedule they went 101 and 61 it was an incredible season they won the AL East there's no guarantee that's going to happen again right I mean we think the O's are going to win this division we think they've got the team to win it again and go back to back and the Yankees missing Garett Cole for a while doesn't make them as scary but they did go and get juano they should be a better team this year I don't know if the Blue Jays are going to be a better team but they could be I don't know if the rays are going to be a better team but they could be thing is it's really hard repeat 100 win Seasons it's really tough you could have just variance in how players work out so it's important to look at the schedule and see okay where can you maximize your wins and Bank some wins and the big thing about the Oreo schedule is they can Bank some wins early we're going to go month by month here taking a look at the O schedule where it gets easy and and where it gets kind of tough for the Oreo so let's start in March and April remember there's a little bit of baseball in March this year March 28th next Thursday is opening day so marchapril gets kind of just p put into one month entirely they start the month with the angels that is the Sho Otani list Angels now they will have Mike Trout back but they do not have sh aotani and that is huge and guess what they weren't good with SH Otani anyway they've actually got six games against the angels in March and April they start at home against the angels and they play them on the road later in the month and it's same with the Royals the second series of the year the Orioles host the Royals now the Royals credit to them they've gone out and added a bunch of big League pieces this offseason but they are still not a good baseball team the Orioles also travel to Kansas City later in the month as well that's six against the angels and six against the Royals now I'm using the picota projections for these rosters which are updated the ones I used as of Thursday March 14th I believe and I get it right pakota is pretty low on the Orioles I think they have them at 86 or 87 wins for the year so I understand but it's a good kind of full projection system for the entire league they've got the Angels projected for 74 wins and the Royals at 71 I honestly think that Royals projection is kind of high for that then the Orioles go to Pittsburgh and go to Boston the Orioles start the year with five consecutive Series against teams projected by picota to have a losing record three versus The Angels three versus Kansas City three in Pittsburgh three in Boston and three at home against Milwaukee although Milwaukee did win 90 games last year you know they traded away Corbin Burns and they don't have woodriff and the team's looking a little different andot projects them for 79 and 83 that is a time where you can get off to a hot start they do play three against the twins in March and April a team that's projected for 90 wins and at the very end of the month they do have two against the Yankees projected for 92 wins but remember they also have six against the angels and six against the Royals because they play them again and they also have three against the Oakland Athletics going to be again the worst team in baseball projected for 64 wins probably a little high at the end of the month as well the combined projected winning percentage for all of the games SL teams that the Orioles are playing in March and April is 470 that is by far the easiest month that the Orioles have on their schedule so the big first thing to know is the Orioles need to jump on it in April again five consecutive series to begin the year against teams projected by picota to finish under 500 so you look at those series that's 15 games in total I mean you got to come out of that at like 10 and five and I I get it right you don't those first 15 games aren't going to make or break your season but that's going to be one of the potentially easier stretches the Orioles play all year and it's to begin the season so coming out of the gate hot is going to be huge for the O's now it's unfortunate they're not gonna have John means they're not gonna have Kyle bradish for that stretch we hope they're otherwise healthy but you got to jump on these guys early that is going to be huge here and again the only full series that's going to be tough is going to be that Minnesota series and it's not like that's an elite team they're H I mean some of their projecting to win 90 games is just because the AL Central their division is an absolute disaster that's one of the reasons why they won it last year March and April owes need to jump on it then in May it gets a little bit tougher but you still need to capitalize in may they start with two against the Yankees and then it's three in Cincinnati picota kind of low on the Reds projecting them for only 78 wins then two against the gats on the road that's going to be a terrible team and then they've got kind of like those you know could go either way teams for a while three against the Diamondbacks yes they went to the World Series but you know their team last year only won 84 games like it wasn't an amazing team three against Toronto who knows what that team's going to be three against Seattle again who knows what that team's going to be three in St Louis they're probably looking for a bounceback year and then four in Chicago against the white socks that's going to be a disaster team and then three at home against Boston and then one game to start a series against the Rays at the end of the month now that's a little tougher right you've got you the Diamondbacks and you've got Toronto and you've got Seattle and you know some some better teams in there Yankees at the top but still those games combined is still a 492 projected winning percentage for all of those opponents in May it's still under 500 you still got to capitalize there so if you're the Orioles you're looking at this you know kind of March and April set of games and you know you're playing 29 games in that stretch like if you can get off to a really good start you know you can get a a 19 and 10 start to this season against those teams and then you put yourself in a good spot where you know maybe in May you don't have to play at that rate but you you can win 55% of those games in May you set yourself up really really nicely because in June things flip the exact opposite direction for the Orioles look through the June schedule and tell me you're not scared for what the have to go up against now I understand the Orioles are also one of the best teams in baseball but what they face in June it's a lot so it starts with two games at home against the Rays and then later in the month they also have four at the trop against the Rays as well they then they got four in Toronto then it's three at home against the Braves maybe the best team in baseball three at home against the Phillies one of the better teams in baseball then three in New York against the Yankees three in Houston against the Astros three at home against Cleveland and the month ends with four at home the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers every single team the Orioles play in June is projected by picota to finish with a winning record this season that's kind of unbelievable they go an entire month without playing a team projected for a losing record the worst team they will play in that month is the Cleveland Guardians Who picota projects to finished 83 and 79 which I could totally see the Guardians doing I mean they I believe they did finish a little below 500 last year but they won the division two years ago and it's still mostly that same young team they could get back to being in the division hunt I mean Tampa Toronto Atlanta Philly New York Houston Texas wouldn't be surprised if all of them were playoff teams this year and Cleveland could be too it could be all playoff teams they're facing in June so you got to bank some of those wins in April and May because June is coming for you and it is going to be a test for this Orioles team now the hope is you would think the O will have John means back in June a little bit more far-fetched I have Kyle bradish back but you never know what if Kyle bratus showed back up in June and helped him out that would be fantastic so that's kind of the first half of the season so what happens in the second half does it look more like April does it look more like June we'll get to that to finish off the Pod coming up next but first this episode of the lockdown Orioles podcast is also brought to you by eBay Motors passion drive and patience it's what brings home the winning Trophy and it's also what keeps your ride or die alive eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to Peak Performance from superchargers roof racks exhaust kits LED headlights and more whether you're into speed power or style eBay Motors has got you covered with over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die you'll always find exactly what you're looking for and with eBay guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back because with eBay Motors you're burning 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year but should be a good baseball team then three in Oakland gotta take advantage of that three at home against the Cubs who nobody can kind of figure out they're actually projected by picota to finish a perfect down thee middle 81 and 81 this season then three at home against the Yankees who could have Garrett Cole back by then if he doesn't have to get Tommy John then three in Texas against the Rangers then three in Miami Marlins have had had a million pitching injuries so far I know they went to the postseason last year but they are in a tough spot pitching injury-wise then three at home against the Padre's I mean they did just get Dylan ceas but I mean who knows what the Padre's are going to be doing this year after what the heck happened last year and then three at home against Toronto it's really kind of a back and forth again 505 winning percentage in July it's kind of more of a normal month in Major League Baseball honestly then you go to August where it does get a little bit tougher in August you start with four in Cleveland always a tougher place to win and then three in Toronto and three in Tampa that is a really tough 10 game Road Trip to start the month of August for the Orioles just like coming right off the trade deadline there that that's that's going to be a tough stretch then you're back home it gets a little easier two versus the Nats four versus Boston three in New York against the Mets another team where you're like who knows I mean they're projected to go 83 and 79 but we don't really know then you finish August with punch in the face punch in the face and a time of rest four at home against the Astros three in La against the Dodgers that is going to be a heck of a seven game stretch and then you finish August at Kors field with two out of three games of a series against the Rockies so that loosens things up a little bit but the opponent winning percentage 516 for the oros combined opponents in August like that is still a tough month now hopefully because you know that'll be the first full month after the trade deadline they'll have some reinforcements potentially to help out this team and then you go to September and I think the one good thing about this Oreo schedule is you can get off to the hot start right easiest month by far March and April and honestly May isn't too bad either and then the next easiest month after that is September which I think is really helpful you're pushing for the playoffs you know maybe you have a chance to rest some guys if you need to if you're getting ready for the postseason whatever it may be it starts with the final game of that Series in Colorado against the Rockies then you come back home for three against the white socks so after playing Houston and La Houston and the Dodgers back toback the next two series are the Rockies and the white socks what a turn of events those four series are in a row then they're home for Tampa then it's at Boston then they're in Detroit the oros actually play all six games against the Tigers in the month of September which is kind of an interesting schedule Quirk for a team that's not in their division the Tigers they'll probably be better this year than they were last year picota projects them for 75 and 87 this season they've certainly gotten better no doubt about that this off season just don't quite know if they'll be a good team yet I honestly don't think they will I don't think the offense is there yet so six against them should be helpful then you got three at home against the Giants theyve also gotten better after kind of a a disappointing season and then you end the year with six on the road three at Yankee Stadium and then kind of odd here the Orioles end the year with three at Target Field against the twins they are the one Al team that doesn't play a division opponent to end the season because of course you got five in the division so somebody always is going to play out of division it'll be the Orioles at the twins but because of the white socks games and the Rockies games in six against Detroit the combined winning percentage for the teams in September is just 495 so a little bit of an easier Landing for the 2024 season all in all for the Orioles so basically as you're looking through this schedule look at the Orioles record at the end of May that is going to be huge if the O's are you know a couple games over 500 at the end of May might be saying you know we're playing solid baseball they can turn it on but think in the back of your head they might have missed their shot to pull away and if the O's are you know 8 10 12 15 20 games above 500 at the end of May we'll feel great about it but just remember what's coming up in June all playoff teams 550 winning percentage in June we're going to learn a lot in these different months from the Oriol but it's good to kind of know that hey things are going to start off a little easy maybe a little more pressure on the O's you know you got to kind of win these games early these are the easier ones then also knowing hey lose four out of five in June five out of six we're like oh no the world's falling just remember this is the toughest part of the schedule it's only going to get easier from here and always know that September is lurking where things do ease up a bit for the O's but that's a look at their 2024 schedule and a look back at the weekend for the Orioles as well no O's game in spring training today on Monday but we will be back tomorrow we're getting closer and closer two opening day and this what should be an amazing 2024 season and on tomorrow's episode I've got some bold predictions for you I'm going to go through my six boldest Orioles predictions for the 2024 season some of them you'll say yeah Connor of course that's going to happen that's not bold and some you'll say well that's pretty bold that's what's coming up on tomorrow's episode but until then I'm Conor Nukem and this has been the lockon Orioles podcast part of the lockon podcast Network your team every day