The Baltimore Orioles lost 110 games in 2021 and were quite possibly the worst team in baseball.
Then, something started to change in 2022.
They were 16-24 when they called up Adley Rutschman last year, and finished the 2022 campaign with an 83-79 record.
While some of their improvements were tangible and visible to everybody, there were still people who didn’t buy what they did in 2022.
Zach Bollinger took a moment to remind the world how ESPN wasn’t on the Orioles’ bandwagon to start the year.
Lets all take a moment to look back at ESPNs preseason projections for the Orioles… pic.twitter.com/bc2JLdmawY
— Zach Bollinger (@zachbollinger18) August 20, 2023
ESPN projected the 2023 Orioles for 72.4 wins and had their playoffs odds at six percent.
Well, we have news for you: the O’s are 79-48 and it’s not even September yet.
That means they already (and comfortably) surpassed their projected win total, at least according to ESPN.
But this is not something against ESPN: many other outlets, experts, and analysts agreed on the fact that Baltimore wasn’t ready for the postseason.
They look ready to us.
With the help of Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg, Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells, Grayson Rodriguez, Felix Bautista, Yennier Cano, Cedric Mullins, and several other players under 30, the O’s have taken over the American League.
They look primed to make their first postseason since 2016 and make some noise once they are there.
Yes, signing a top-tier pitcher would have been nice and fun, but the Orioles have enough resources to be a tough out once the postseason starts.
They also have more help on the way because their farm system is among the league’s best.
It’s a good time to be an Orioles fan.
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