The New York Yankees are the 2024 American League East champions. They’ve sealed their place in the postseason and will look forward to their next challenge. However, it is crucial that the team does not forget their recent series with the Baltimore Orioles, as this matchup could come full circle. The champagne was burning Thursday night in the eyes of the Yankees roster. The Orioles failed to secure the division, and they’ve bought themselves a longer playoff route.
However, the Orioles are aware that a rematch against the Yankees is quite possible based on the way the postseason bracket is set up. With that in mind, there is at least one key takeaway for the Yankees to keep in mind for October: the depth of the Orioles bullpen.
Yankees Should Remember Depth of Orioles Bullpen for Postseason
The Orioles don’t have many innings-eaters on the mound. They like to cycle through arms based on load management and matchups. In game one of this most recent series, the O’s used seven pitchers to get through the game. Between games two and three, they used 11 arms. That’s 18 total pitchers used in a three-game set in New York. For Baltimore, this helps strategy-wise.
The main relievers have a modest number of innings this season and decent ERAs. For example, Yennier Cano has seen 59 innings with a 3.20 ERA. The newly activated Danny Coulombe is on the lesser side of innings with 28 2/3, but he holds a 2.20 ERA. Cionel Pérez has 52 2/3 innings pitched with a 4.61 ERA.
These relievers are also able to fill starter roles on occasion, as well as long-relief. Most of the Orioles starters record between five to six innings on average with short to mid-relief out of the bullpen. This changes up the team’s look and pitch arsenal on the mound.
Baltimore Has Multiple Closing Options
Losing Felix Bautista for the season was a major blow for Baltimore. Craig Kimbrel was a short fix; he saved 23 games in 29 chances this season. He was recently designated for assignment. So, who could the Yankees see in the late innings out of the Orioles bullpen in a possible postseason matchup?
Keegan Akin is a lefty who saved game two of the series for the Orioles. He’s a top 94 mph arm who has three different pitches. His effectiveness and strikeout percentages are good, and the O’s would probably be comfortable with his entrance into a save situation.
Yennier Cano has slotted in a few times to seal the door shut. He’s saved five of eight opportunities. Cano has a four-pitch selection, up to a biting 96 mph, and a put-away slider. This year he’s recorded 64 strikeouts in 59 innings of work.
Yennier Cano, Filth. 😷 pic.twitter.com/c6d4qIZE5Y
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 7, 2024
The man who has really been deserving of the role, though, has been Seranthony Domínguez. The right-hander has thrown 57 innings with a 4.26 ERA and 66 strikeouts. He has 10 saves in 11 opportunities so far and seems to be the go-to guy for the O’s.
Domínguez has a four-pitch selection that includes a four-seam fastball, slider, sinker, and changeup. He’s been up to 97.7 mph this year on the heater. However, his put-away pitch is his slider, responsible for 41 of his 66 strikeouts on the year.
Going forward, the Yankees may need to make decisions on who to send up to counter the Orioles’ bullpen decisions. Should these two teams meet again, the Bronx Bombers may want to educate themselves on the stacked bullpen the O’s will deploy.
Photo Credit: © Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
