The Orioles probably won't celebrate breaking this MLB home run record
In baseball’s era of three true outcomes, there may not be a better time for your favorite team to face the Baltimore Orioles.
Sure, that’s true for a lot reasons considering the state of affairs at Camden Yards, but especially if you need your team to start hitting the ball out of the park.
The Orioles have allowed the most home runs in MLB history before May 1 — a whopping 57 — with 10 days left in the month to go. They shattered the previous record of 50 by the 1996 Detroit Tigers.
Consider that the Milwaukee Brewers have given up the second-most home runs this season (38) and are nearly 20 dingers back of Baltimore. The next home run the O’s allow will set the record for the most allowed in any month of play in league history.
Baltimore’s least dangerous hurlers
Starters Dylan Bundy, David Hess and Dan Straily have each allowed seven homers. Andrew Cashner and Alex Cobb have both given up five.
Of the 22 pitchers who have appeared in a game for the Orioles so far this year, only three — Nate Karns, Evan Phillips and Tanner Scott — have made it out unscathed.
Perhaps it’s no surprise then that Baltimore has allowed the most earned runs (138) in the majors, along with a second-worst 1.55 WHIP and a fourth-worst 162 strikeouts.
The numbers are even more eye-popping when you check them out game-by-game. Fourteen of the Orioles’ first 22 games included multiple home runs allowed, eight of those games included the O’s allowing three or more homers and four of them saw them allow five or more.
Baltimore went 16 consecutive games with a home run allowed to start the season, a streak that was only broken up by a Boston Red Sox team that’s struggled to find power at the plate to begin the year.
Playing against history
It might be way too early to talk about the 2019 Orioles breaking the 2016 Cincinnati Reds’ record of 258 home runs allowed in a season, but as long as we’re here ...
The Reds averaged 1.59 home runs allowed per game in 2016.
The Orioles are currently averaging 2.59 home runs allowed per game this season. That puts them on pace for a solid 420 dingers allowed.
Between Chris Davis’ inability to consistently hit homers and Baltimore’s ability to allow opponents to park the ball beyond the fence, it’s become an entertaining season at Camden Yards for all the wrong reasons.
Hang in there, Orioles fans.
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Blake Schuster is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at blakeschuster@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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