Baltimore Orioles: The continuation of quality starts

The Baltimore Orioles starting rotation was expected to be in limbo for at least the first month.

As the 2017 season began, there was much doubt regarding the starting five for the Baltimore Orioles. Once the news broke regarding Chris Tillman, the concern had started to reach new levels.

With Tillman out for at least a month, all eyes had turned to Kevin Gausman, and Dylan Bundy to carry the Baltimore Orioles rotation through the first five weeks of the season. Additionally, Orioles fans hoped that Ubaldo Jiménez and Wade Miley would have bounce back seasons, on their way to crawling through April.

Of course, there’s the fifth starter that was thought to Gabriel Ynoa out of Spring Training. However, that turned into Alec Asher shortly after the completion of the opening homestand.

The opening homestand saw a ton of bullpen innings.

The first five games of the season saw the Orioles bullpen pitch 20.2 innings and starters had just one quality outing. That outing was Dylan Bundy against the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday, April 5.

Bundy had thrown seven innings that night, allowing just one earned run en route to his first victory of the season. The Orioles won that game, 3-1.

Even though the bullpen found themselves scattering, seemingly each game, the Orioles still managed to go 4-1 and packed their bags to head north to Boston.

In recent memory, road trips haven’t been kind to the Orioles.

The Orioles haven’t necessarily had the best numbers on the road in recent years. You have to go back to 2014 to find the last time they played better than .500 ball on the road. Last year, the club went 39-42, and in 2015 they went 34-50.

Starting their road schedule with a few victories would have been ideal for the O’s, however, what came next may shock a few people.

The opening road trip this season is arguably one of the best the team has had to start a season in recent years. Of course, I’m not counting their 2-1 start to the 2015 season. They opened that year against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.

The conclusion of this nine-game road trip saw the Orioles split the series with Boston, take three-of-four in Toronto, and two-of-three in Cincinnati.

Fans also were treated to seven quality starts in eight games. Between Bundy (twice), Gausman, Miley (twice), Asher, and Jiménez, they combined for 46.1 innings, and just nine earned runs.

That’s an ERA of 1.76 folks.

The Orioles look to continue that streak as they open a three-game set with the Red Sox.

Can the quality starts remain in Baltimore?

The Orioles have the most wins against the Red Sox than any team they’ve played since 2012. They are 55-41 against Boston and 25-22 at Camden Yards.

Tonight, the Orioles send Dylan Bundy back to the mound looking to take down the 10-6 boys from Beantown.

Dylan Bundy is 1-2 versus the Red Sox, with a career 6.53 ERA in 20.2 innings. He owns a 1.887 WHIP as well.

Against Bundy, Dustin Pedroia is 5-for-11, Mookie Betts is 4-for-9 with two home runs, and Xander Bogaerts is 4-for-12 with a homer.

Next: Schoop is sizzling at the plate

Through 14 games, the Orioles starting pitching has been a pleasant surprise. With 12 games in-a-row upcoming against the American League East, if the starters can continue the streak of quality starts, they’ll distance themselves in the division.

For a team that already has a two-game advantage within the division, these next 12 are going to be fun to watch.