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Baltimore Orioles: Jonathan Schoop Stays Hot at the Plate

By Christopher Church

TORONTO, ON - JULY 21: Jonathan Schoop #6 of the Baltimore Orioles hits a single in the first inning during MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on July 21, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - JULY 21: Jonathan Schoop #6 of the Baltimore Orioles hits a single in the first inning during MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on July 21, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /
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Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop continues to swing a scorching-hot bat in July.

Amid Baltimore Orioles trade rumors surrounding Manny Machado and then eventually being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers, best friend of Machado and Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop is returning to his All-Star form.

Schoop wrapped up a miserable June by dropping his batting average from .231 to .197 with 15 strikeouts and just 14 hits in 97 at-bats.

Once the calendar flipped to July, Schoop’s bat turned red-hot hitting by posting a .360/.355/.653 slash line through 19 games. More notably, Schoop has crushed five home runs with 8 RBIs in July including three home runs in the past four games.

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Schoop reportedly left his vacation during the All-Star break to visit his best friend Machado and say goodbye before the All-Star journeyed to his new team in Los Angeles. MASNSports.com’s Steve Melewski reports Schoop “broke down like a kid and started to cry,” but that hasn’t seemed to interfere with his play on the field.

Since the Machado trade, Schoop has three home runs and six hits in 18 at-bats, showing no signs of slowing down despite his buddy not playing alongside him in the Orioles infield.

Involved in latest Orioles rumors, Schoop is signed through this season and will be arbitration eligible next season. The one-time All-Star can become a free agent starting in 2020 with questions regarding his future with the Orioles.

The Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers have reached out to the Orioles about Schoop as the team undergoes a serious rebuild.

Next: A Look at the 5 Prospects From the Machado Trade

Schoop’s scorching-hot play as of late comes after suffering a Grade 1 oblique strain at the start of the season from overswinging. The injury forced the 26-year-old to miss almost 20 games from April 13 to May 8.

Nonetheless, Schoop’s play indicates he’s shaken off the rust and is becoming the player we all know by smashing home runs and earning clutch base hits.

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