In this rebuilding 2019 season for the Orioles, few aspects of the team have been more disappointing than the bullpen, which entered Memorial Day with an AL-worst 6.09 ERA. And after a particularly painful three-game series against the Rockies, in which the bullpen blew a late lead in each contest, the O’s were a team in need of a change. The only solution, it seemed, was to blow up the conventional routine and try using guys in completely different roles than ever before.
That’s precisely what the Orioles did on this day. And danged if it didn’t work to perfection.