Baltimore Orioles’ Taylor Ward Sends Message After Loss to Cleveland Guardians

(© Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images)

The Baltimore Orioles wrapped up a frustrating week on Sunday with another tough loss, dropping the series finale to the Cleveland Guardians and losing the four-game series. The defeat continued a downward trend for Baltimore, which has now dropped five of its last six games and fallen to 10-12 on the season.

For a team expected to be one of the most competitive clubs in the American League, the early results have been underwhelming.

After the game, outfielder Taylor Ward delivered a pointed message about where the Orioles stand. “We all need to, I guess, look in the mirror and really examine what we did out there … and just try to make adjustments. This is a great ball club, and we’ve just got to find it from within right now and get back up on horse," he said (h/t Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun).

Ward’s comments reflect the growing urgency inside the clubhouse. Baltimore entered the season with high expectations following an eventful offseason that included signing first baseman Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million contract and a major trade for Ward, acquired from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for right-hander Grayson Rodriguez.

Rodriguez was once one of the Orioles’ top pitching prospects and had shown flashes of success at the big-league level, but the organization shipped him out, along with years of team control, in a clear win-now move to bolster the lineup.

So far, Ward has held up his end. Through his first 21 games with Baltimore, the 30-year-old has posted a .289 batting average, .388 on-base percentage and .809 OPS while leading MLB with 11 doubles. He has been one of the few consistent offensive performers on a team that has struggled to find consistency at the plate.