Orioles clinch playoff berth with ‘sense of relief’

NEW YORK — At 10:35 p.m. ET Tuesday, 14 minutes after the Baltimore Orioles defeated the New York Yankees, a roar erupted inside the visiting clubhouse at Yankee Stadium. The Minnesota Twins had lost to the Miami Marlins, clinching a playoff spot for the Orioles for the second straight season.

It was time to party.

Players, coaches and support staff gathered in the middle of the room to bathe each other in champagne and beer. In one corner, members of the franchise’s ownership group celebrated the achievement. In another, a beverage station for 20-year-old rookie Jackson Holliday was set up with a small tub filled with ice, bottles of “Baby Bird Bath Water,” a toddler-sized No. 7 Holliday jersey and a letter board reading “Baby’s First Clinchmas 2024.”

“We’re so happy we’re going back,” Orioles All-Star right fielder Anthony Santander said with goggles atop his head and puddles of alcohol at his feet.

The road back was very different. Last year, the Orioles were an upstart club that defied projections to coast to 101 wins and the American League East title. This year, there was adversity to reach the playoffs in consecutive years for the first time since 1996 and 1997.

“I think today is a sense of relief,” Orioles general manager Mike Elias said.

Baltimore (87-70) began this season with high expectations and was meeting them, building a three-game division lead as late as July 9. Then came the midseason swoon. Injuries ravaged their roster — first with the starting rotation before spreading to other departments. Closer  Craig Kimbrel’s collapse destabilized the bullpen and led to his release. And the offense, despite teeming with talent that has made the Orioles the envy of other organizations, sputtered for stretches with Gunnar Henderson and Santander as the only steady contributors.

The result has been a mediocre 30-36 record since building that three-game cushion in July, while the Yankees have surged ahead.

“It’s been a tough few months, man,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “Every game that we win is [tough], it feels like. It just hasn’t come easy. And hopefully, that makes us adversity tested. With the injuries we’ve had, just bad luck a lot of nights too. We just haven’t caught a whole lot of breaks in the second half. And I feel like it can turn.”

The Orioles, even after Tuesday’s win, are just 9-11 in September. They’ve lost key players for the season — including infielder Jorge Mateo and starters John Means and Kyle Bradish. Grayson Rodriguez, another starter, might not pitch again this season as he continues dealing with a lat strain.

And yet the Orioles have become more whole in recent days than they have been in months. Since the start of the month, Baltimore has reinstated seven players from the injured list who are expected to play roles in October: Zach Eflin (shoulder), Ramon Urias (ankle), Heston Kjerstad (concussion), Jacob Webb (elbow), Ryan Mountcastle (wrist), Danny Coulombe (elbow) and All-Star Jordan Westburg (hand).

“We’re trying to get going, and this is great momentum for us,” said  Adley Rutschman, an All-Star this season who is batting .183 with four home runs and a .557 OPS in 67 games since June 29.

Winning the division title is still mathematically possible. The Orioles need to win their final five games, while the Yankees need to lose theirs. Chances are that’s not going to happen. The Orioles know that. And they know firsthand it doesn’t matter.

That 101-win team last year didn’t win a game in the playoffs. They converted a bye from the wild-card round into an AL Division Series sweep at the hands of the Texas Rangers, the eventual World Series champions.

Having home-field advantage in the wild-card round, however, is very likely with a four-game edge on the next two teams in the standings. It’s something to play for over the final five days of the regular season. Next week, they’ll be playing for a lot more — again.

“Maybe we can come into the playoffs with a little more peaceful stage of mind,” Elias said, “given how we arrived there this year.”