In a second half that has seen them grasping for the kind of consistent offensive performances that carried them to the top of the American League in the first half, the Orioles have had games like Thursday’s 13-run, six-homer explosion create false hope before.
The Orioles swatted five home runs in a 10-2 win over the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 7, then scored three runs over their next three games. They’ve posted big numbers and small ones with seemingly no rhyme or reason. But to hear straight-shooting hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh tell it, there’s something bigger at work with these Orioles that one big game doesn’t always figure out.