Before the Orioles mounted their futile eighth-inning comeback attempt in a 3-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday night, the in-game highlights shown to the announced crowd of 9,141 at Camden Yards told a sad story.
No defensive gems. No strikeouts. Just a few singles by Adam Jones and Caleb Joseph, and a towering home run to center field by Jonathan Villar that landed in a section without a single fan seated there.
So when new infielder Breyvic Valera singled, stole second and scored on a single by Villar to cut the Orioles’ deficit in half and make it 3-2 in the eighth, the quiet reception spoke volumes.