The rest of the 2018 Orioles season can be summed up by one John Mellencamp lyric: Life goes on long after the thrill of living is gone. So it is with baseball.
The Orioles must play 54 more games. There is little joy in that fact. There is not even much to hope for in a “Maybe next year” kind of way, because the collection of players on whom the Orioles are pinning their hopes are not currently in Baltimore. If Trey Mancini starts hitting, that would be nice, but it won’t save next year. Tim Beckham hitting better doesn’t save next year.