STREET. LOUIS – The Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals suspended play Tuesday night after a storm hit Busch Stadium before the bottom of the sixth inning. They plan to resume the contest, which was tied 1-1 when the grounds crew rolled out the tarp, at 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday and play the series finale 30 minutes later.
Baltimore tied the score on Jorge Mateo’s RBI double in the top of the fifth, tying it just in time for the game to be considered official. Kyle Bradish worked five innings and was returning to the mound for the sixth when the game was officially delayed at 9:09 p.m. A few minutes later a storm broke out and steady rain followed for about an hour and a half before the Cardinals announced the game would be suspended. The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for the St. Louis area throughout the night.
The Orioles (29-16) struggled to deal with Cardinals starter Lance Lynn, managing just two hits against the veteran right-hander in six innings. Bradish was on pace to tie it, with the only run against him thanks to Nolan Gorman’s RBI double in the second. Bradish needed just 74 pitches to get through five innings, but he has yet to pitch into the sixth inning in his first four starts to start the year after returning from a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.
Fifth hitter Colton Cowser will arrive on the first Wednesday for the Orioles, who have a decision to make on how they want to handle their pitching staff through 13 innings. Left-hander Cole Irvin made his last appearance on Sunday when he pitched two innings out of the bullpen and right-hander Albert Suarez pitched one inning on Monday. Both are listed to be available for multiple entries if required.
Left-hander John Means remains the Orioles’ likely pitcher for the end of the next series. He is expected to face former Baltimore starter Kyle Gibson, who has a 4.09 ERA in nine starts this season.
Also at stake Wednesday is the Orioles’ American League-record streak of avoiding regular-season sweeps, which ranks third on MLB’s all-time list with 106 series. The Orioles, who began their streak in May 2022, trail only the 1906-1909 Chicago Cubs (115) and the 1942-44 Cardinals (124).
The Orioles entered Tuesday’s game with 11 hours and 37 minutes of rain delays this season, already more than half of their total since 2023 of 20 hours and 53 minutes.
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