Kansas City/Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey!

[sz-youtube url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQiGv3G6wow” caption=”We’re going to Kansas City…” /]

The Orioles head to Kansas City, with a chance to win a season-high 5 consecutive games. After limping into the All Star Break, the Birds swept the Rangers in Arlington for the first time since 1997.

Kansas City sits at 45-50, and slipping out of contention. Even the second Wild Card spot, which fools teams into thinking that all is not lost, is a distant 9 games away. This is the perfect opportunity for the Orioles to get some momentum going into a pivotal series at home against the Red Sox. The Orioles are continually accused of playing down to their competition. Hopefully, they’ll be able to keep the level of play consistent, as they push forward through the second “half” of the season.

Last season, it seemed like every stretch of the schedule was “the most important.” Perhaps it was simply because we didn’t know how to deal with success late in the schedule. Games after the All Star break hadn’t mattered in 14 years. With that being said, I won’t characterize this next stretch of games as “the most important on the schedule.” That would be some serious hyperbole. You never get that from us! But consider… here is what the Orioles have to look forward to:

• 4 @ KC
• 3 vs. BOS
• 3 vs. HOU
• 3 vs. SEA

They should be able to pick up games in this stretch. They don’t need to be perfect, but if they manage to win series over this stretch, they can move back into the driver’s seat in the AL East. And really, with Boston refusing to come back to earth, and the Rays forgetting how to lose, the Orioles have to make a push, in order to run with the other two.