Baltimore Orioles Season Ends After Getting Swept by Royals in AL Wild Card Round

The Baltimore Orioles are swept by the Kansas City Royals in the American League Wildcard Series.

Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles season has come to an end. 

The Orioles fell to the Kansas City Royals 2-1 in Game 2 as they were swept in the American League Wild Card round.

After winning 91 games and clinching the top Wild Card spot this year, the team couldn’t get their bats moving at home in Camden Yards.

The best acquisition for Baltimore at the trade deadline, Zach Eflin, got the start for the elimination game. The contest started with a leadoff double from Royals second baseman Michael Massey.

Following Bobby Witt Jr. moving the runner to third on a grounder for the first out, Vinnie Pasquantino made his presence known with an RBI single that was his first hit since returning from injury with a broken thumb.

The Orioles would get on base the first time in the opening inning when Jordan Westburg was hit by a pitch. The young infielder was hit in the hand, the opposite one that placed him on the injured list and caused him to miss time in the regular season.

Baltimore would stall out as the top of the order continued to struggle like they did at the plate in the first game of the series.

In the fourth, the Orioles finally picked up a couple of base-hit singles from the middle of the batting order as both Anthony Santander and Adley Rutschman reached base.

The team was stopped yet again by Kansas City starter Seth Lugo with help from some excellent defense by Massey. 

After Baltimore's starting pitcher Corbin Burnes pitched into the ninth in Game 1 on Tuesday, Eflin was given a short leash. He was pulled after only going four innings, replaced by reliever Danny Coulombe when the team trailed by one.

Eflin finished the outing with one run allowed on four hits and picked up three strikeouts and one walk allowed. 

The Orioles would finally get on the board for the first time in the series when outfielder Cedric Mullins hit a solo home run off Lugo. The 30-year-old entered the series 0-for-12 in his postseason career, but quickly changed that by going 2-for-3 in Tuesday's game.

He finished the day 1-4 with his homer being his only hit.

The home run began a small rally for Baltimore as they looked to take the lead for the first time in the Wild Card round, but they were ultimately unsuccessful.

The Orioles loaded the bases thanks to a walk and a fielding error, which pushed the Royals to make a pitching change. The inning would end still tied, however, after Colton Cowser swung at a pitch that hit him. Heston Kjerstad removed him an inning later due to left hand pain. 

The next inning, Kansas City sent seven to the plate, and after Witt Jr. showed off his speed to reach first base, Kyle Isbel would score to give the Royals a 2-1 lead. 

The game would remain the same score until it went final.

In the last inning, Baltimore went down in order after a solid outing for the second day in a row by Kansas City's closer Lucas Erceg.

The Orioles once again struggled from the plate, as they only picked up six hits and were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.

They left nine runners on base.

Baltimore’s season comes to an end after losing their 10th straight playoff game, and were swept out of the playoffs for the second straight year.

As for the Royals, they will move on to face the New York Yankees in the ALDS beginning on Saturday.