Baltimore Orioles Using Game-Changing Grand Slam as Season's Turning Point

With the Baltimore Orioles reeling recently, they are hoping to use this game-changing moment to turn their season around.

Aug 23, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles right fielder Anthony Santander (25) reacts after hitting a eighth inning grand slam against the Houston Astros at Oriole Park at Camden Yards / Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Things have been a bity rocky for the Baltimore Orioles compared to the early part of the year.

Currently sitting 20 games above .500, they have cooled off compared to their hot start by going 17-17 since the All-Star break and 10-11 in the month of August.

The Orioles haven't been bad by any means, but to see them sitting in the bottom half of the standings during both these time periods is surprising considering how much talent is on this roster.

On Friday, it looked like Baltimore was going to drop another game, and series, when they were down 5-2 against the red-hot Houston Astros heading into the bottom frame of the eighth inning. Their offense had struggled to get going against Hunter Brown, and when they were set up to face one of the best backend units in all of Major League Baseball, things looked bleak.

Then, Anthony Santander blasted a grand slam 403 feet over the right center field wall that gave them a 6-5 lead and ultimately propelled them to victory.

"I was looking fastball ... I just said, 'This is a guy who throws a lot of sliders, too, but I'm going to stay with the fastball right here.' ... I was a little bit aggressive on 2-1, looking for that fastball up," he said per Roch Kubatko of MASN.

It was a huge moment, something that not only had short-term ramifications, but also could be the turning point in their season.

The Orioles have been searching for a way to get back to being the consistently dominant team they had been during the early portions of the year, and they are now using this moment as a potential turning point in their season.

"We've been struggling a little bit the last couple weeks, and that's a big key right there. That is a reminder of who we are as a team. We always stay focused the whole game, we compete for 27 outs. [Colton] Cowser and Adley [Rutschman] did a really good job right there getting on base in the inning, they set it up. That's a great win right there," Santander added.

During a long campaign like the one MLB provides, there are lulls. It's easy to let the low points define the year, making otherwise good teams start playing like middling clubs.

That could have happened to Baltimore.

Without multiple starting pitchers, they are certainly fighting an uphill battle to win the AL East and make a deep playoff run, but that just means other players have to start stepping up.

It's fitting it was Santander again.

He has been absolutely sensational, recording a slash line of .238/.305/.526 with a career-high 38 home runs to go along with 60 extra-base hits, 86 RBI and an OPS+ of 135.

"I haven't seen our team react like that in a long time. It was just a big exhale it seemed like in our dugout," manager Brandon Hyde said.

Now it's up to the Orioles to use this moment and start playing like contending teams should, dominating the opponents on their schedule like they did early on.