Thursday August 11 at the Royals

Opponent: Kansas City Royals
Outcome: L
Score: 5-6
Streak: L4
Record: 37-76
Rank: 7th
GB: 31

The last time Mike Morgan started a game against the Royals was on April 22nd and it didn't go well - he gave up singles to the first six batters before being lifted and all six runners scored as part of a nine run inning.  It went better tonight but only slightly - he gave up singles to the first two batters (Kurt Stillwell and Kevin Seitzer) before striking out George Brett.  But when Pat Tabler walked to load the bases, Orioles manager Frank Robinson decided to quit while he was ahead and lifted Morgan in favor of Jay Tibbs.  It didn't do any good - Danny Tartabull hit Tibbs' first pitch over the left field wall for a grand slam.  Tibbs got the next two batters to ground out but the Royals were up 4-0.

The Orioles got on the board in the fourth inning.  With one out Cal Ripken doubled and then scored when Eddie Murray followed with a double.  Larry Sheets followed with a single to move Murray to third and a Terry Kennedy double scored Murray and moved Sheets to third.  Jim Dwyer was then intentionally walked to load the bases.  Sheets scored on a sacrifice fly by Rene Gonzales before Bill Ripken grounded out to end the inning.  The Orioles had cut the Royals' lead to 4-3.

The Birds tied the game in the eighth inning when with two outs Murray followed a Cal Ripken single with a triple.  Murray was left stranded at third though and the Royals took the lead again in the bottom of the inning on an RBI single by Stillwell.  But the Orioles took advantage of a couple of Royals errors in the ninth to tie it back up.  With one out Ken Gerhart hit a ground ball that third baseman Seitzer couldn't handle.  The ball went into left field and left fielder Bill Pecota (who had just come into the game as a pinch runner in the previous inning) also misplayed the ball which allowed Gerhart to get to second base.  Both Seitzer and Pecota were charged with errors on the play.  Pinch hitter Mickey Tettleton struck out for the second out of the inning and the Birds were down to their last out.  But Jim Traber singled to score Gerhart with the tying run.

Both teams had opportunities to score over the next few innings.  The Royals left the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth and left runners on first and third in the tenth.  The Orioles had back-to-back singles from Tettleton and Rick Schu with two outs in the eleventh but failed to score.  Finally in the twelfth inning with one out the Royals got a single from Pecota followed by a single Stillwell that moved Pecota to third.  Seitzer then hit a walk off sacrifice fly to bring Pecota in with the game winning run. 

This was the twelfth and final game the Orioles would play against the Royals in 1988.  They lost all 12 games.  They had lost their last game against the Royals in 1987 and their first two against them in 1989 so in all they lost 15 in a row to the Royals between July 26, 1987 and April 11, 1989.

This was Mike Morgan's final appearance in an Orioles uniform.  I'm not quite sure how he spent the last month and a half of the 1988 season - if he went on the disabled list or if he was sent to the minors - but he never appeared in another game for Baltimore.  He went 1-6 with a 5.43 ERA in 22 games in 1988, his only season with the Orioles.  He had been acquired from the Mariners in December of 1987 in a deal for Ken Dixon and would be sent to the Dodgers in March of 1989 for outfielder Mike Devereaux who would be an important part of the Orioles magical 1989 season.