Amid the bottom of the 10th inning of a tie game at Camden Yards, Anthony Santander told Austin Hays not to worry about getting ready to hit. The inning, Santander said, would not get past Ryan McKenna.
He proved prophetic when McKenna, in his first at-bat Saturday afternoon after replacing Santander in right field an inning earlier, launched a walk-off, two-run home run to give the Orioles a 6-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
“I called it,” Santander said proudly. “He’s an animal off the bench. That’s awesome. I’m so happy for him. He’s been ready all game. He really pays attention to the game. When his opportunity comes, he’s ready, and I’m so happy he hit that homer for us right there.”
A reserve outfielder typically used as a late-inning defensive replacement for Santander, McKenna’s home run came in his 13th plate appearance of June, having appeared in 15 of Baltimore’s games. It marked the first walk-off home run by an Oriole who began a game on the bench since Rougned Odor’s game-ender May 20, 2022, a day before Adley Rutschman’s major league debut.
“It’s awesome,” McKenna said. “Stuff you try to visualize, try to be prepared for that moment. … Real definitely trumps.”
It took a series of events Saturday for McKenna to be standing in the batter’s box, many of which did not go the Orioles’ way.
In his first game off the injured list, Cedric Mullins was set to start in center field. But with rain passing through Baltimore before the game, manager Brandon Hyde tweaked his defensive positioning. Mullins went to designated hitter, Aaron Hicks slid from right to center, and Santander went out to right after originally being DH.
That changed alignment meant that as the Orioles (46-29) brought a one-run lead into the ninth, Hyde sent McKenna out to right in place of Santander, whose four-hit day included his fourth home run in five games. The arrangement has been common, with McKenna serving as a trusted late-game replacement over the past two seasons.
“When you’re with him every day, you really appreciate how much energy he brings to our team,” Hyde said. “Just the kind of person he is is phenomenal. He’s a really good athlete, a great athlete, that has helped us the last couple years in a lot of ways. So fun to watch him get this moment today, and he’s earned it.”
It seemed doubtful McKenna would receive a trip to the plate after closer Félix Bautista retired the first two Mariners (37-38) in the ninth, but Mike Ford launched the first pitch he saw from the hard-throwing right-hander deep to right-center for his second home run of the day.
Baltimore wasted a chance in the bottom of the ninth when pinch-runner Jorge Mateo was doubled off first on Mullins’ popup behind home plate, one of four outs the Orioles made on the bases Saturday. But the miscue meant that after Mike Baumann stranded the Mariners’ automatic runner in the top of the 10th, Mullins served as Baltimore’s, scoring in front of McKenna in his first game after missing 20 with a right groin strain.
Dean Kremer delivered his longest start of the season for the Orioles, allowing three runs — all on solo home runs — on five hits in seven innings while striking out five and walking one. He’s allowed three runs or fewer in nine of his past 10 starts, lowering his ERA to 4.50. He, too, heaped praise on McKenna.
“He’s a good guy to have come in late in ballgames, make plenty of good catches and kind of be a catalyst,” Kremer said. “He does a lot of stuff behind the scenes, like in the dugout, as far as picking up guys and stuff over the course of the game. He’s a big part of this team.”
This article will be updated.
Mariners at Orioles
Sunday, 1:35 p.m.
TV: MASN
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
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