Friday night thread for the Orioles game: at Twins, 8:10 p.m

This could be the night that decides the teams that are in the American League’s postseason picture. If the Orioles beat the Twins, the Twins are eliminated, the Orioles are confirmed as the No. 1 wild card team, and it is left to the Tigers and Royals to decide who plays the Orioles.

Either the Tigers or the Royals can clinch their own postseason berths with a win, regardless of what happens to the Twins, or, if the Tigers lose, the O’s, regardless of what happens in their own game. It’s a busy night! The Tigers begin their game against the White Sox at 6:40 a.m. – already started at the time of this post – while the Royals begin their game against the Braves at 7:20 a.m.

I’d feel better if the Orioles had their WC1 done by now, but the three-game magic number 1 is pretty safe, even considering the Tigers are playing the White Sox. The Twins faltered even more than the Orioles in September, which is why they are on the verge of elimination. They are averaging under four runs per game for the month and are 9-15 overall. That’s hard. But that doesn’t mean they won’t beat the O’s tonight.

Orioles lineup

1. Gunnar Henderson – SS
2. Jordan Westburg – 2B
3. Anthony Santander – RF
4. Colton Cowser – LF
5. Adleyrutschman – C
6. Ryan O’Hearn – DH
7. Ryan Mountcastle – 1B
8. Cedric Mullins – CF
9. Ramon Urias – 3B

Cade Povich is on the rise for the Orioles as they look to secure home field in the wild-card round. The Twins are a slightly better hitting team overall against lefties, but slightly worse against lefties. It would be nice if he finished his regular season off on a good note.

Lineup of the twins

1. Manuel Margot – RF
2. Carlos Correa – SS
3. Byron Buxton – CF
4. Carlos Santana – 1B
5. Royce Lewis – 3B
6. Kyle Farmer – 2B
7. Ryan Jeffers – DH
8. Christian Vazquez – C
9. Willi Castro – LF

The Twins’ starting pitcher is Pablo López, who is almost perfectly league average this year. Hopefully the Orioles’ new lineup can put together good results against López after struggling against Gerrit Cole last night.