MINNEAPOLIS — The Baltimore Orioles won 91 games this season, and for much of the second half, it felt like a disappointment.

At any point in the previous 40 years, that sentence would’ve been absurd to write about this franchise. It’s even more so considering, three seasons ago, the rebuilding Orioles lost 110 games — their third time hitting the century mark in a four-year stretch.

Yet, here we are. The Orioles on Sunday defeated the Minnesota Twins, 6-2, in a meaningless game to end the regular season with 91 wins. Only four other times over the past four decades has Baltimore matched that tally.

“I’m really proud of this group,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “We talked about it a lot, but we’ve had quite a bit of adversity this year. Going to the big leagues and winning 91 games, it’s an incredible job by the guys in that room. Everybody in that clubhouse — coaching staff, trainers, strength, and ultimately it’s all about the players.”

The 2024 season, while not nearly as magical as the 2023 campaign, concludes the best two-year stretch of Orioles baseball since 1982-83 — the last time they won more than 88 games in consecutive seasons. Baltimore’s last World Series title and appearance came in 1983.

Sure, the second half has been a drag. Overwhelming injuries and underwhelming play caused the Orioles to play .500 ball over the final four months. They went 33-33 in the second half and 9-11 over their final 20 games. At times, it felt like the Orioles would never emerge from the abyss. October baseball was virtually a guarantee after their scorching-hot first half, but if they kept playing that poorly, what chance could they really have?

But the final week of the regular season provided hope. The “mojo” general manager Mike Elias wished his club would find appears to be back. And, most important, the Orioles played good baseball for an extended period for the first time in months. The contests were purely tune-ups for the postseason, but the Orioles appear to be hitting their stride heading into their playoff opener Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals. The entire best-of-three series will be played in Baltimore.

They took two of three from the New York Yankees and clinched a playoff spot in the Bronx. Baltimore lost the ultimate prize of defending its American League East crown, but it guaranteed the Orioles would play postseason baseball in consecutive years for the first time since 1996-97 — before the team’s young core of Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg were born.

They kept it rolling in the Twin Cities with a sweep of the Twins — the Orioles’ first since early June. Despite having nothing to play for the past two days, Baltimore outscored Minnesota, 15-4.

“Really, really happy with how we played on this road trip,” Hyde said. “I thought we played as good of baseball as we’ve played for a while. Really excited about how we’re playing going into the postseason.”

Sunday, Albert Suárez provided six critical innings for a pitching staff Hyde didn’t want to wear down. By taking on a full starter’s workload, Suárez is unlikely to make the AL wild-card roster, though he could be on a potential AL Division Series roster or even perhaps start Game 1 of that set against the Yankees if the Orioles need a rested starting pitcher.

“We’re making roster decisions for the wild-card round,” Hyde said. “With a short series, we just have a lot of things in play. He pitched great, though. Awesome start, six great innings, and continuing to do what he’s done all year.”

Suárez allowed solo homers to Carlos Santana and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. in the second and third innings, respectively, for the lone runs the Orioles allowed. The journeyman came out of nowhere this season to step up for a pitching staff beleaguered by injuries. After Tyler Wells, Kyle Bradish, John Means and Grayson Rodriguez went down to season-ending injuries, Suárez repeatedly stepped up and ended the year with a 3.70 ERA and a team-high eight scoreless outings.

“As we were walking in from the bullpen today, I said, ‘Regardless of how today goes, your last start of the season, just know we’re not who we are without you,'” catcher James McCann said. “If we would’ve said in spring training Albert Suárez was going to have as many meaningful innings as he had for us, the question would be, who went down? Obviously, we know the answer now, who went down and whose shoes he filled. He did a phenomenal job.

“Who he is as a player is obviously great, but also who he’s been as a teammate in the clubhouse, he’s a great guy, and I’m really happy for his success.”

Closer Seranthony Domínguez allowed two base runners in the seventh as his late-season struggles continued, but left-hander Gregory Soto escaped his former Phillies teammate’s jam. Jacob Webb tossed his fourth straight scoreless outing in the eighth. Colin Selby, who was recalled earlier in the day to provide depth, slammed the door in the ninth. Tucker Davidson, who tossed 4 2/3 scoreless in Saturday’s win, was designated for assignment to give the Orioles an open spot on their 40-man roster.

McCann capped off his solid and steady campaign with a three-run homer — his eighth of the year — in the fifth. Jordan Westburg drove in two runs in the seventh, and Heston Kjerstad put an exclamation point on the win with a solo homer — his first since July 7 — in the eighth.

But none of this matters now, and that’s what McCann loves about October.

“This is what we play for,” he said. “Regular season stats don’t matter, regular season record doesn’t matter. All that matters is winning each pitch, each inning and advancing. Last year, things didn’t go our way. This year, I feel like we’re prepared to be ready to go.”

AL wild-card series, Game 1

Royals at Orioles

(Best-of-three)

Tuesday, TBA

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