On the hot seat a week ago, Showalter brings O’s back to life

A week ago, the Baltimore Orioles were seen as a hopeless franchise.  Bovada sports book in Las Vegas listed Buck Showalter as the baseball manager most likely to be fired.  Yes, people bet on such ghoulish things.

The Boston Globe on Saturday called the Orioles “the most dysfunctional organization in baseball.”  The team’s record was 10-27.  The very respected general manager, Dan Duquette, had been marginalized.   Personnel decisions were being made by a mostly absentee 88-year-old owner, Peter Angelos, and his ill-prepared sons John and Louis.

As for Showalter, he was being depicted as a fossil, 61 years old, out of touch, out of focus.  He had lost his mind in the 2016 postseason, when he failed to use his All-Star closer, Zach Britton, in a wild-card loss to Toronto.

Besides that, none of Showalter’s assistants were coaching anybody up.

Roger McDowell, in charge of the pitching staff, was having to answer for Alex Cobb, hired off the free-agent market for $57 million on a 4-year deal.  How can he be 0-5 with a 7.06 ERA?

Batting coach Scott Coolbaugh is tainted by Chris Davis, salaried at $24 million and hitting .170 with 4 home runs for the quarter-season.

But the buck doesn’t stop with Showalter and his coaches.  Some of the front-office decisions are ridiculed by other organizations.  

For example, letting kids in for free.  One Houston Astros exec said: “At least charge the kids a buck apiece.  It’s still cheaper to take them to the game than pay a baby-sitter.  The Orioles are competing against themselves for entertainment dollars.”

So with gloom clamping down Sunday on the otherwise lovable Camden Yards, the Orioles bashed a feisty little Tampa Bay team by a thunderous 17-1.

And that was no aberration.  The O’s are no longer the Zeroes.  They’ve won 5 of their past 6, heading into Tuesday night’s home game against surging Philadelphia.

The Orioles are well off the radar, 15 games behind the mighty Yankees and equally mighty Red Sox in baseball’s elite division, the American League East.  So few fans are noticing that Baltimore may have begun an upsurge that will last.

Check out the starting rotation.

Dylan Bundy, who a week ago gave up seven runs and four homers without recording an out, was an entirely different pitcher on Sunday.  The 25-year-old right-hander threw seven scoreless innings, allowing a total of seven base runners.

Even more encouraging was a quality start in Saturday’s big-league debut of David Hess, 24, who was going on 3-day rest to bail out a depleted staff.

Hess had earned promotion by carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning at Norfolk last Wednesday.  He throws 95-96 mph and has three off-speed pitches, all with sharp control that eluded him until this year.

Then there’s Kevin Gausman, who has five quality starts and a 3.18 ERA and seems to be blossoming at 27.

As for Cobb, he was damaged by MLB’s de facto hiring freeze in February.  He had no spring training, and he admitted he was not ready to pitch in his first three starts.  But in the three most recent ones he has not allowed more than three runs.

The fifth starter, Andrew Cashman, was hampered like Cobb by lack of spring training, but he’s regaining his form.  He was 11-11 with a 3.40 ERA last season for a mediocre Texas Rangers team.

Of course, losing Britton as a closer is a devastating blow.  He ruptured an Achilles working out in December and won’t be ready for game action until July, if then.

Still, the bullpen has talent: Richard Bleier (1.17 ERA in 18 games), Mychal Givens (3.32 in 17), Miguel Castro (3.55 in 15) and Darren O’Day (3.77 in 13).  Tanner Scott is a promising 23-year-old lefty with a 3.38 ERA for 5 games.

Brad Brach inherited the closer’s role with Britton on medical leave and struggled in April.  But he’s yielded but one earned run over his past five appearances.

The offense begins with Manny Machado and too often ends there.  He’s the MVP so far, second in the AL in batting (.350) and leading in home runs (13) and RBI (38).

The 25-year-old shortstop is backed in the lineup by Trey Mancini (.787 OPS), Adam Jones (.711, with a 10-game hitting streak) and Mark Trumbo, hitting .327 in 13 games since returning from rehab.  Trumbo led the majors with 47 home runs in 2016 and had 23 last season.  What’s needed is a rebound by Davis, who’s hit at least 26 homers in six consecutive years.  He should not be through at 32.

Oriole Nation seems resigned to the departures of Machado and Britton, due to be free agents in the off-season.  Baltimore probably has too much ground to make up this year.  But if Duquette is selling when the trade deadline approaches, he could pick up enough pieces for a rapid rebuild.  If his hands are not tied by clumsy ownership.