Home field advantage in MLB playoffs may not be the benefit Orioles fans hope

The Baltimore Orioles concluded the 2024 regular season with an impressive, 5-1 road trip against the playoff-bound Yankees and the Minnesota Twins. On Tuesday night in the Bronx, the Orioles clinched a spot in the 2024 post-season, and after Friday night’s win in Minnesota, the Orioles clinched the number four seed, which ensures them home field advantage in the best-of-three Wild Card series this year.

There’s just one problem: opening the playoffs at home may not present a significant advantage for the Baltimore Orioles.

During their stretch of success that has spanned the last two seasons, the Orioles have played better away from Camden Yards than at Camden Yards. In 2023, the Orioles were 52-29 on the road (.642 winning percentage) versus 49-32 at home (.605 winning percentage). In fact, it was the Orioles’ struggles at home following their two home playoff losses to Texas that gave Orioles’ fans hope going into (an ultimately ill-fated) Game 3 last year in Arlington.

Things remained the same in 2024, despite the Orioles winning ten fewer games than in 2023. The Orioles were 47-34 away from Camden Yards (.575 winning percentage), versus only 44-37 at home (.540 winning percentage). The Orioles scored 411 runs (121 home runs) on the road this year, versus only 375 (112 home runs) at home. And despite having a lower ERA at home than on the road, the Orioles allowed a higher batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS at Camden Yards.

The Orioles’ earning home field in the Wild Card may not provide the advantage fans hope for

To be fair, the Orioles have lost 8 straight playoff games. Four of the losses came at home (twice against KC in 2014, twice last year in Texas) and four on the road (twice in KC in 2014, once in Toronto in 2016, once last year in Texas). Crazy as it sounds, the Orioles have not won a home playoff game since game 2 of the 2014 ALDS against the Tigers, when Delmon Young heroically smacked a three-run double into the left-field corner to turn a two-run deficit into a one-run lead.

Despite the numbers and bad memories from last season’s home playoff games against the Rangers, the Orioles and their fans should be excited for them to open the playoffs at home this year. The Orioles’ away record is better than their home record mostly because the Orioles are a really good road team, not because they are a poor home team.

They are still 93-69 at Camden Yards over the last two years and have played some of their most exciting games in Baltimore this season. With the playoffs set to start at Camden Yards on Tuesday, O’s fans have a lot to look forward to this week, regardless of where the team is playing.

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