Colton Cowser saves day with leaping, walk-off home-run robbery to push Orioles to .500 for first time since April

After being left for dead earlier in the season, the Baltimore Orioles are suddenly playing their best ball. The team entered play Monday on a hot streak, winning seven of their last nine games, including three straight. While the team had a decent shot to extend that streak Monday against the Colorado Rockies, no one expected the contest to become one of Baltimore’s signature wins this season.

But that’s exactly how it might be remembered if the Orioles make a Cinderella run to the postseason, all thanks to outfielder Colton Cowser.

With the Orioles clinging to a 2-1 lead in the ninth inning — thanks to a late RBI by Cowser — Rockies outfielders Troy Johnston hit a one-out double off O’s closer Andrew Kittredge.

Kittredge managed to secure a second out, bringing the Rockies’ most-feared hitter, Jake McCarthy to the plate. On the second pitch of the at-bat, McCarthy drove a ball deep to center field. As Cowser retreated toward the wall, it looked as if McCarthy had just given his team a walk-off win.

The play did end in a walk-off … but not in the way many expected.

Cowser tracked the ball all the way to the wall, jumped, twisting his body to face home plate, shot both his legs to the side, mimicking a mid-air version of the splits and securing the ball in his glove just before it sailed over the center-field wall.

He celebrated with an emphatic yell.

With the win, the Orioles reached .500 for the first time since April. The victory also pushed the team to 8-2 over its last 10 games, and moved it to just .5 games out of a wild-card spot in the American League.

After performing below expectations all season, the team’s hitting has found its stride. Pete Alonso, Gunnar Henderson, Coby Mayo and Cowser all have turned in wRC+ figures of 133 or above during August, meaning they’ve performed 33 percent better than the average MLB hitter over that period. Those four have played a significant role in the team’s recent hot streak. Monday’s game-winning catch by Cowser was more proof of that.

With the Orioles now extremely close to a playoff spot, the team is finally starting to live up to its lofty preseason expectations. Securing their spot in the postseason won’t be easy, as the American League is a jumbled mess, but a hot September would go a long way toward the Orioles winning back some jilted fans following an underwhelming first half.