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At 77-66, the Baltimore Orioles are 1.5 games back from a Wild Card spot. If they can make up that ground in the final 19 games of the season and make it to the postseason, it would be their second straight playoff birth after 14 years of disappointment.

Although the O’s aren’t officially eliminated in the battle for the AL East, they are currently nine games behind the first-place Boston Red Sox. So in all likelihood, if the O’s are going to make the playoffs they will have to do it through the Wild Card route.

While that’s not an awful thing—and they will be used to to the pressure, as they went that route last season—it means the Orioles might be required to play in the one-game playoff.

Here’s a preview of all the teams that the Orioles could possibly play in that Wild Card Game, or perhaps even later in the playoffs.

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August wasn’t a particularly good month for the Baltimore Orioles. In 26 August games, the O’s played to a 12-14 record and remain on the outside looking in in the race for the playoffs.

Surprisingly enough, the O’s actually outscored their opponents 129-115. However, that means absolutely nothing.

As with any month, some players were hot in August, some were cold, while some were average.  That said, here are the grades for every player on the Orioles’ roster for the month of August.

All stats in the following slideshow can be found by clicking here (via ESPN.com).

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While the Baltimore Orioles‘ 2013 season is far from over, it’s never too early to speculate on the future of the ballclub.

The O’s have a solid team and they don’t have that many players who are free agents after this season, meaning their lineup probably won’t look extremely different from this year’s starting nine.

Still, they do have a couple of holes to address and everyone loves predictions. So, here is how the Baltimore Orioles’ lineup may look like in 2014.

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The Baltimore Orioles have filled one of their biggest needs, acquiring former All-Star closer Francisco Rodriguez from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for infield prospect Nick Delmonico. The Orioles announced this via their official Twitter feed:

The Orioles bullpen, while not terrible, has been disappointing this year, especially since it was perhaps their biggest strength last season. As of Tuesday, the Orioles rank 17th in the majors with their 3.68 ERA. Last season they ranked fifth with a 3.00 ERA.

K-Rod is another solid right-handed option out of the ‘pen for the O’s. He’ll probably take over the spot left open by former Oriole Pedro Strop.

While not initially the closer at the start of the season, Rodriguez has been very effective closing out games for the Brewers since taking over for Jim Henderson, converting all 10 of his save opportunities this season. His ERA is a stellar 1.09, and the 12-year veteran also recently picked up his 300th career save.

However, K-Rod will not be used as a closer with Baltimore. Although he has six blown saves this season, Orioles closer Jim Johnson continues to lead the majors with his 35 saves. His job is not in immediate danger.

That doesn’t mean K-Rod won’t be used in high-pressure situations. He’s likely second in line for save opportunities and, according to Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com, Orioles general manager Dan Duquette stated that Rodriguez will be used in late-game scenarios:

Buster Olney of ESPN concludes that K-Rod was one of the best relievers in the trade market and greatly improves the Orioles’ bullpen:

The Brewers received 21-year-old infield prospect Nick Delmonico in the trade, who was the Orioles’ sixth-round pick in 2011 and was ranked as the Orioles’ fifth overall prospect according to MLB.com.

Injuries have limited Delmonico to 60 games with Advanced-A Frederick. However, he has shown signs of legitimate power, already amassing 13 homers.

He has primarily been used as a third baseman this season, although he spent time at first and second base in 2012.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

As we near the quarter-mark of the season, the minor league affiliates of the Baltimore Orioles have been good as a whole.

The two most successful affiliates have been the Norfolk Tides of Triple-A, who currently lead their division with a record of 23-12, and the Frederick Keys of Single-A, who also lead theirs with a 18-14 record.

While much of Norfolk’s success has been helped by their influx of former major leaguers, the other affiliates’ successes are based completely on prospects.

The following list is an update on each of the Orioles’ top 10 prospects and how they’ve performed so far in the 2013 season. The ranking is based off the ranking of Orioles’ prospects over at MLB.com.

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The Seattle Mariners announced via press release Tuesday that they have acquired Baltimore Orioles infielder Robert Andino in exchange for outfielder Trayvon Robinson.

Andino, 28, hit .211 with 7 homers last season in 127 games. Originally acquired by the O’s via trade with the Marlins at the beginning of the 2009 season, Andino brought versatility and infield depth to a then struggling O’s team. With the injuries to Brian Roberts, Andino became the main option at second over the last couple years.

Most Orioles’ fans will remember Andino for his performance in the final game of 2011, as he hit the walk-off single against the Red Sox to help eliminate the Sox from playoff contention. “The Curse of the Andino” will be remembered by Baltimore and Boston fans for years to come.

A good teammate, Andino will be missed in the clubhouse. A tweet from pitcher Steve Johnson sums up his feelings on the trade:

Sad to see Dino go.. Great teammate.But pumped to play with Trayvon again. First roommate ever in pro ball in 2005 with the dodgers

— Steve Johnson (@SJohnson831) November 20, 2012

It is unclear how Seattle will use Andino, but more likely than not, with Dustin Ackley at second, Kyle Seager at third, and Brendan Ryan at short, Andino will be a utility bench player.

The acquisition of Trayvon Robinson will provide outfield depth for the Orioles, but by no means is a solution for a starting left fielder. The 25-year-old has hit .215 with 5 homeruns in 90 games over two seasons in Seattle. He will most likely fight for a roster spot in spring training, along with Lew Ford, LJ Hoes, Xavier Avery, and others.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com