MINNEAPOLIS -- Members of the Orioles¡¯ 2023 American League East championship team got to experience the atmosphere of October baseball at Camden Yards. That squad ended the franchise¡¯s seven-year postseason drought and hosted its first playoff home games since ¡®14.

It was electric. The sellout crowds were packed with orange apparel. There were constant roars. The energy was palpable.

¡°It's insane. It's incredible, actually,¡± Ryan O¡¯Hearn said. ¡°Just how loud it is.¡±

This year, Baltimore will get to hear that raucous noise again.

The Orioles notched a 7-2 victory over the Twins in Friday night¡¯s series opener at Target Field, clinching the American League¡¯s top Wild Card seed and home-field advantage in the AL Wild Card Series. Baltimore also eliminated Minnesota from playoff contention in the process.

? Postseason FAQ: What's next for the Orioles?

The O¡¯s (89-71) will face either the Tigers or the Royals at Camden Yards in the AL Wild Card Series. Game 1 is set for Tuesday, followed by Game 2 on Wednesday and a potential Game 3 on Thursday. Detroit (86-74) has a one-game lead for the No. 5 seed over Kansas City (85-75), which holds the tiebreaker between the two teams.

It¡¯ll be the second straight year that postseason baseball has been held in Baltimore. Last year, the Orioles hosted Games 1 and 2 of the AL Division Series, but they were swept in three games by the eventual World Series champion Rangers.

¡°Looking forward to hearing the 'O!' in the national anthem. Just seeing the energy in the stadium,¡± said O¡¯Hearn, who went deep for the first time since Aug. 27 with a two-run homer in the second. ¡°We're going to, hopefully, put on a show for our home fans and kind of avenge how last year¡¯s home postseason games went.¡±

The O's final two games of the regular season vs. the Twins will be all about getting players tuned up for the postseason. Rookie left-hander Cade Povich already appears ready to go, should the Orioles decide to include the 24-year-old on their roster for any series.

Povich tossed 5 2/3 scoreless innings against Minnesota -- the organization that selected the southpaw in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft and then sent him to Baltimore in the Jorge L¨®pez deal at the ¡®22 Trade Deadline.

¡°My fianc¨¦e¡¯s from here, being closer to family -- that¡¯s kind of what meant a lot to me,¡± said Povich, who grew up in Bellevue, Neb., and shrugged off any notion of this being a ¡°revenge game.¡±

Povich threw 17 of the 20 fastest pitches in his 16-start MLB career, including a 96 mph four-seam fastball to Manuel Margot in the first and two others that were 95 mph or more, per Statcast. His previous high was 94.5.

Povich touched 95 mph in Triple-A, so it wasn¡¯t completely out of the norm for him.

Over five September starts, Povich recorded a 2.60 ERA to finish the regular season strong. Consider it an audition for the postseason.

The O¡¯s will likely send Corbin Burnes and Zach Eflin, respectively, to the mound for Games 1 and 2 of the Wild Card Series, with Dean Kremer the favorite to start a potential Game 3. Albert Su¨¢rez is also in the mix to serve as either a starter or reliever in October.

Povich hopes he¡¯ll get an opportunity to make his postseason debut, however it comes.

¡°I understand the roster, I understand me being young,¡± Povich said. ¡°But just treating every start as kind of a tryout for the postseason, giving my best to hopefully get a chance in the postseason, and I¡¯m very pleased with how this last month went.¡±

The Orioles gave Povich plenty of offensive support in his final regular-season outing. Colton Cowser hit the 24th homer of the season for the rookie -- a solo shot in the seventh -- then Baltimore broke the game open with a four-run eighth.

When the O¡¯s are clicking like that, they can be a dangerous team. And they¡¯re hoping this is how they¡¯ll perform next week, when they¡¯ll play their biggest games of the year so far amid their return to October.

¡°We¡¯re going to be pumped to play in front of our fans,¡± manager Brandon Hyde said. ¡°We know there¡¯s going to be a lot of energy and excitement in the ballpark, and our guys are really looking forward to that.¡±